A live broadcast of BBC Breakfast was thrown into disarray on Wednesday, 17 December, when a fire alarm forced the evacuation of a regional news team.
Live Broadcast Interrupted
Presenters Sally Nugent and Jon Kay were hosting the popular morning programme from Salford, covering major stories including the Bondi Beach shooting and the Post Office Horizon scandal. They were joined by weather presenter Carol Kirkwood, with Emma Vardy and Olly Foster providing business and sports news.
The disruption occurred when the programme attempted to hand over to the BBC South East team for a local news bulletin. Viewers in the region were instead shown the BBC London feed.
Presenter Explains On-Air
BBC London presenter Thomas Magill addressed the issue directly, telling viewers: "A very good morning, welcome to BBC London and our viewers in the South East, where the news team there have been evacuated due to a fire alarm."
He repeated this explanation several times throughout the show. The issue appeared to be resolved by the programme's end, as Magill's final segment made no further mention of the evacuation. The BBC has not provided additional details on the incident.
Recent Precedent and Other News
This is not the first time a BBC programme has been affected by a fire alarm. A few weeks prior, BBC Radio Scotland Breakfast was taken off air due to a fire at the BBC's Glasgow headquarters, leading to pre-recorded music being played.
Elsewhere in Wednesday's programme, Sally Nugent and Jon Kay discussed the terminal cancer diagnosis of six-time Olympic cycling champion Sir Chris Hoy. The 49-year-old revealed in February 2024 he had prostate cancer, and confirmed in October 2024 it had become terminal after spreading to his bones.
In a pre-recorded segment for a new BBC documentary, sporting icons shared their reactions. Tennis star Sir Andy Murray became emotional, stating he was "really upset by it," while Dame Laura Kenny said her "heart broke" at the news.
BBC Breakfast airs daily on BBC One at 6am.
