In exchanges, Cooper asked Sergeant McGregor: “Would you consider it serious if police officers serving in royalty protection got access to the thrones of the Queen and Prince Philip, sat on them with their feet up, putting their thumbs up in a comical pose and having their photograph taken. That’s just what you’ve done, isn’t it?”

The answer was "possibly." Sergeant McGregor said he "didn’t recall."

Cooper also suggested there had been a procedure among armed officers at Buckingham Palace, whereby one officer on duty would sleep and be warned by a colleague that a superior was approaching.

McGregor denied there was such a system in place.

State symbols have long been an attraction for those patriotic fun lovers.

In 2005-06, granddaughters of the then-president of Estonia, Arnold Rüütel, made a habit of partying with their friends in the presidential palace when the grandparents are away. They drank alcohol, smoked marijuana, and urinated on the roof of the building, at times with as many as 50 guests.