The Poynter Institute Menu Donate State Editions * California * Florida * Iowa * Michigan * New Hampshire * New York * North Carolina * Pennsylvania * Texas * West Virginia * Wisconsin Issues * All Issues * Online hoaxes * Coronavirus * Health Care * Immigration * Extremism * Taxes * Marijuana * Environment * Crime * Guns * Foreign Policy * LGBTQ+ People * Joe Biden * Kamala Harris * Donald Trump * Mitch McConnell * Hakeem Jeffries * Ron DeSantis Media * PunditFact * Tucker Carlson * Sean Hannity * Rachel Maddow * Bloggers * PolitiFact Videos Campaigns * 2024 Elections Truth-o-Meter * True * Mostly True * Half True * Mostly False * False * Pants on Fire Promises * Biden Promise Tracker * Trump-O-Meter * Obameter * Latest Promises About Us * Our Process * Our Staff * En Español * Who pays for PolitiFact? * Advertise with Us * Suggest a Fact-check * Corrections and Updates * Newsletters Donate #### Follow us The Facts Newsletter Sign up English Español ### Stand up for the facts! Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Bloggers stated on April 25, 2020 in a blog post: “First volunteer in UK coronavirus vaccine trial has died.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") * Facebook Fact-checks * Coronavirus * Bloggers ![\\"Ciara](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke May 5, 2020 # No, the first volunteer in a UK COVID-19 vaccine trial hasn’t died #### If Your Time is short * Elisa Granato, the first volunteer to be injected in a COVID-19 vaccine trial in Europe, is \"100% alive.\" See the sources for this fact-check As scientists race to develop a vaccine against COVID-19, a screenshot of a frightening headline has been shared on social media. \"First volunteer in UK coronavirus vaccine trial has died,\" it says above an image of a woman smiling as a health care worker appears to place a small bandage on her upper arm. An April 25 Facebook post sharing the image was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.) The screenshot comes from a WordPress blog called News NT. \"Elisa Granato, the first volunteer who availed herself in Oxford for a jab in the first Europe human trial of a vaccine to protect against the coronavirus pandemic has died,\" the story says. \"She died two days after the vaccine was administered, authorities have said and added that an investigation into the cause of the death has been initiated.\" Elisa Granato is a real person. She is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford’s zoology department. But as her Twitter bio says, she’s \"100% alive.\" The image in the Facebook post is authentic, and shows Granato after she was injected as part of a coronavirus vaccine at the University of Oxford. She was the first of more than 800 people who were recruited for the first human trial in Europe of a coronavirus vaccine, according to the BBC. Granato, who was the first volunteer to be injected, told the BBC: \"I’m a scientist, so I wanted to try to support the scientific process wherever I can.\" #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" Jeffrey Barke stated on August 23, 2024 in an Instagram post Food and Drug Administration approval for updated COVID-19 vaccines requires a public health emergency declaration. ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Jeff Cercone • August 27, 2024 The Department of Health and Social Care in the United Kingdom also used Twitter to dispel misinformation about Granato’s death. \"News circulating on social media that the first volunteer in a UK #coronavirus vaccine trial has died is completely untrue,\" the April 26 tweet says. That same day, Fergus Walsh, a medical correspondent for the BBC, tweeted that he spoke to Elisa Granato over Skype and that \"she is very much alive and she told me she is feeling ‘absolutely fine.’\" In a video clip Walsh tweeted of Granato, she says, \"I’m very much alive, thank you.\" The University of Oxford has said that any updates about its COVID-19 vaccine trial will appear on its website. \"We are aware there have been and will be rumours and false reports about the progress of the trial,\" an April 26 post on the site says. \"We urge people not to give these any credibility and to not circulate them.\" Considering the attention paid to the fake news about her death, Granato’s actual passing would have certainly drawn media coverage. But as we prepared to publish this fact-check, the most recent report we could find about her was a May 5 story in the Oxford Student, a student newspaper at Oxford. It quotes Granato saying she was randomly chosen as the first person to be vaccinated, resulting in \"a lot of attention from the media, countless emails from all over the world and — sadly — some pretty vicious online attacks by individuals and groups opposed to vaccines.\" We rate this Facebook post False. #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources Facebook post, April 25, 2020 News NT, First volunteer in UK coronavirus vaccine trial has died, undated Elisa Granato Twitter, visited May 4, 2020 Department of Health and Social Care tweet, April 26, 2020 Fergus Walsh tweet, April 26, 2020 University of Oxford, News about trial progress, April 26, 2020 BBC, Coronavirus: First patients injected in UK vaccine trial, April 23, 2020 Oxford Student, Exclusive: \"100% alive\" Dr Elisa Granato, first vaccine recipient, shares her experience, May 5, 2020 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Ciara O\'Rourke slide 4 to 6 of 15 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 4, 2024 in an Instagram post: An image shows the social media profile of the accused suspect in the Apalachee High School shooting. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 5, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 2, 2024 in an Instagram post: “In less than 48 hours the United States government is shutting down for good.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 5, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 2, 2024 in a Facebook post: Photo shows a child “saved” by Deputy Ryan Braidley in Elko County, Nevada. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 5, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 13, 2024 in an Instagram post: Says Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said, “Who else thinks the downfall of America started with Barack Obama?” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 17, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 16, 2024 in an X post: The FBI said it would “visit” Elon Musk for writing on X, “No one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 17, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 15, 2024 in a Facebook post: Former President Donald Trump posted “0-2” Sept. 15 on Truth Social. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 16, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 8, 2024 in a Threads post: “Elon Musk is going to expose Bill Gates soon, says ‘he’s evil.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 6, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Gordon Ramsay calls Tim Walz a ‘woke creep,’ throws him out of Hell’s Kitchen.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 7, 2024 in a Threads post: Photo shows Elton John wearing a “MAGA” jacket. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 30, 2024 in a Facebook post: Video shows tornadoes in Canada. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on September 8, 2024 in an Instagram post: Video shows a Ku Klux Klan member at a rally for former President Donald Trump. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 7, 2024 in a Threads post: Elon Musk said, “Anyone caught promoting propaganda will be suspended from X.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 6, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Elon Musk to fund new anti-woke show featuring Tucker Carlson.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 2, 2024 in an Instagram post: Image shows “Michelle Obama’s necklace from DNC speech” said “Mike.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 11, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 4, 2024 in an Instagram post: “The entire family of Kamala Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz—they are all supporting Donald Trump.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 6, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 4, 2024 in an Instagram post: An image shows the social media profile of the accused suspect in the Apalachee High School shooting. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 5, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 2, 2024 in an Instagram post: “In less than 48 hours the United States government is shutting down for good.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 5, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 2, 2024 in a Facebook post: Photo shows a child “saved” by Deputy Ryan Braidley in Elko County, Nevada. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 5, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 13, 2024 in an Instagram post: Says Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said, “Who else thinks the downfall of America started with Barack Obama?” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 17, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 16, 2024 in an X post: The FBI said it would “visit” Elon Musk for writing on X, “No one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 17, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 15, 2024 in a Facebook post: Former President Donald Trump posted “0-2” Sept. 15 on Truth Social. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 16, 2024 ### No, the first volunteer in a UK COVID-19 vaccine trial hasn’t died * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 13, 2024 in an Instagram post: Says Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said, “Who else thinks the downfall of America started with Barack Obama?” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Republican Governors Association stated on June 24, 2024 in a campaign advertisement: “On (Josh) Stein’s watch, rapes in North Carolina are up 53%.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Paul Specht • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Michele Morrow stated on September 16, 2024 in a social media post: The plus in LGBTQ+ includes pedophilia. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Paul Specht • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 16, 2024 in an X post: The FBI said it would “visit” Elon Musk for writing on X, “No one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Eric Hovde stated on September 3, 2024 in TV interview: \"Typically you have three to four debates in a U.S. Senate race. (Baldwin has) given me one debate, almost a month after early voting has started.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Hope Karnopp • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Sheehy stated on August 21, 2024 in an X post: The “‘Inflation Reduction Act’ increased inflation and drove prices sky high!” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Walz stated on September 14, 2024 in a speech: “In Project 2025, you’re going to have to register with a new federal agency when you get pregnant.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Samantha Putterman • September 17, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 8, 2024 in una publicación en Instagram: \"Maduro llega a Rusia para pedir ayuda armamentista ante las relaciones negativas con los países americanos\". ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Marta Campabadal Graus • September 16, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 15, 2024 in a Facebook post: Former President Donald Trump posted “0-2” Sept. 15 on Truth Social. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 16, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on September 16, 2024 in X posts: Ryan Routh appeared in a Blackrock commercial. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Sofia Ahmed • September 16, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. Become a member! In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts. Sign me up #### Offices District of Columbia 1800 I Street NW Washington, DC 20006 Florida 801 3rd St. S St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-821-9494 #### People * Joe Biden * Kamala Harris * Donald Trump * Mitch McConnell * Hakeem Jeffries * Ron DeSantis #### State Editions * California * Florida * Iowa * Michigan * New Hampshire * New York * North Carolina * Pennsylvania * Texas * West Virginia * Wisconsin #### About Us * Our Process * Our Staff * En Español * Who pays for PolitiFact? * Advertise with Us * Corrections and Updates * Newsletters #### RSS Feeds * Recent Articles and Fact-checks * Recent Fact-checks Suggest a Fact-check #### Follow us The Facts Newsletter Sign up Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy Copyright ©All Rights Reserved Poynter Institute 2020, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization ![\\"\\"](\\" ✕ * * *
First volunteer in UK coronavirus vaccine trial has died