Very special person with police escort on Lordship Lane..

[ernesto]

apparently its prince andrew doing a practice run to Belmarsh from the Old bailey

[steveo]

Ho ho ho

[simonethebeaver]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-30928114

My guess is that it is one or more of the attendees at this. They could be staying somewhere local. The UK has treaty obligations to give police protection to visiting heads of state, foreign ministers, and any other visiting statesperson judged to be at risk.

[Jeremy]

I expect John Kerry is staying at the Victoria Inn.

[simonethebeaver]

Quite possibly!

It's not unusual for visitors to stay with friends or relatives when in the UK. Probably not Kerry though.

[david_carnell]

Most overseas visitors would be travelling in a diplomatic vehicle with their own flag on display.

[simonethebeaver]

No they wouldn't. If they're fully protected, they are put into an MPS vehicle that meets security standards. Diplomatic Jags don't cut it. I do know what I'm talking about!

[Penguin68]

As others have noted (particularly with the car being empty), these seem much more likely to be either practice or a training runs - very possibly to ensure the outriders remain in contact with (and the right distances from) the target car. Running a tight convoy of vehicles, at reasonable speed, through suburban traffic and streets is a non-trivial skill, which can only be learned and practiced in 'real' situations. If this is a rehearsal (as opposed to more general training) the real event may not even be our roads - just roads much like them.

[simonethebeaver]

Yes, I meant practice runs for this event!

[Penguin68]

Good security would suggest a close protection team would familiarise themselves with a route fairly inconspiciously - so as not to alert anyone to the route - and practice convoying somewhere else, similar to but not the real route - save where the route (i.e. The Mall) is always going to be very obvious and predicatable.

[simonethebeaver]

Fine. I know nothing!

[peckhamside]

Maybe they were moving a high risk prisoner, though they usually use a van so training a good guess.

[Pugwash]

There is an anticipated Royal visit sometime to Southwark so perhaps a dry run.

[Jennys]

Today there were two army ? Helicopters flying over in a kind of formation. Part of the same exercise maybe?

[achilles1]

You want to have more respect for the dead lady

[ernesto]

which dead lady ?

[jctg]

The Queen Mum I presume.

[ernesto]

oh, that snaggle toothed fascist.

[jctg]

Gin-soaked racist.

[Dulwich Born And Bred]

Just to put you out of your misery On the 23rd January 2015, Chris Wormald, the permanent secretary for the department of education visited a local Primary School.

[civilservant]

DulwichBorn&Bred Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Just to put you out of your misery On the 23rd

> January 2015, Chris Wormald, the permanent

> secretary for the department of education visited

> Heber Primary School.

he's only a civil servant for heaven's sake! they go home on the bus or tube like ordinary people!

he might have been driven to Heber in a car if he was on an official visit, but he wouldn't have had a police escort. That sort of thing is reserved for royals. Like Prince Andrew. Or prisoners. Although the latter are generally in some sort of van.

[KidKruger]

"Today there were two army ? Helicopters flying over in a kind of formation. Part of the same exercise maybe?"

*mind ponders over the bewildering no. of formations that two helicopters could fly in"

[Jeremy]

Police escort for Chris Wormald visiting a primary school!! Haha, brilliant.

[Dulwich Born And Bred]

No one would come sarf of the river without a police escort 😉

[Seabag]

It was to stop him escaping and claiming asylum in ED