BBC radio show apologises for error and people are calling it the 'most Alan Partridge' moment ever

Being a radio presenter must be a tough job, and the task of filling the void of static with endless chatter can often veer into absurdity.

Steve Coogan and Armando Ianucci’s beloved Alan Partridge character may have been fictional, but we’re constantly reminded just how close to reality he can be.

The latest of such instances arrived without warning on the BBC’s Sussex Breakfast programme on Wednesday.

Presenter Neil Pringle was forced to clarify "an appalling error" after suggesting that six o'clock news presenter Nicholas Witchell had “sat on a lesbian” while gay activists stormed the BBC news studio in 1988.

Mr Pringle was correcting his initial assertion that it had in fact been Crimewatch host, Nick Ross.

His tone throughout the segment is highly reminiscent of a certain Radio Norfolk presenter, and many on Twitter shared their amusement.

Others recalled the event in question.

More: Tory MP Dominic Raab is being compared to Alan Partridge after releasing this awkward video