BBC embarrassment after being ‘Frank Chippered’ by Newcastle United troll account
An intentionally misleading story involving Newcastle United midfielder Joe Willock has caused a stir in recent days.
BBC Radio 1 presenter Melvin Odoom has joked he has “lied to the nation” after being trolled by a Newcastle United social media account.
Notorious X user @FrancisChipp has gained a household following within Toon circles in recent years. Previous stunts include “revealing” Matt Targett had been left in South Korea during the club’s pre-season tour.
Newcastle have humorously responded on several occasions, with “Frank Chippa” now firmly embedded in the meme culture at St James’ Park. His latest antics saw a fabricated story about Joe Willock go viral.
EXCLUSIVE 🚨: Newcastle United midfielder Joe Willock, 26, had to be rescued from York Maze after a distress call to emergency services was made at around 5pm on Tuesday. He had been lost in the UK's largest maze for approximately six hours. pic.twitter.com/3WisZkWg9O
— Francis (@FrancisChipp) October 8, 2025
Frank Chippa’s latest stunt
Posing as a reporter, the account posted on X: “EXCLUSIVE: Newcastle United midfielder Joe Willock, 26, had to be rescued from York Maze after a distress call to emergency services was made at around 5pm on Tuesday. He had been lost in the UK's largest maze for approximately six hours.”
BBC take the bait
The Willock story was raised to a national audience on the Rickie, Melvin and Charlie Show - live on BBC Radio 1. Odoom, who broadcast the misleading post, took the situation in good jest after hundreds of listeners noted he had been trolled.
“So that never happened to Joe at all?” Odoom said moments later. “To be fair, it was not a factual site. I feel like I have lied to the nation.”
Sean Longstaff previously targeted
Former midfielder Sean Longstaff is another who has previously been targeted by the account. Many were “Frank Chippered” - whose bio admits “everything I post is made up” - when he claimed Eddie Howe had granted him temporary leave to go travelling with his brother Matty.
Speaking at a later press conference, Longstaff said: “I don’t really know what to say. I think it’s a bit scary that one person can write something that’s not true and the amount of people who think it is true is nuts.”