“This Should Never Have Happened” Radio Station Forced To Apologise After Shocking King Charles D3ath Blunder
The pirate radio made a false announcement that King Charles had died (Image: Getty)
Royal fans were in shocked when they tuned in and heard that King Charles had died. Radio Caroline, which broadcasts across the Midlands and South England, has since apologised for making the false announcement on Tuesday, as the afternoon programme was halted.
The annoucement went on repeat and said: “This is Radio Caroline, we have suspended our normal programmes until further notice as a mark of respect following the passing of His Majesty King Charles III.” It is then followed by the national anthem, God Save the King.
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One wrote: “That 15 minutes of silence probably gave some people the longest heartbeat of their lives. Shows how powerful official protocols can feel.”
A second said: “One wrong button and an entire country almost entered mourning mode Imagine hearing ‘God Save the King’ unexpectedly on live radio.” And a third added: “They should be shut down. This type of news need to be verified from official sources, and that never happened. How awful.”
Radio Caroline said the mistake on a “computer error”. In a statement, Peter Moore, the Station Manager, clarified: “Due to a computer error at our main studio the Death of a Monarch procedure, which all UK stations hold in readiness while hoping not to require, was accidentally activated on Tuesday afternoon (May 19), mistakenly announcing that HRH the King had passed away.”
The post continued: “Radio Caroline then fell silent as would be required, which alerted us to restore programming and issue an on-air apology. Caroline has been pleased to broadcast Her Majesty the Queen’s, and now the King’s, Christmas Message and we hope to do so for many years to come. We apologise to HM the King and to our listeners for any distress caused.”
Radio Caroline was founded in 1964 by Ronan O’Rahilly and Allan Crawford to compete with the BBC. The programme then ceased for approximately 15 minutes, before an on-air apology was made when the hosts came back on the air.
Unlicensed by any Government for most of its early life, it was a pirate radio station that never became illegal due to operating outside any national jurisdiction.