A viral TikTok shows a Queen’s guard shouting at a tourist for touching his horse’s reins as they pose for a photo

• A video shows a member of the Horse Guards shouting at a tourist for touching his horse's reins.
• In the TikTok video, a guard shouts: "Stand back from the Queen's lifeguard, don't touch the reins."
• An Army spokesperson told Insider guards must shout loudly if tourists get too close to the horses.

A member of the Queen's Guard was filmed raising his voice at a tourist who touched his horse's reins, according to a viral TikTok video posted in early July.

An Army spokesperson told Insider that guards need to alert the public if they get too close to the animals because they can be "unpredictable." 

The video, which has over 5 million views as of Tuesday, was posted by user Ethan, who goes by @_phigs on TikTok and whose last name is not known to Insider. Insider could not reach Ethan for comment, but the TikTok user posted two previous videos that show separate incidents involving the Queen's Guard on the platform; one from June 5 shows a guard slipping while on the job, and another from June 2 shows marching guards telling a man to move out of their way.  

The latest video shows a member of the Horse Guard breaking his silence to shout at a female tourist who touched his horse's reins. In text used in the video, the poster describes the woman as their stepmother, but it's not clear if this is the case (the poster's June 2 video described the man shown in the footage as their father).

In the video, the guard can be heard shouting, "Stand back from the Queen's lifeguard, don't touch the reins," which prompts the woman to quickly move away.

"We will never return to London after this incident," the caption on the video reads.

In a statement obtained by Insider on Tuesday, an Army spokesperson said they "take all incidents like this seriously" and hope that all tourists who visit to see the Horse Guards "have an enjoyable time." 

"This area is particularly busy with tourists and, on occasions, the soldiers undertaking Guard duty need to shout loudly to alert members of the public if they get too close to the horses, which happened in this case," the statement said. "We have signs placed alongside the horse boxes, stating that the horses bite and would always encourage the public not to get close to horses, as, after all, they are animals and can be unpredictable."

The National Army Museum website states that the Horse Guards unit was formed in 1969 and is one of the two Household Cavalry regiments in the British Army, alongside the Life Guards.