Live TV news can be a hectic affair. Between the tight deadlines, ever-developing stories, litany of technical issues, unpredictable weather and Murphy’s Law – sometimes things go wrong.
And when they do, it can lead to some hilarious, off-script, off-the-cuff moments that leave audiences in stitches (and news directors pulling their hair out).
Global News is no stranger to these kinds of moments (as you’ll soon see) but there were others as well, including 2017’s most famous curious kids, the greatest non-Labour Day argument ever about who’s wearing white, and the usual moment of “reporter vs. inclement weather.”
These are the best news bloopers of 2017.
Global Calgary anchors lose it over ‘swinging’ mistake
If you can’t laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?
And there’s no denying that Canadians got a laugh from watching the Global Calgary team try to keep it together (and failing) after assuming Canadians were being encouraged to swap sexual partners.
The funny moment occurred this past June, when Global Calgary meteorologist Jordan Witzel was told the ParticiPACTION 150 Play List activity of the day — swinging — and assumed it meant the swapping of partners among married couples and not, you know, swinging on a swing.
The ParticipACTION 150 Play List is a list of 150 physical activities Canadians are encouraged to try in celebration of Canada 150.
Witzel’s mix-up caused anchors Scott Fee and Amber Schinkel to dissolve into laughter.
“Either way you get your activity in for the day, I guess,” Witzel joked.
“Good cardio,” Scott agreed.
Curious kids hilariously interrupt live interview on BBC
A university professor was giving a live TV interview on South Korean politics when his children barged into the room — and broke the internet.
Robert E. Kelly of the Department of Political Science at Pusan National University was being interviewed on a very serious subject — the impeachment of South Korea’s president — when one of his children walks in dancing, wearing a bright yellow sweater.
Kelly tries to keep his cool and block his child from the camera but isn’t successful. Seconds later, his other child rolls in the room in a walker and bashes into the desk, causing absolute chaos.
To their credit, the interviewer and Kelly kept on message as a woman frantically entered the frame in the background and corralled the kids.
The hilarious moment became one of the most viral news bloopers of 2017.
Jogger gives literal answer to reporter’s question
A Melbourne woman gave a memorable response to a reporter’s question this past January.
Erica O’Donnell was jogging in a Melbourne park when Seven Network reporter Michael Scanlan attempted to ask her a question.
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Scanlan first asked for O’Donnell’s name, before adding, “can you spell first and last?”
O’Donnell replied, quite literally, “F.I.R.S.T L.A.S.T”.
After the reporter began laughing, O’Donnell realized her mistake.
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“You know, in a decade, noone has done that,” Scanlan said.
Talkative sheep interrupt Global broadcast twice in one day
A rather uh…expressive sheep managed to interrupt the Global Calgary morning show during two separate segments this past November.
The sheep were there for a segment on charitable gift ideas, but managed to steal the spotlight in two other segments as well.
The first was during anchor Dallas Flexhaug’s interview with Alan Tolg from Acumen Capital Partners, which quickly got off the rails as the sheep bleated in the background.
“Are the markets off to a baaaaaad start this morning?” Flexhaug deadpanned.
Then minutes later, the same sheep interrupted a live traffic report from Leslie Horton.
Australian anchor snaps at her colleague after both wear white in same segment
Just weeks after Labour Day, an Australian newscast played host to a tiff over who was wearing white – in this case, it just happened to be everybody in the segment.
In January, Nine Network host Amber Sherlock was preparing to host a panel with fellow Nine News reporter Julie Snook and psychologist Sandy Rea when she noticed something troubling in her monitor: all three women were wearing white.
What followed was a tense exchange as Snook and Sherlock, both clearly a little stressed, tried to hash out their wardrobe issues.
“I need Julie to put a jacket on because we’re all in white. I asked her before we came on — Julie, you need to put a jacket on,” an annoyed Sherlock asks.
“It is an issue. Go and grab a jacket,” Sherlock replied.
Now technically, this exchange happened before the show was live on the air. However, it quickly became one of the most-watched news bloopers of 2017 after the behind-the-scenes footage was leaked to Mumbrella.
For their part, both Snook and Sherlock said publicly that there’s no hard feelings between them and chalk the whole thing up to stress.
Chance the Rapper tries to do the weather
Earlier this month, Chance the Rapper gave being a weatherman a shot — with hilarious results.
During an appearance on WGN Morning News in Chicago, Chance stepped in front of the green screen and attempted to deliver the local weather forecast.
Of course, things didn’t go exactly as planned, as Chance soon reveals himself to be somewhat of a neophyte when it comes to meteorology.
“Uh St. Louis is also a part of Illinois apparently,” Chance told viewers. “Also tonight, light snow, low 23 (degrees). Every snowflake is different, they actually have like different DNA just like people.”
Chance then joked that his jacket was an “invisibility cloak” as it did not appear in the green screen set.
“I can check out books at the Hogwarts library,” Chance joked as the regular WFN team couldn’t hold back the laughs.
Anchors can’t stop laughing after weatherman blown away on live TV
Ireland’s weather has a reputation for being a bit wicked at times, and a weatherman for TV3’s Ireland AM morning show learned that first-hand this past June.
Deric Hartigan was outside the studio promoting the weather forecast when a major gust of wind grabbed hold of his umbrella and nearly blew him over.
The shock caused Hartigan to let out a yell as he was whisked off camera.
Hartigan’s misfortune left his in-studio colleagues in hysterics.
“He’s OK,” one anchor laughingly reassured viewers.
Mayor of Riga has online Q&A interrupted by his cat
Call this one an honourable mention: While it’s not a “news blooper” per se, it was an unintended bit of humour in the middle of an address by a public figure.
This past April, the mayor of Latvia’s capital, Riga, was interrupted during his online Q&A show…by one of his cats.
Nils Usakovs was answering questions before a live internet audience when his cat jumped on the table to take a sip from his mug. Usakovs deadpans a look at the feline before politely shooing him off the table.
The Riga mayor is a well-known animal lover and has two cats living at Riga Town Hall building, named Kuzya and Muris.
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