Topic Lifecycle: Dormant
This topic is currently dormant in the news cycle. It was last covered on Tuesday 22 September 2026 and has not appeared in recent broadcasts.
Coverage trend (last 30 days)
How much coverage this topic got from each channel over the past month.
On screen
Stills are sampled automatically at 60-second intervals. Where shown, the still is the nearest available frame from the relevant broadcast segment and is included to show what was on screen during that part of the broadcast. A still may not correspond to the exact second of a quoted phrase.
Recent stories
The latest story timelines linked to this topic, newest activity first.
What was reported
A plain summary of this topic, built from the channels that covered it.
On 22 September 2026, coverage of the launch of a new Mersey ferry included reports from 5 News at Lunchtime and ITV1 Lunchtime News. 5 reported that a new ferry had been launched across the Mersey, that it was the first such ferry for 60 years, that it was named the Royal Daffodil, and that it cost £26 million to build. ITV1 reported that the new ferry had entered service between Liverpool and Wirral and described it as the first new ferry cross the Mersey in more than 60 years. ITV1 said the launch took place earlier today and was attended by special guests, including actress and singer Claire Sweeney, who officially launched the boat. ITV1 also set out the ferry service's cultural and historical background, saying people had been crossing the Mersey for 800 years, that the Beatles had performed on board, and that the Queen had visited the Royal Iris, the boat retired to make way for the new vessel. It said the new ferry was built by Cammell Laird and that the Razzle Dazzle ferry was painted by the same artist behind the Sgt Pepper album cover. ITV1 added that the service is used by commuters and for tours. 5 reported that the ferry service was made famous by Gerry and the Pacemakers.
Key Claims by Channel
Sunday 30 August 2026
| Claim | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|
| At least eight people died in the ferry capsizing. | ||
| The ferry capsized off Northern Cyprus. | ||
| The ferry was a catamaran shuttle service between Kyrenia and Tasucu. | ||
| The ferry started taking on water shortly after departure. | ||
| The captain and crew were detained. | ||
| The vessel sank to a depth of 500 metres. | · | |
| The ferry was carrying 267 people. | ||
| The number of missing passengers was reported as 17 or 18. | ||
| Some passengers asked the crew to turn back but were refused. | · | |
| Air and sea rescue operations were conducted. | ||
| The self-declared Prime Minister said the detention was to keep the crew available for questioning. | · | |
| Turkey and Greek Cypriot authorities offered assistance. | · |
Thursday 10 September 2026
| Claim | Channel 5 | BBC News | BBC One | Channel 4 | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The ferry sank to a depth of about 500 meters. | · | · | · | · | ||
| Unconfirmed reports indicated passengers noticed water entering the boat and the captain refused to turn back. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| The captain and seven crew members were arrested. | · | · | · | |||
| The boat's departure was delayed by a day due to weather. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| At least five people died in a ferry fire in the Philippines. | · | · | · | |||
| 43 people were rescued. | · | · | · | |||
| More than 80 people were reported missing. | · | · | · | |||
| The ferry was traveling from Manila to Coron in Palawan. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| The vessel was carrying more than 130 people. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Witnesses reported a loud bang and believed the fire started in the cargo hold. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Rescue operations involved Coast Guard, military and civilian boats. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| A survivor described sudden fire, thick smoke, panic, and people jumping overboard. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Three years ago, another ferry fire killed more than 30 people. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| In January of this year, a ferry capsized killing more than 60 people. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| There are concerns about lax safety regulations and poor maintenance of boats in the Philippines. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| The fire started yesterday evening after the boat set sail from Manila. | · | · | · | · | · |
Tuesday 22 September 2026
| Claim | Channel 5 | BBC One | ITV |
|---|---|---|---|
| A new ferry was launched across the Mersey, the first in 60 years. | · | ||
| The new ferry is named Royal Daffodil. | · | ||
| The ferry cost £26 million to build. | · | ||
| People have been crossing the Mersey for 800 years. | · | · | |
| The Beatles performed on board the ferry. | · | · | |
| The Queen visited the Royal Iris. | · | · | |
| The Royal Iris was retired to make way for the new ferry. | · | · | |
| The new ferry was built by Cammell Laird. | · | ||
| The Razzle Dazzle ferry was painted by the same artist who did the Sgt Pepper album cover. | · | · | |
| The ferry service is used by commuters and for tours. | · | · | |
| The ferry service was made famous by Gerry and the Pacemakers. | · | · | |
| The Royal Daffodil is due to enter public service this autumn. | · | · | |
| The ferry carries about 400,000 passengers each year. | · | · |
This is a cross-channel consensus summary, not an objective account. Consensus can be uniformly wrong, or omit what only one channel covered.
Timeline
Where this topic appeared. Cells show coverage time and are darker when there was more coverage.
| Date | Channel 5 | BBC News | BBC One | BBC Two | Channel 4 | GB News | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 22 September 2026 | 12s 0.5% | — | — | — | — | — | 2m 34s 3.0% | — |
| Sunday 13 September 2026 | — | 2m 18s 1.9% | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Thursday 10 September 2026 | 15s 0.6% | 2m 7s 2.2% | — | — | 20s 0.7% | — | — | — |
| Sunday 30 August 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1m 52s 8.5% | 9m 11s 8.6% |