LONDON ? The BBC apologized "unreservedly" Tuesday after a radio presenter jokingly announced that Queen Elizabeth II had died.

Disc jockey Danny Kelly, 39, played the national anthem "God Save The Queen" and told listeners he had an important announcement to make before saying: "Queen Elizabeth II has now died."

The joke was made Monday on BBC WM, the local radio service for Britain's second city Birmingham and the surrounding West Midlands area.

A BBC spokesman said it was a reference to an item on Kelly's Internet page.

"We can confirm that Danny Kelly made an inappropriate remark about The Queen during his radio show," the spokesman said.

"Although made as part of a light-hearted piece about social media friends, and corrected on-air immediately after it was made, the comment was entirely inappropriate and the BBC apologizes unreservedly for it.

"There was no intention to offend.

"BBC WM takes this comment very seriously. Action is being taken."

The spokesman could not say what action was under way.

Kelly's biography on the BBC website describes the qualified chef and former second-hand car salesman as "outrageous, outspoken and often hilarious".

The BBC WM website says he has a "unique brand of humor".