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A former guardsman of the Queen revealed how he "nearly shot" Her Majesty after she went for a late night walk in the palace grounds when she could not sleep.

The unnamed soldier has told how he spotted the figure in the darkness at 3am, The Times diary column reported.

"Thinking that he had come across an intruder, he shouted: 'Who's that?' To his surprise it was the Queen. 'Bloody hell, Your Majesty, I nearly shot you', he blurted out," the newspaper said.

The Queen, who apparently likes to go for a stroll when she cannot sleep, was said to have responded: "That's quite all right. Next time I'll ring through beforehand so you don't have to shoot me."

Buckingham Palace declined to comment.

Read more Prince Philip attends New Year's Day church service alone

The news comes after the Queen missed a New Year's Day church service at Sandringham due to a lingering heavy cold.

She and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, were forced to delay their journey from Buckingham Palace to their Norfolk estate before Christmas after she fell ill.