Radio station mistakenly reports King Charles' death

Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News on May 21, 2026

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King Charles III is, in fact, still alive — prompting an apology from a U.K. radio station that falsely reported his death.

Radio Caroline, based in Essex, England, made the false announcement during a broadcast on Tuesday.

“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 (19 May), mistakenly announcing that HM the King had passed away,” station manager Peter Moore said in a statement shared on social media Wednesday.

“Radio Caroline then fell silent as would be required, which alerted us to restore programming and issue an on-air apology,” he continued.

Moore again apologized on Facebook to “listeners for any distressed cause.”

It is not clear how long it took for the station to realize the 77-year-old royal was actually still alive. On Radio Caroline’s website, playback for its May 19 programming from 1:58 p.m. to 5 p.m. local time was unavailable.

The king was with Queen Camilla on Tuesday visiting Belfast in Northern Ireland, where they enjoyed a cultural celebration at Thompson Dock, the dry ground where the Titanic stood prior to its voyage. It was the first of their three-day visit to the nation.

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