There are no two ways about it, watching the news is never near the top of anyone’s list of things guaranteed to give them a chuckle.

At best, you’ll learn something new (though that’s rarely laugh-worthy), and at worst, you’re going to wind up thoroughly miserable at the state of things (especially given everything that’s happening right now).

That’s why you have to bask in the funny moments the news provides while you can – even if the source is usually a technical mishap or a faux pas from the host.

We’re talking unfortunate slips of the tongue, awkward encounters with interviewees or the moment a presenter realises they’re doing something on air they really shouldn’t be.

To put a smile on your face, we’ve rounded up some of our favourite moments from when newsreaders have caught off guard during a broadcast…

When Joanna Gosling was caught scrolling through her phone live on air

And that’s not the only time a BBC News anchor wasn’t quite prepared for the cameras

That time Simon McCoy did a whole segment brandishing a ream of paper instead of an iPad

When Thomas Schafenacker’s very inappropriate gesture made it to air

That moment when an empty chair started discussing a “defining moment for Afghanistan’s future”

When this Sky News presenter found himself in sudden need of a change of clothes (don’t worry, not in that way)

When there was a rather sudden interruption during this Sky News report on the Icelandic ash cloud

And speaking of interruptions, there’ve been plenty of them over the years, but none quite as iconic as this

Of course, there’ve been plenty of them during lockdown too, including this fabulous BBC News exchange…

And can you believe this happened on Sky News on the literal same day?!

Lockdown also provided a few mortifying at-home moments, including for this US presenter who mixed the sophistication of a suit jacket with the convenience of shorts

This guy was having fun with Zoom backgrounds years before the rest of us

And speaking of Zoom, lockdown also gifted us this gem

Who remembers the time this poor cyclist fell into a lake live on BBC News?

Or the time the news ticker kept everyone in suspense?

We’re still not really sure what was going on here

Bless Carol Kirkwood, who couldn’t wait to share the new phrase she’d learned with the entire nation

But that’s not the only time she’s been left red-faced with an unfortunate choice of words

But we’d argue no blunder was ever so explicit as that time a True Blood sex scene was shown in the background of a live segment on BBC News