Mel Greig to address UK radio industry

Australian DJ Mel Greig is to speak about the royal prank call that contributed to the death of nurse Jacintha Saldanha at a UK radio industry festival.

DJ Mel Greig

DJ Mel Greig. (AAP)

Australian DJ Mel Greig will address a British radio festival in the hope that colleagues can learn from her infamous prank call to the hospital treating the Duchess of Cambridge for morning sickness.

Greig will appear at Radio Festival 2014 in Manchester next Tuesday to discuss the 2012 hoax call and the subsequent death of nurse Jacintha Saldanha.

"The circumstances surrounding this tragedy are terribly sad but they hold important lessons for all of us working in the media," festival chair Chris Burns said in a statement.

"As an industry we need to act responsibly and learn from each other so I am pleased that Mel has chosen to speak at the Radio Festival so we can learn from her experience."

Greig will be interviewed by English broadcaster Daisy McAndrew.

The annual festival attracts leading industry figures from the BBC, commercial radio and independent stations.

A London coroner in mid-September found that when Ms Saldanha took her own life she was preoccupied both with the hoax by Greig and co-host Michael Christian and an existing dispute with a hospital colleague.

At the end of the inquest Greig told the court "there is a lot to learn from this tragic event".

"I believe that hospitals and media organisations should look into their procedures and policies to ensure a tragedy like this never happens again," she said when apologising to the nurse's family.

"To fellow announcers and DJs I urge you to speak up if you don't feel comfortable and to consider the feelings of others when trying to make a joke.

"The joke should always be on us the DJs."


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