Two Australian radio hosts have said they are shattered and heartbroken following the death of an Indian nurse in Britain who fell prey to their hoax call about the Duchess of Cambridge’s pregnancy.
2Day FM radio hosts Mel Greig and Michael Christian have spoken of being ‘shattered, gutted, heartbroken’ by Jacintha Saldanha’s death after their prank phone call last week, reported Sydney Morning Herald.
Saldanha, 46, a mother of two, was found unconscious last Friday in the quarters of the King Edward VII Hospital in central London where she was working as a senior nurse. She was pronounced dead when rushed to the hospital.
In a prerecorded interview with A Current Affair host Tracey Grimshaw asks them who came up with the idea for the prank call.
‘It was just the team sit ting down before the show - just had the idea for just a simple harmless phone call,’ Christian said. ‘That when we thought about making a call it was going to go for 30 seconds we were going to be hung up on, and that was it.’
Greig added: ‘We thought a hundred people before us would’ve tried it, we thought it was such a silly idea and the accents were terrible and not for a second did we expect to speak to Kate let alone have a conversation with anyone at the hospital. We wanted to be hung up on.’
Saldanha answered the hoax call at 5.30am on Wednesday morning, and was helping out on reception at the time of the prank. Giggling DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian were pretending to be the British Queen and Prince Charles and asked her if they could be put through to Kate.
The two Australian radio presenters who made a prank call inquiring about the medical condition of a pregnant Kate Middleton have been taken off air, amid growing anger over the suspected suicide of an Indian-origin nurse who transferred their hoax call.
The unconscious body of Jacintha Saldanha, 46, was found yesterday morning at an address yards away from King Edward VII Hospital in London. The CEO of the company that owns embattled radio station ‘2Day FM’ has defended the presenters involved in the royal prank phone call, saying there was no way they could have foreseen the tragic outcome of their actions, the Australian Associated Press reported.
On how they reacted when told of Saldanha’s death, both DJs broke down in tears. ‘Shattered, gutted, heartbroken and obviously you know... our deepest sympathies are with the family and the friends,’ Grieg said.
Rhys Holleran, CEO of Southern Cross Austereo, said the presenters behind the call, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, were ‘completely shattered’ by the nurse’s death.
The radio station has pulled the pair off air, he said, as a mark of respect.
The exact cause of death remained unclear. However, media has indicated that the woman appeared to have killed herself.
News of the nurse’s death has prompted a furious outpouring against the radio station and the two presenters involved.
2Day FM radio hosts Mel Greig and Michael Christian have spoken of being ‘shattered, gutted, heartbroken’ by Jacintha Saldanha’s death after their prank phone call last week, reported Sydney Morning Herald.
Saldanha, 46, a mother of two, was found unconscious last Friday in the quarters of the King Edward VII Hospital in central London where she was working as a senior nurse. She was pronounced dead when rushed to the hospital.
In a prerecorded interview with A Current Affair host Tracey Grimshaw asks them who came up with the idea for the prank call.
‘It was just the team sit ting down before the show - just had the idea for just a simple harmless phone call,’ Christian said. ‘That when we thought about making a call it was going to go for 30 seconds we were going to be hung up on, and that was it.’
Greig added: ‘We thought a hundred people before us would’ve tried it, we thought it was such a silly idea and the accents were terrible and not for a second did we expect to speak to Kate let alone have a conversation with anyone at the hospital. We wanted to be hung up on.’
Saldanha answered the hoax call at 5.30am on Wednesday morning, and was helping out on reception at the time of the prank. Giggling DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian were pretending to be the British Queen and Prince Charles and asked her if they could be put through to Kate.
The two Australian radio presenters who made a prank call inquiring about the medical condition of a pregnant Kate Middleton have been taken off air, amid growing anger over the suspected suicide of an Indian-origin nurse who transferred their hoax call.
The unconscious body of Jacintha Saldanha, 46, was found yesterday morning at an address yards away from King Edward VII Hospital in London. The CEO of the company that owns embattled radio station ‘2Day FM’ has defended the presenters involved in the royal prank phone call, saying there was no way they could have foreseen the tragic outcome of their actions, the Australian Associated Press reported.
On how they reacted when told of Saldanha’s death, both DJs broke down in tears. ‘Shattered, gutted, heartbroken and obviously you know... our deepest sympathies are with the family and the friends,’ Grieg said.
Rhys Holleran, CEO of Southern Cross Austereo, said the presenters behind the call, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, were ‘completely shattered’ by the nurse’s death.
The radio station has pulled the pair off air, he said, as a mark of respect.
The exact cause of death remained unclear. However, media has indicated that the woman appeared to have killed herself.
News of the nurse’s death has prompted a furious outpouring against the radio station and the two presenters involved.