Ex-SAS commander fat-shames Guards in Burnham-Zelensky photo op as 'unarmed Teletubbies in ill-fitting playground uniforms'

Published: 09:23 BST, 17 October 2026 | Updated: 09:54 BST, 17 October 2026

A former SAS commander has accused Irish Guards of looking like 'unarmed Teletubbies' as they lined up outside Downing Street.

Eleven soldiers, wearing their traditional scarlet red tunic and black bearskin hat, formed a guard of honour as Prime Minister Andy Burnham welcomed Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday. 

But retired lieutenant colonel Richard Williams said the resulting photograph showed 'a picture of decline' and accused the Guards of being 'pseudo soldiers used as decorations' in 'ill-fitting playground uniforms'.

In his scathing attack on X, which described the photograph as 'awful', he added: 'The very opposite of martial excellence and so far from the hard steel and war-won standards of the past.

'No wonder IRGC finds it easy to roam free around the UK...'

In a second post, Williams, who led 22 SAS, compared the image with a photograph of the late Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother inspecting the Irish Guards at the Old Chelsea Barracks on St Patrick's Day in 1928.

A former SAS commander has accused Irish Guards of looking like 'unarmed Teletubbies' as they lined up outside Downing Street on Wednesday

Eleven soldiers, wearing their traditional scarlet red tunic and black bearskin hat, formed a guard of honour as Prime Minister Andy Burnham welcomed President Volodymyr Zelensky 

Former SAS commander Richard Williams launched a scathing attack on the physical condition of the soldiers

He added the simple caption: 'The way it was...' 

Irish Guards commanding officer Lt Col Ben Irwin-Clark reacted strongly to criticism of his ranks and told The Sun: 'Those of you writing negative comments about the regiment need to give your heads a wobble.'

The furore comes as the head of the Army warned Britain needs to be prepared to make sacrifices to defend the country.

General Sir Roly Walker said earlier this week that how the UK responds to threats will be laid out in a 'frank discussion' between political leaders and citizens.

The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) was addressing 700 newly qualified troops when he offered a rare insight into plans to prepare for direct conflict.

Sir Roly praised the soldiers and called on UK citizens to recognise what must be done to ensure Britain is ready for such an eventuality.

He said: ‘You didn’t know this but our nation is going to need you. There was a time when our nation did not want to think of a time when it would need its soldiers to fight in a war.

‘Indeed, very soon, the political leaders of this country will start to have a frank conversation with the citizens of this country about just what is going on and where the risk lies.

‘They are going to try and explain to our citizens that our citizens have got to consent to sacrifices to prioritise defence and security.

‘And then they are going to ask those citizens, to whom we are not necessarily at the front of their mind, that they too need to play a part in the defence and security of this country.’

Richard Williams, who led 22 SAS, launched a scathing attack on X and called the Irish Guards the 'very opposite of martial excellence'

Williams compared today's ranks with a photograph of the late Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother inspecting the Irish Guards at the Old Chelsea Barracks on St Patrick's Day 1928

His intervention came as Labour is expected to continue investing 2.7 per cent of GDP for the remainder of the decade into the armed forces - despite calls for spending to reach 3.0 per cent by 2030.

The UK has until 2035 to meet the Nato defence spending benchmark of 3.5 per cent - which will require additional funding of around £25billion per year.

The Mail has led calls for the armed forces to receive a spending boost as part of the paper's Don't Leave Britain Defenceless campaign.

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting also vowed in July that he would follow his predecessor, John Healey, and quit as Defence Secretary if Labour does not increase military spending 'as a matter of principle'.