Ryan Barby, a close protection operative and former Airborne soldier who served tours in Afghanistan, has revealed the pressures of being on duty at significant Royal events. After working with stars like Stormzy and Louis Tomlinson, and remembering Liam Payne from One Direction, Ryan noted the stark difference when involved with the Royals, especially during Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee and later her state funeral in 2022.
From Nottingham and having joined the army at 16, Ryan explained: “The difference being on the high profile jobs is you have to stay switched on 24/7.”
He also emphasised the seriousness of such tasks, saying: “When it goes live there are cameras absolutely everywhere from all media around the world so it would be a massive embarrassment for you within the industry to be caught on your phone or messing around not paying attention. You could potentially be thrown off task on the spot with no second chances.”
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Ryan’s illustrious career also includes supporting the American Secret Service during President Joe Biden’s visit to Edinburgh, but a distinguished personal moment was receiving a military medal from then-Prince Charles in 2008 for Operation Herrick.
MMA fighter Ryan, who has served as a bodyguard for world leaders, treated his role with the same professionalism as any other job, striving to keep emotions from affecting his performance. He shared insights into his unique experience: “It was a very unique role that day, assisting many different world leaders and their close protection teams. It was extremely interesting watching how they all operate because every nation uses different tactics.”, reports the Mirror.
He added, “I would never disclose any tactics used but it was a good learning curve and great experience seeing world class operators in action.”
Ryan also played a crucial part in the security operations during the Queen’s Jubilee, observing the immense global respect for Her Majesty: “Her majesty carried a lot of respect around the world and it was clear to see that day she will be deeply missed and she powerfully cemented herself in the history books that’s for sure with a reported more than one million people turning up.”
He described working five nights at the Jubilee, enduring shifts of at least 12 hours, as a “great highlight” of his career, which was well-supported by his military background.
Despite the demanding nature of the job, requiring him to stay on his feet all day, Ryan’s army experience stood him in good stead. He expressed his deepest pride in doing this work for his children: “The proudest moment for me is knowing I am doing this work for my children.”
He concluded with a personal reflection on his motivation, “So no matter how tough it gets I have to keep going for them.”