Two women in their 80s filmed trying to smash glass protecting Magna Carta

Just Stop Oil have smashed the glass protecting the Magna Carta before glueing their hands together.

Footage shows Reverend Dr Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, using a hammer and chisel to break the glass which covers the historical document at the British Library.

The pair glued their hands together after holding up a sign reading: ‘The government is breaking the law.’

It does not appear the glass was shattered.

Security is heard asking, ‘Can you stop doing that please?’ before the pair respond: ‘No.’

They then begin chanting, ‘We must stop oil’ before sitting down and rubbing glue on their hands.

There are only four surviving copies of the Magna Carta, two of which are held at the British Library and the others being stored at Lincoln Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral.

A Just Stop Oil Spokesperson said: ‘Clause 39 of the Magna Carta is one of four clauses still enshrined in UK common law, a so-called golden passage that states: “No free man is to be arrested, or imprisoned, or in any other way ruined, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.

Reverend Dr Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, broke the glass (Picture: Just Stop Oil)

‘Contrast that with civil law as it stands in 2024, where corporations are buying private laws in the form of injunctions that circumvent the people’s rights to a trial by jury for speaking out against the crimes of oil companies.’

This is a developing news story, more to follow soon… Check back shortly for further updates.

Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.