King Charlesâ death was falsely announced on a U.K. radio station in May after pre-recorded reports claiming the monarch had died were mistakenly broadcast, prompting the countryâs media regulator Ofcom to rule that the station had breached broadcast standards.

Radio Caroline aired three pre-recorded statements claiming that King Charles, 77, had died during The Barry Marsh Show on May 19. The reports interrupted the stationâs regular music programming and led to two complaints being filed with Ofcom.

King Charles death report followed by national anthem

According to Ofcomâs report, the third statement claimed that ânews mediaâ had confirmed King Charlesâ death. The national anthem was then played, followed by another airing of one of the statements.

The broadcast was subsequently followed by around 16 minutes of silence before regular programming resumed.

Approximately 30 minutes after the false reports aired, the showâs host apologized to listeners and clarified that King Charles was not dead.

âIâve just been informed that weâve played in error some information a little earlier, I didnât hear this myself, but it is incorrect, itâs a technical issue, and of course we apologize,â the host said.

Ofcom says Radio Caroline breached two rules

In its bulletin published on Monday, August 10, Ofcom said Radio Caroline had breached two rules under the Broadcasting Code.

One rule states that news, in whatever form, must be reported with due accuracy and presented with due impartiality. Another requires significant mistakes in news to normally be acknowledged and corrected on air quickly, with corrections appropriately scheduled.

Ofcom concluded that the station failed to meet the required standards by broadcasting the inaccurate reports and not correcting the error quickly enough.

How the false King Charles death reports went on air

Radio Caroline told Ofcom that The Barry Marsh Show was being streamed from a remote location when the incident occurred.

A staff member was reportedly carrying out maintenance on a studio computer when they discovered three files containing pre-recorded statements prepared for use in the event of King Charlesâ death.

The files came with âa set of strict instructions to presenters and managersâ regarding their use. However, the staff member reportedly played the files âout of curiosityâ.

This interrupted the stream from the presenterâs remote location and resulted in the death announcements being broadcast on air.

Host did not initially realize what had happened

After realizing the mistake, the staff member stopped the files and left the office. The showâs host, who was on a call at the time, did not immediately notice that the false reports had been broadcast.

Once he realized that an incorrect programme was being streamed, he contacted a station engineer. The engineer was already aware of the incident and was investigating what had happened.

The station then switched back to its regular programming.

Radio Caroline told Ofcom that it took the incident âvery seriouslyâ and that considerable activity took place during the roughly 30 minutes leading up to the apology. The station said its staff acted âas soon as they couldâ.

Staff member reprimanded

Radio Caroline told Ofcom that the staff member who played the incorrect files was reprimanded and had since apologized.

The station has also moved the pre-recorded files to an external hard drive. Presenters and staff were additionally reminded of the procedures surrounding the use of such material.

The false broadcast came at a time when King Charles remains the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom.