Like the BBC and ITV, Australian broadcasters had carefully planned to launch the Queen’s death. The official news of the Queen’s death was announced in the UK by Huw Edwards at 6.30pm. on BBC One and shortly after in Australia at 3.30am. AEST. ABC News Breakfast co-host Michael Rowland grabbed the black suit he bought for the occasion as he left home in the early hours of Friday morning. Rowland and co-host Lisa Millar were on air shortly after news broke that the Queen had died. They scrapped the downgrade they had planned for Thursday and broadcast rolling news about the historic event for five hours. “We all knew this broadcast was coming and we were ready,” Rowland told the Guardian before boarding a plane to London, where he will anchor the network’s coverage. “We had packages ready, but as the news came out just before we went on air, we didn’t actually go to many packages. We just focused on live photos from Balmoral Castle, live photos of people going to Buckingham Palace and live interviews. We wanted to give our viewers a taste of the fast-moving events. “It’s absolutely the biggest story I’ll cover live and, like any broadcasting outfit, we’ve been doing rehearsal after rehearsal over the years and mock presentations about the Queen’s death and finally it all came together.” Seven’s director of news Craig McPherson said planning for the Queen’s death had been under way for years and at 11pm on Thursday coverage began with the network’s UK correspondents reporting live from Balmoral. “Our long-term planning included pre-recorded obituaries, down to the finest details, such as mourning dress for all our on-air talent and special breaking news graphics,” McPherson told the Guardian. Confidential plans and detailed palace protocols have been shared with Seven News and arrangements are now underway to cover the key moments before the Queen’s funeral at Westminster Abbey, McPherson said. Nine’s news executive Alex Needs said the network’s plan was to carry international feeds like the BBC until local crew were ready to take over. Today program co-hosts Karl Stefanovic and Allison Langdon were on standby and entered the North Sydney studio early to go live at 4.30am. “Everybody had their black outfits ready for years,” Needs said. “Everyone has been up for a fight for a while, especially since we saw the Queen in the new one [UK] Prime Minister, [Liz] Truss, and it made us all even more cautious, but not alarmed.’ Plans for the next 10 days have begun and Nine already has Leila McKinnon, Tracy Vo and Charles Croucher in London. Tracy Grimshaw heads to highlight coverage, a fitting exit gig for the A Current Affair presenter who retires after 17 years in November. SBS is on a mission to be diverse and provide the big picture to a big world story, so it covered the Queen’s death from the UK, France, India and other countries. Subscribe to Guardian Australia’s Morning Mail Our Australian morning news email breaks down the key national and international stories of the day and why they matter Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. “SBS, unlike the BBC, has no specific guidelines requiring newsreaders to wear dark colours,” a spokesman said. “Rather, we reflect the prevailing mood, and most presenters will recognize this by wearing dark colors.” But not all media got the tone right. Seeking a fresh angle, the Daily Mail said the Queen would be “reunited in heaven” with the late cricketer Shane Warne, and a headline in The Australian quoted former prime minister Tony Abbott as saying the Queen’s death was the most important death to the person. history. Photo: The Daily Mail website Daily Mail: “Queen Elizabeth II’s death comes just months after Shane Warne also died, and now details have emerged of the Australian cricket legend’s sweet friendship.” But the Herald Sun is a strong contender for silliest angle with a story that said the Queen appeared in the clouds an hour after her death. “Leanne Bethell, who lives in the town of Telford in England’s West Midlands, shared a photo of the late monarch wearing her signature hat,” the Herald Sun reported.
