Hundreds of BBC journalists were left bemused after a rival news outlets reported they were being evacuated from Broadcasting House.
Staff at the broadcaster were less than impressed at claims - later debunked - that they had been escorted from the building over a suspicious vehicle parked nearby posing a possible bomb threat.
ITV, the Independent, the Daily Express, City AM and others fell foul of the false claims, sparked by a tweet from one BBC journalist who claimed Broadcasting House had been evacuated.
Producer James Clayton's post sparked the series of reports being filed on the now disproved allegation.
BREAKING New Broadcasting House being evacuated pic.twitter.com/LqrMRovmSv
— JamesClayton (@JamesClayton5) December 1, 2015Many BBC workers took to social media to disprove the claim, posting photos of workers still at their desks and insisting to fellow reporters that the rumours were false.
Definitely still a lot of people in BBC Broadcasting House and most never left. A lot of sirens outside though. #NBHpic.twitter.com/qrjVGaC1Wc
— Benjamin Zand (@BenjaminZand) December 1, 2015
I'm reading from Twitter that the building I am in - #BBC New Broadcasting House is "being evacuated." We are in the building, never left.
— Seref Isler (@seref_i) December 1, 2015
I'm sitting in BBC Broadcasting House reading about how BBC Broadcasting House is being evacuated.
— Felicity Morse (@FelicityMorse) December 1, 2015@lizziedearden Nobody from New Broadcasting House has been evacuated. We are all fine.
— Tori Weaver (@toriweaver) December 1, 2015
I'm in New Broadcasting House and we haven't been evacuated.
— Rowan Woods (@rowanwoods) December 1, 2015
Phoned my colleague at Broadcasting House:
Me: "Has everybody been evacuated from BH?"
Her: "No, I'm up on the 6th floor eating a sandwich."
— Gemma Thomas (@gemma_thomas7) December 1, 2015
The @BBCPM team have not been evacuated from Broadcasting House
— Eddie Mair (@eddiemair) December 1, 2015
Still lots of us at work in the BBC newsroom. @itvnewspic.twitter.com/CxygSYSo8X
— Ros Atkins (@BBCRosAtkins) December 1, 2015
Which left one person making far too good a point about journalism and social media...
You know your Twitter is way too media when the last five mins has been 80% tweets about not being evacuated from broadcasting house
— Alice Rigby (@allierigby) December 1, 2015
Police did cordon off a large area outside Broadcasting House to investigate an abandoned van left nearby, but the BBC building itself was not affected, as many outlets had claimed.
