Video from Lancaster House shared to claim Islamic call to prayer recited at Buckingham Palace

By: Ankita Kulkarni
April 15 2024

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Screenshots of viral posts on social media. (Source: X/Facebook/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

What is the claim?

Social media users have shared a video of a man reciting the Adhan (also called Azaan), an Islamic call to prayer, claiming that it was captured at Buckingham Palace in London, the official residence of Britain's King Charles III. One Facebook post (archived here) sharing the video wrote, "Islamic call to prayer in London's Buckingham Palace, the official residence of UK King Charles III. But please. Still continue to believe that The Royal family cares about British values. Wake up (sic)." The clip is also circulating on X (formerly Twitter) with a similar claim, and archived versions of such posts can be viewed here and here.

Screenshots of viral social media posts. (Source: X/Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, the video dates back to 2023 and shows a recitation of Adhan inside Lancaster House, near Buckingham Palace. 

What did we find? 

A reverse-image search of a screenshot from the viral clip led us to a report published by The Express Tribue, a Pakistani English daily, on March 29, 2023. The report included the image of the man seen in the viral clip with a background similar to the video in question. The report stated that an iftar (fast-breaking evening meal had in the Islamic holy month of Ramadan) dinner was held at 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the United Kingdom's Prime Minister, and at Lancaster House, which is managed and run by the British Foreign Office, for the first time. Special arrangements were made for Adhan at the event, the daily added. Several prominent Muslim leaders from the U.K. were invited to both venues. 

The search also led us to an Instagram post (archived here) shared on March 29, 2023, by a singer named Mikhaael Mala. Mala is the same person who recited the Islamic person in the viral clip. Mala had uploaded the now-viral video with the caption, "I was given the opportunity to call the Adhan of Maghrib at Lancaster House, A Royal house situated adjacent to Buckingham Palace on the invitation of the ministry of trade, ambassadors of all Muslim nations were present." The caption clearly states that the venue was Lancaster House. 

Lancaster House is situated close to Buckingham Palace, and a 360° view of the building is available on the U.K. government's official Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office website. The interior design and architecture of the building match the visuals seen in the viral clip.

Comparison between the interiors of the building seen in the viral clip and visuals of Lancaster House. (Source: Facebook/FCDO website)   

The above evidence establishes that the viral clip was not captured in Buckingham Palace but at Lancaster House. Additionally, our research showed that King Charles III was not present at the event.

The verdict

A 2023 video of singer Mikhaael Mala reciting Adhan at Lancaster House, the British Foreign Office's building, has been passed off as a recent event and misinterpreted to claim the Islamic call to prayer was given at Buckingham Palace, an administrative headquarters of the British monarch in London. Therefore, we have marked the claim as misleading.