Sinead Butler
Mar 26, 2022
BBC Breakfast
BBC Breakfast was abruptly forced off-air when an alarm went off in the studio this morning (26 March).
Presenters Roger Johnson and Rachel Burden were in the middle of interviewing Apprentice winner Harpreet Kaur when the alarm suddenly rang out in the Salford studio.
The loud sound was audible for viewers and began as generic ringing then turned into an automated voice saying: "Attention, attention. Please evacuate the building by the nearest available exit. Do use the lift."
Johnson and Burden apologised for the interruption, and Burden told viewers: "Ahh so we’ve been disturbed by an alarm which may mean that we have to slow things down for a moment."
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“I’m so sorry everyone. For the time being we’re going to have to leave the studios. So we’ll see if we can come back before the end of the show."
Roger added: “Thank you, enjoy what you’re doing for the rest of the day. I think we are going to have to go," and also apologised to Kaur for the alarm interrupting her interview.
The screen then changed to orange with the BBC Breakfast logo as the show went off-air.
#BBCBreakfast goes off air.\n\nPlease evacuate the building by the nearest available exitpic.twitter.com/5zxgXkYjde— Haggis_UK \ud83c\uddec\ud83c\udde7 \ud83c\uddea\ud83c\uddfa (@Haggis_UK \ud83c\uddec\ud83c\udde7 \ud83c\uddea\ud83c\uddfa) 1648288888
Viewers took to Twitter to comment on the unexpected turn of the events on the show - with many hoping everyone was OK, but also hoping that they managed to take some of the delicious-looking cakes set out on the table with them as they got evacuated.
Priorities...
BBC news just now, alarm goes off in studio and announcement to evacuate made. \nMy wife now repeatedly shouting \u201cTake the cake !\u201d At the screen.\nPriorities !pic.twitter.com/DNBQPwBORM— Tom Duncan, ...the getting on for Ancient Mariner (@Tom Duncan, ...the getting on for Ancient Mariner) 1648288827
Bit of an abrupt end to @BBCBreakfast due to a fire alarm.pic.twitter.com/WPPuHQfu6p— Col du Boremalet (@Col du Boremalet) 1648288658
Worrying times for my #BBC colleagues in Salford - I hope it\u2019s a false alarm. BBC Breakfast ends abruptlypic.twitter.com/dgSihIVi68— James Hoggarth (@James Hoggarth) 1648288814
Anyone else watching the @BBCBreakfast that\u2019s just been taken off air due to a fire alarm! I reckon they wanted the cakes and set it up— Alan Williamson (@Alan Williamson) 1648288667
#BBCBreakfast acting like all of us when the fire alarm goes off in the office...just sit there hoping it goes off as you really can't be arsed to go and stand with all your colleagues in the car park whilst some power hungry tabard wearing man tries to count everyone— Daniel farmer (@Daniel farmer) 1648288769
#BBCBreakfast staff reacting to an evacuation alarm like everyone else there... do we have to leave? Oh it's stopped. Oh great it hasn't.\n\nHope everyone's OK.— \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 Daniel Francis \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 (@\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 Daniel Francis \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6) 1648288708
Fire alarm goes off. Think of your colleagues, take the cakes #BBCBreakfast— Rob Cooke (@Rob Cooke) 1648288718
Lord Sugar even cracked a cheeky joke on the matter and blamed the baking skills of his latest business partner as the cause for setting off the fire alarm.
.@BBCBreakfast today. I hope the fire alarm didn't go off because Harpreet left another batch of cakes in the oven. #TheApprenticepic.twitter.com/OXwFSp6j76— Lord Sugar (@Lord Sugar) 1648299181
After all the commotion, Burden updated Twitter to inform viewers that it was a false alarm - and yes, managed to scoff one of the sweet treats too.
"It’s all ok folks - false alarm and yes I did get some cookie pie and get to chat to the fabulous @harpsikaur @BBCBreakfast." she tweeted along with a photo with Kaur.
It\u2019s all ok folks - false alarm and yes I did get some cookie pie and get to chat to the fabulous @harpsikaur @BBCBreakfastpic.twitter.com/N340hX6Q8N— Rachel Burden (@Rachel Burden) 1648289305
Despite the interruption, the alarm seems to not have affected the programme's schedule as Saturday Kitchen Live went ahead as normal as a result of the programme coming from a different set of studios, BelfastLive reported.
Glad to hear it was just a false alarm.
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