BBC News host caught in clumsy autocue mistake as fans tag ‘Anchorman’ star

A BBC News presenter recently had an epic accident that left fans laughing.

Maryam Moshiri hosted the show and began a segment with: “They are known for their big eyes and for being notoriously sleepy – am I talking about myself here? No, sorry. No. Over the past 20 years, the number of hazel dormice, yes, hazel dormice, has declined by up to 70% across the UK.

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“It is hoped that a new project, which sees them released into their… natural habit… could help them restore their population.” Maryam paused on the word habit while maintaining her composure before joking: “Is it a habit or a habitat? I’ll probably get emails about this. He usually (says) on the autocue so what can I say? Nicola Haseler has more, my name is Ron Burgundy,” she joked, referring to the popular comedy Anchorman.

After the clip aired, BBC News returned to the presenter in the studio as she described the video as “very sweet”. She then addressed her previous incident by saying, “Of course I meant ‘habitat,’ but ‘habit’ was written on the auto cue, which just shows you that I just read everything written in front of me!

In the caption, the post read: “This morning’s election light relief story ‘And Finally’ focused on the hazel dormouse and @BBCMaryam had his Ron Burgundy moment. It’s great to see a certain “personality” return to the channel when the atmosphere allows it.

In the responses, Maryam replied: “I felt a bit like Ron Burgundy! In fact, I thought “habit” might be a special word for a dormouse’s “habitat.” Strongly and quickly corrected by the team in my ear! What they put up with (laughter and facepalm emojis).