38. The Silversmith Stalker
An invitation to Buckingham Palace to formally see Queen Victoria was a big deal and a great honor, coveted by many. On the other hand, just getting into Buckingham Palace and seeing the queen, informally and without invitation, was a cinch. Staggering drunks had little trouble getting into the palace grounds to sleep off a bender in the royal garden. Others, with more sinister and creepy intentions, had little trouble reaching the palace itself.
Such was the case with silversmith Thomas Flower, one of Victoria’s persistent admirers, who was found sleeping in a chair near the queen’s bedroom in the summer of 1838. Apparently, he had managed to get into the palace, then wandered around for hours trying to find the queen – Buckingham Palace was and remains a big building. Finally, after tiring of the search, he fell asleep. He was arrested and imprisoned, until friends bailed him out for £50.