5 April Fool's jokes that didn't go to plan
Some people clearly didn't think through these April Fools
It's the first of April, which means it's April Fool's Day, the annual day when practical jokes are made! However, while April Fools are meant to be a bit of harmless fun, here are a few that didn't go quite to plan.
1. April Fool's workplace joke goes a little too far
Glenn Howlett, a community services manager from London, Ontario was unfortunately on the wrong end of a joke that his colleagues clearly thought would be funny.
Glenn was on holiday over the 1st of April when he received a (joke) memo saying he had just two weeks to present a major report. As he was a dedicated worker, he cut his holiday short, rushed back to work and even suffered heart palpitations! He was then put on fully paid sick leave for stress, and ended up negotiating an early retirement package.
As a result, London, Ontario now has a by-law against playing practical jokes at work.
2. Tweets that really shouldn't have been posted
In 2015, GMP Radcliffe tweeted this joke, while most people realised it was a joke, it offended a number of people who have been incarcerated, especially those with children.
Also in 2015, American footballer Bruce Irvin tweeted a joke about drink driving, rather unsurprisingly that didn't go down well.
3. Never joke about guns
In 2014, Angela Timmons, texted her daughter at school saying she could hear gunshots at the college where she worked. Her concerned daughter decided to call 911 when she couldn't contact her mum, however, while she was on the phone, her mum texted her to say it was all a joke. The 911 call was later released as a warning to others.
4. Could that small hill really be a volcano?
In 1980, a TV station in America fooled a number of its viewers into thinking that Great Blue Hill a 635 feet (194 metre) hill in Massachusetts was erupting! Despite including a message at the end of the news report saying it was an April Fool, residents began to flee their homes.
5. How far would you go for Kanye West tickets?
This isn't an April Fool, however, it is a joke that went badly wrong on an American radio show. Wanting to win Kanye West tickets for Valentine's Day, the listener told her husband (as a joke) that their nine-year-old child wasn't his. In response, her husband revealed a secret that could end their relationship.
It's a long segment, but worth a listen skip to 4 mins 30 seconds to miss out the preamble and for the revelation skip to 7 mins 40 seconds.
Happy April Fool's Day!
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