A BBC newsreader, like so many of his colleagues, fell victim to the dangers of live broadcasting.
Gareth Barlow, who joined the BBC in 2014 as a Countryfile correspondent before working his way up, was the unfortunate host.
Gareth, 32, has been a senior reporter for four years, but even the best in the business can’t always avoid the anxieties that come with working on live television.
Gareth got his words muddled up when opening the nightly bulletin on Sunday evening, giving viewers a memorable beginning to the show.
‘Hello,’ he began, and everything appeared to be fine. But then: ‘I’m watching– I’m watching BBC News? I’m Gareth Barlow. You’re watching BBC News.’
The video was subsequently published on X (previously Twitter) by Gareth, who was able to poke fun at himself and joke with his followers on the social networking platform.
Can someone please remind me who’s watching the news… pic.twitter.com/l40jGHhrHK
— Gareth Barlow (@GarethBarlow) August 20, 2023
‘Can someone please remind me who’s watching the news?’ he captioned the post, before sharing the short funny clip with his 11,700 followers.
In the replies, thankfully viewers could see the funny side, with one joking, ‘At least you didn’t forget who you were’, with Gareth replying, ‘Not yet’.
In response to Gareth’s video, a radio DJ stated the episode reminded him of the time he praised himself for listening to his own programme while live on air.
Others remembered a moment from a later episode of David Mitchell’s iconic Channel 4 series Peep Show, in which he played Mark Corrigan for nine seasons.
In the episode, Mark goes to a job interview that is being monitored by a guy named Robert Grayson. Mark accidentally names himself Robert Grayson due to his anxiety.
Gareth’s gaffe comes after colleague BBC broadcaster Lukwesa Burak forgot she was on television before executing a “great stretch” and raising her arms.
Like her coworker, she recovered fast and remained as professional as possible, although social media perceived the situation as amusing.
Never one to pass such an opportunity, TV reviewer Scott Bryan tweeted, ‘Quite the weird minute on the BBC News Channel right now,’ before posting the footage on X.
