UK Radio Station Apologises After Mistakenly Announcing King’s Death Due To Technical Error

UK radio station Radio Caroline has apologised after mistakenly announcing the death of the King, with the station blaming the incident on a technical issue and an off-air presenter who was unaware that the broadcast had been interrupted.

The station explained that the presenter was broadcasting remotely and did not realise the programme had gone off air.

Radio Caroline said the presenter “would not realise that they had gone ‘off air’ unless they were monitoring their output via an internet monitor.”

According to the station, its director was monitoring the AM output when the inaccurate announcement was aired but was on a telephone call at the time.

The director reportedly became aware that something was wrong after hearing continuous music instead of the programme that was scheduled to be broadcast. He then contacted the station’s engineer, who was already aware of the problem and investigating it.

The station later issued a brief apology, with the presenter acknowledging that the information previously broadcast had been “incorrect” and attributing the incident to “a technical issue.”

Radio Caroline said it “took the matter very seriously” and responded “as soon as possible” after becoming aware of the mistake.

The staff member involved was subsequently reprimanded, while the station also moved its obituary files away from the studio desktop in an effort to prevent a similar incident from happening again.

Radio Caroline said Ofcom received just two complaints concerning the incident. The station also highlighted that it is “100% volunteer-led” and operates without the financial and technical resources available to larger broadcasters.

Radio Caroline was founded in 1964 as an offshore pirate radio station and initially broadcast from a ship. It continued operating from a vessel until 1991, when the ship was wrecked off the Kent coast.

The station remains based off the north-east Essex coast, although many of its presenters now broadcast their programmes remotely.