Greg James and Roman Kemp react as emergency test alert 'goes out early'

23 April 2023 , 17:31

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Greg James and Roman Kemp react as emergency test alert 'goes out early'

Greg James and Roman Kemp have been among those reacting to the emergency alert test broadcast today.

The UK Government had announced last month that it was launching a new service that would send alerts to mobile phones "where there is an immediate risk to people's lives".

It had warned that a test would take place at 3pm this afternoon (April 23), though people reported receiving it a different times and some said they didn't receive it at all.

BBC Radio 1 presenter Greg, 37, was among those who reported that they had received the alert earlier than expected as he reacted on Twitter.

Greg James reacted to the emergency alert test earlier (WireImage)

Roman Kemp had referenced a football match in one of his tweets about it (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

He wrote: "You went early you p****s. Do it at 3pm if you say it’s gonna be 3pm". He later added: "2:59pm isn't 3pm. HOW CAN WE TRUST IT IF YOU CAN'T SET IT OFF ON TIME".

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Capital FM host Roman, 30, said: "Swear that test went out early?" He also teased over it having happened around half-time of a Premier League football match this afternoon.

Newcastle United had scored five goals against Tottenham Hotspur by half-time, with the former team ultimately going on to win the match 6-1 against their rivals on the pitch.

Alex Beresford seemed surprised by the noise that featured as part of the alert (PA)

Zoe Ball also said that she received it earlier than expected (Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Roman commented in a follow-up tweet: "I just love the fact that Spurs were probably having the best team talk ever… only for it to be interrupted by the Govt. Alarm."

Presenter and author Richard Osman, 52, also referenced such, as he joked: "Didn't realise the Government emergency alert at 3pm was going to be about the Spurs score."

Whilst Good Morning Britain presenter Alex Beresford, 42, seemed surprised by the noise itself. He seemingly tweeted about the alert test: "That was louder than expected!"

BBC Radio 2 host Zoe Ball, 52, also tweeted about the alert, with her writing to her followers: "Did someone press the alert button early… or was that just on my phone".

Richard Osman also reacted to the alert test earlier (PA)

The alert test message had read: "This is a test of Emergency Alerts, a new UK government service that will warn you if there's a life-threatening emergency nearby.

"In a real emergency, follow the instructions in the alert to keep yourself and others safe. Visit gov.uk/alerts for more information. This is a test. You do not need to take any action."

A government spokesperson told us: "We have effectively completed the test of the UK-wide Emergency Alerts system, the biggest public communications exercise of its kind ever done. We are working with mobile network operators to review the outcome and any lessons learned."

Joel Leaver