BBC Radio 2 forced to issue apology after Elaine Paige slip-up leaves listeners furious

BBC Radio 2 was forced to issue a statement.

Elaine Paige on stage
Elaine Paige’s show was caught in a major BBC blunder (Image: Getty)

BBC Radio 2 was forced to issue an apology after a huge blunder during Elaine Paige’s show on Sunday. A scheduling error meant BBC listeners received the wrong second hour of her pre-recorded show, with a repeat of the previous week’s show aired instead, suggesting the wrong audio was put onto the system before the show aired. Elaine Paige on Sunday airs every Sunday afternoon from 1pm to 3.30m, with the hit show launching back in 2004.

The episode was described as: “Dame Elaine’s celebrating Cher’s big birthday, baking, and Jordan Luke Gage’s new musical, Redcliffe. There’s also the latest stage and screen news, your requests and Break A Leg messages.” Listeners quickly noticed the error and complained on social media. The correct version was later uploaded to BBC Sounds, after the BBC issued an apology for the error.

Elaine Paige on BBC
The BBC issued an apology to viewers for their mistake (Image: BBC)

A BBC spokesperson told RadioToday: “Unfortunately, due to a scheduling error, the incorrect second hour of the show was broadcast today. We apologise to listeners and are currently looking into how this occurred. The correct programme is now available on BBC Sounds.” Elaine Paige has not commented publicly on the incident.

BBC listeners took to social media to comment on the BBC’s apology, with many left unimpressed as they pointed out this isn’t the first time the station has made mistakes on-air.

One said: “You can’t beat doing live,” as a second chimed in: “Why is this hour of Elaine Paige on Sunday identical to last week’s show?! Very bizarre to repeat it just a week later.”

A third raged: “Nothing on her site, and no announcement from the Beeb. Very strange …” while a fourth agreed: “We just thought the same. This also happened last year. They replayed the same episode 2 weeks in a row.”