United Kingdom-based radio station Radio Caroline has issued a formal apology to King Charles III and its listeners after a technical error led to a false on-air announcement declaring that the monarch had died.
The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon, May 19, 2026, when a computer glitch at the station’s main studio in Essex mistakenly triggered the industry-standard “Death of a Monarch” emergency protocol.
Station manager Peter Moore explained the mishap on social media, stating, “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.”
Following the automated broadcast claiming that His Majesty had passed away, the station immediately fell silent as required by the emergency script.
The sudden silence alerted staff to the blunder, prompting them to quickly cut the transmission, restore regular programming, and issue an immediate on-air retraction.
“We apologize to HM the King and to our listeners for any distress caused,” Moore added, noting that the station has proudly broadcast royal holiday messages over the years and hopes to continue doing so for a long time.
Ironically, the false announcement occurred while King Charles III and Queen Camilla were completely healthy and carrying out official public engagements in Northern Ireland, where they visited Belfast’s Titanic Quarter.
The legendary Radio Caroline, which originally began in 1964 as a famous pirate radio station broadcasting from ships off the English coast, confirmed it is investigating the software failure to prevent future automated errors.