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I just came across this screenshot of a Tumblr conversation on Twitter:

enter image description here

In the story, the author describes how his father took part of a scouting jamboree on the Isle of Man in 1977 and set off some bottle rockets. One of the bottle rockets went off-course and exploded right besides the car that was driving around Queen Elizabeth II during her 1977 Silver Jubilee. Because this was during the height of the Troubles, his dad got a lifetime ban from the Isle of Man that didn't get lifted until 2017.

when my dad was 15 he went with his scout troop to a scouting jamboree on the isle of man where he and his friends decided to set off bottle rockets in the park cos idk they were dumb boys. and one of the bottle rockets went careening off into the road where it exploded right besides a car.

now, in what year was my dad 15? 1977. the queen of england's silver jubilee year. and what was the car my dad's bottle rocket hit? the queen's car in the cavalcade during her jubilee visit to the isle of man

throw int he fact my dad is irish and the 70s were the height of the troubles between the republic and britain and WHAM BAM THANK YA MAM! my dad got hit with a lifelong ban from ever visiting the isle of man end he and the whole scout troop were sent home

I'm skeptical of this story because I can't find a single other source anywhere online, although this predates the internet by about 20 years so that's not too suprising, and they probably tried to keep it a bit on the down-low because of the age of the person involved.

Did this above described event happen?

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    Wikipedia's list of events during the Silver Jubilee doesn't mention any royal visits to the Isle of Man, though of the dozens of royal visits it does list, it only provides a source for one of them. Whether the person involved was 15 or not, I'd be amazed if "the Queen's motorcade got hit with a bottle rocket" would get absolutely no press coverage.
    – F1Krazy
    Nov 25, 2019 at 11:08
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    We're going to the Channel Islands? The Isle of Man isn't a "Channel Island". Perhaps they weren't in the Isle of Man in the first place. There does not seem to have been a scouting jamboree there in 1977 either.
    – Weather Vane
    Nov 25, 2019 at 12:32
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    @F1Krazy I mean, I asked this question because I'm skeptical about this particular event, and if it happened, it's possible the event happened in a different way. But I don't think this question itself would be a bad fit for this site. It makes a claim, and even though it might not be a claim made by a notable person, there were other recent posts like the cardboard Queen one that made me consider it could fit here.
    – Nzall
    Nov 25, 2019 at 13:18
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    @Nzall I never said the question was a bad fit for the website. Viral social media posts are on-topic here AFAIK, because they're evidently widely believed. I'm skeptical too, I just don't have enough evidence for a conclusive answer (I don't consider the linked Wiki article 100% trustworthy, given the lack of sources).
    – F1Krazy
    Nov 25, 2019 at 13:22
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    Would make more sense if it was 1979. alamy.com/stock-photo/royal-visit-isle-man-queen.html en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scouting_on_the_Isle_of_Man
    – richardb
    Nov 25, 2019 at 13:38

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