Forty years after it took place, the notorious break-in at Buckingham Palace still defies belief. During what stands as one of the most extraordinary episodes in Her Majesty's life, the trespasser ultimately faced only a minor charge — for stealing a bottle of Prince Charles' wine.
What made the July 1982 palace breach so remarkable? For starters, it unfolded at dawn, right around 7.15 am. On top of that, Michael Fagan, the intruder, somehow managed to identify the Queen's bedroom from among nearly 200 bedrooms scattered throughout the Palace. Twice during his wanderings, Fagan set off the internal alarm — yet both times, police dismissed it as a malfunction and simply switched it off. Undeterred, he continued strolling through the Palace, stopping to admire the paintings as he went.
Fagan actually came face to face with the Queen herself after scaling through her window. Understandably startled, she demanded to know what he was doing. Before long, she summoned the guards, and a chambermaid arrived to escort Fagan out of the room. Remarkably, rather than feeling frightened or remorseful following his arrest, Fagan expressed that he was honored — not only to have met the Queen but to have sat on her bed.
In the aftermath of the intrusion, a shocking revelation emerged: Fagan had already broken into the palace a month earlier, getting in and out without incident. It was only when he returned in an intoxicated state that he was finally caught.
Even though he had infiltrated one of the most heavily guarded buildings in England, Fagan escaped serious criminal charges. He faced only a theft charge, and a jury ultimately acquitted him. He did, however, spend three months in a psychiatric hospital.