King Charles: Man arrested after reports egg thrown in monarch's direction

A man has been arrested on suspicion of common assault after an egg was reportedly thrown in the direction of the King.

The alleged incident happened while King Charles was on a walkabout in Luton town centre on Tuesday.

Bedfordshire Police said a man in his 20s was detained and is in custody.

The monarch was steered away from crowds by his security staff before continuing to meet members of the public.

The latest incident comes just weeks after a 23-year-old student was arrested after eggs were thrown at the King and Queen Consort during their visit to York.

The royal couple had just arrived in the city on 9 November to unveil a statue in honour of the late Queen at York Minster when four eggs were thrown, all of which missed.

Many of those who greeted King Charles at Luton Town Hall wished him a "Merry Christmas", while some had brought presents to give to him.

The King also met community leaders, including from the Ghana Society, the Royal British Legion and the Luton Town football academy, as well as officially opening the Guru Nanak Gurdwara temple.

Later, the King boarded the DART (Direct Air-Rail Transit) - a new airport shuttle which will connect people travelling from Luton Airport Parkway station to the terminal.

The first sign of anything unexpected happening was when the King was suddenly and firmly steered away from the crowd by his security team.

It had been one of King Charles's trademark walkabouts - friendly, close up and with lots of handshakes and a sea of camera phones.

He was getting an enthusiastic reception from hundreds of people gathered on a cold morning outside Luton town hall.

There was some kind of flurry in the crowd that seemed to prompt the security scare. I was standing only a few feet away, there was nothing obviously shouted and nothing seemed to land near the King. Although steered, he didn't seem stirred.

A few moments later the walkabout began again across the square. Most of the people waiting to see him would have been unaware anything had happened.

Even if it gives his security team nightmares, these walkabouts, hands-on and with some joking exchanges, seem to be something that the King really enjoys, more so perhaps than the choreographed lines of dignitaries and official guests.

After some tea drinking and signing a book inside the town hall - with his own pen, not one provided - he went back for some more handshakes with the crowd outside. On a cold day, people were warming to him.

It was also a noticeably diverse crowd. Sally Grant from Dunstable had come wearing an outfit which she said celebrated her Kenyan family background and she wanted to show her support.

The local mayor, Sameera Saleem, said she appreciated the King's visit and spending so much time with the public. Her dad Raja Saleem was there too, and he told the King that he'd been mayor when the late Queen had visited in 1999. He showed me the picture of him and the Queen on his mobile phone, still proud of the moment. How many people in the crowd will one day show their children the day they met the King in Luton?

Dynasties were meeting again in the day to day business of monarchy.