5 Epic April Fools’ Pranks From History

April Fools’ Day is upon us and we’re sure you’re scouring the internet looking for inspiration on how to prank and get back at people for the pranks you fell for last time.

Well, perhaps some history might give you a standard worth aiming for.

Welcome to the 5 epic April Fools’ pranks from history.

1. Maradona Joins Soviet Football Team

On April 1 1988, the Soviet state-run newspaper Izvestia claimed that the football club Spartak Moscow was in talks with Argentinean legend Diego Maradona to join them on a then-record-fee of $6 million. Following the story, Associated Press immediately distributed it to their subscribers with the effect that before long, the entire world was rife with speculation on whether the renowned football star would be playing for the Soviets or not. However, when Associated Press inquired with Izvestia for more details on the possible transfer, they were politely asked to check the date.

The reason why AP believed the story was simple – Russian state-run media did not have a reputation for tongue-in-cheek stories on April Fools’ Day. The exception to this rule was probably due to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev’s recent policy of Glasnost (openness). In any case, AP had to endure many a scathing remark for their gullibility.

2. UFO in London

On March 31^st 1989, vehicles driving along the highway in London were alarmed as a luminescent flying saucer descended slowly on the city. The saucer gradually landed on a field in the outskirts of London, prompting residents to call the police and tell them that London was being invaded by aliens. When the police apprehensively approached the saucer – the door flew open and a tiny silver-suited figure emerged. Abandoning the pretense of law enforcement, police officers joined the citizens in fleeing for their lives.

And somewhere, Richard Branson, the chairman of Virgin Records was laughing hysterically.

The 36-year-old entrepreneur had decided enlist the help of one of his pilots to modify a hot-air balloon into a flying saucer. Unfortunately, the weather strayed the pilot off course, with the result that he landed a day earlier. Still, London got an excellent April Fools’ prank and Richard Branson got bragging rights for pranking an entire city.  

3. The Gravity-Defying Jump

Who knew astronomers had a wicked sense of humor?

In the middle of an interview BBC held with the renowned astronomer Patrick Moore, he announced that at 9:47 AM that day, a once-in-a-lifetime event would take place. A change in the planetary alignment would counteract and reduce the Earth’s gravitational force. Moore told his listeners that if they jumped at the exact time when this occurred, they’d feel a strange floating sensation. Before long, calls started coming in describing people floating in their rooms while sitting on chairs and the like. Turned out that Moore was simply debunking this pseudoscientific theory by announcing it on the one day that astronomers are allowed to have a little fun with the public: 1^st April.  

4. An Iceberg in Sydney Harbour

If you’re going to pull of an epic prank, the best way to do it is to convince people they stand to gain from something.

That’s what Australian millionaire businessman Dick Smith decided to do when he loudly announced his plans to tow an iceberg from Antarctica into the Sydney Harbour. He planned to carve little ice-cubes from it and sell them to the public for ten cents each – promising them that the purity of Antarctica’s ice would improve the quality of the water they were drinking. Queues formed and radio stations began giving blow-by-blow coverage as the iceberg slowly approached the harbor. Only when it rained did people discover that the “Antarctic iceberg” was actually a ton of white plastic sheet with firefighting foam and shaving cream on it.

Still, Aussies being Aussies, everyone had a good laugh.

5. The Swiss Spaghetti Mania

When you think of BBC, you think of trusted, time-tested reporting – not cheeky pranks.

When BBC’s Panorama show announced that thanks to a mild winter and the extermination of the spaghetti weevil (don’t ask), farmers in Switzerland were enjoying excellent spaghetti harvests – virtually everyone was prepared to take them at their word. Panorama got thousands of calls asking how to grow their own spaghetti tree. To that, the show’s producers gave perhaps the classiest examples of the dry British wit: “Place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce, and hope for the best.”

Tilt your hats to the fine folks at BBC, people.

There, we have set the bar for you. Happy pranking. And get your most paranoid self out on this special day to avoid embarrassment, okay? Okay. 

Enthu already? Book your flights and hotels now!