Secret Life of the Tower of London’s Chief Guard

On the eve of his retirement, the foremost symbol of jolly old England recalls decades spent sleeping in a former prison cell while watching over Her Majesty’s ancient fortress.

"The Beefeaters, whose nickname comes from days when they were partly paid in chunks of beef, spend long, tiring days shepherding waves of tourists around the various attractions within the Tower of London: Traitor’s Gate, the Bloody Tower, the Jewel House. Each hour, warders serve up grisly anecdotes of Britain’s blood-stained history, a chilling smattering of ghosts, murders and beheadings – legend and fact told with a mix of gore and gallows humor. And the tourists love it.

If there’s a tourist favorite among the ranks, it would probably be the Raven Master...

On the eve of his retirement, the foremost symbol of jolly old England recalls decades spent sleeping in a former prison cell while watching over Her Majesty’s ancient fortress.

"The Beefeaters, whose nickname comes from days when they were partly paid in chunks of beef, spend long, tiring days shepherding waves of tourists around the various attractions within the Tower of London: Traitor’s Gate, the Bloody Tower, the Jewel House. Each hour, warders serve up grisly anecdotes of Britain’s blood-stained history, a chilling smattering of ghosts, murders and beheadings – legend and fact told with a mix of gore and gallows humor. And the tourists love it.

If there’s a tourist favorite among the ranks, it would probably be the Raven Master...