Tricks, tales, traditions: The many faces of April Fool’s Day

In the spirit of April Fool’s Day today, many are gearing up to prank their friends and family. While it may seem like a modern tradition, its roots go back to the 16th century. One widely believed origin story goes back to a funny incident all the way in 1500s France. When the Julian calendar (established by Julius Caesar) was replaced by the Gregorian calendar (introduced by Pope Gregory XIII), New Year’s Day shifted from April 1 to January 1. However, not everyone got the memo and continued celebrating the new year on April 1, earning them the title of “April Fools.”

Curious to learn more? We dug into some facts about Fools’ Day, and the results are bamboozling.

1. In the UK, jokes and tricks can be played up until noon on 1 April. After midday it’s considered bad luck. Anyone who forgets this and tries a joke in the afternoon, becomes an ‘April Fool’ themselves.

2. In France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and French-speaking areas of Canada and Switzerland, the April Fools’ Day tradition is called “April Fish” or “Poisson d’Avril”, where pranksters stick paper fish on an unsuspecting victims’ back.

3. In the 1950s the BBC ran a news story about a spaghetti harvest that took place in Switzerland. This prank is believed to be the best April Fools’ Day prank of all time, resulting in many requests for spaghetti trees by viewers.

4. In Poland April Fools’ Day is so strongly believed that an anti-Turkish alliance signed on April 1st with Leopold 1, the Holy Roman Emperor and the King of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia, in 1683 had to be backdated to March 31st.

5. Some pranks have gone too far. Dublin Zoo once received thousands of calls asking for fake names like Mr C Lyons and Anna Conda after a phone hoax tricked people into calling. A spokesperson later admitted the staff had “lost their sense of humour.”