A fake BBC Twitter account caused panic in the streets of London Thursday night after it announced that Queen Elizabeth II had died.
The fake account that posted this tweet has been suspended.
Screenshot via Daily Dot
The hoax originated with a Twitter account (@BBCNewsUKI) that carried all the official BBC branding but was unquestionably a fraud. The account has since been suspended by the social media network.
Speculation about the monarch’s general health was sparked over the holiday period when she was unable to attend the Christmas service. It was the first time that the monarch has missed the church service in decades.
Buckingham Palace said that the Queen’s absence from the Christmas celebration was a “precautionary measure” and that she was merely dosed with a “heavy cold,” so there was “no sense of undue concern.” Even still the recent news is likely what allowed the fake report to gain traction.
The Royal family took to their verified Twitter profile this morning to casually quell the rumors and wish the nation a happy New Year.
Thank you to all our Twitter followers for your support in 2016! See you in 2017 #HappyNewYearhttps://t.co/tmZ8pqL4qn
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) December 30, 2016
As news that the whole report was a hoax spread across the U.K, users reflected with a mixture of humor and relief:
https://twitter.com/Hellstorm901/status/814552925032824833
https://twitter.com/ashymareads/status/814550057366253568
https://twitter.com/KatCalvinLA/status/814548441892319233
Breaking News: The Queen is Dead… is my favourite Smiths album.
— Ian Power (@IHPower) December 30, 2016