Radio Station Apologizes After Accidentally Announcing King Charles’ Death

Radio Caroline, a radio station in Essex, England, apologized after it accidentally announced the death of King Charles III because of a computer error.

The mistake happened on May 19 when the station’s emergency “death of a monarch” procedure was mistakenly activated. The broadcast interrupted music and announced that King Charles had died before the station briefly went silent and played the British national anthem.

Station manager Peter Moore said all U.K. radio stations keep such procedures ready for use if a monarch dies, but the system was triggered by accident. He apologized to the King and listeners for any distress caused.

At the time of the incident, King Charles, 77, was on a three-day visit to Northern Ireland with Queen Camilla, 78. The King continued public engagements during the trip, including visiting community gardens and meeting local residents. A day earlier, he also laughed off being hit by seagull droppings during an appearance in Newcastle.