The Sun accidentally publishes story saying 'Prince Philip has died etc etc'

The Sun sparked panic this morning after accidentally publishing a story that claimed Prince Philip had died.

The website, which is the online arm of Britain’s best-selling newspaper, posted a story with the headline: ‘Prince Philip dead at 95, how did the Duke of Edinburgh die, etc etc.’

It was published after Palace sources said an “unusual” meeting was due to take place this morning, sparking concern that either The Queen or her husband had been taken ill.

As rumours spread on social media, sources inside the Palace quickly confirmed the meeting was ‘no cause for alarm’.

As speculation persisted, The Sun published its article at 8.03am, two hours before Buckingham Palace confirmed the actual news – that the Duke of Edinburgh would no longer carry out public engagements from the autumn of this year.

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It was deleted in a matter of minutes.

The explainer-style piece read: ‘Prince Philip, otherwise known as the Duke of Edinburgh, was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II.

‘He was married to Queen Elizabeth II. The pair had four children together – Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.’

It could still be seen on a Google search some time after it was deleted.

Articles like The Sun’s are constructed to feature high up on Google search results and are often prepared months in advance with headlines that target very specific search terms.

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There were also claims that French media had erroneously reported that Prince Philip had died, although the report, published by an unknown site called Royal Central, did not give any examples.

Nonetheless, the link was widely shared on social media.

The Palace said in a statement it was the Duke’s decision taken with the support of the Queen.

It read: “His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh has decided that he will no longer carry out public engagements from the autumn of this year.

“In taking this decision, the Duke has the full support of the Queen. Prince Philip will attend previously scheduled engagements between now and August, both individually and accompanying the Queen.

“Thereafter, the Duke will not be accepting new invitations for visits and engagements, although he may still choose to attend certain public events from time to time.

“The Duke of Edinburgh is Patron, President or a member of over 780 organisations, with which he will continue to be associated, although he will no longer play an active role by attending engagements.

“Her Majesty will continue to carry out a full programme of official engagements with the support of members of the Royal Family.”