By Gary Bennett
This article appears in the March 26, 2026 issue of the Frederick News-Post’s “72 Hours” entertainment magazine.
Seven of these April Fools pranks are real and three are not. Can you spot the fakes?
France: According to Le Parisien, in 1986, the Eiffel Tower was going to be dismantled and rebuilt inside the new Euro Disney Park for a “tidy sum.” The next day, France’s leading newspaper Le Monde exclaimed in a 96-point headline “Mai Non!”
China: Citing frequent and exorbitant lawsuits, China Youth Daily reported in 1983 that the government had decided to carpet the Great Wall so that overweight American tourists would be less likely to lose their footing and fall. The Communist government denounced the prank as “typical Western depravity.”
Denmark: In 1965, a Copenhagen newspaper reported that Parliament had passed a law that all dogs must be painted white to improve road safety because they could then be seen clearly at night. The next day, 18 dutiful citizens complied.
Norway: In 1987, after reading that the government was planning to distribute 10,000 litres of wine confiscated from smugglers, hundreds of citizens turned up carrying empty bottles and buckets.
Great Britain: In 1980, those wacky pranksters at the BBC announced that Big Ben, London’s historic clock tower, would undergo a face-lift and become digital to keep up with the times. Enraged callers flooded the station with complaints.
Canada: In 2008, WestJet airlines advertised its overhead cabin bins are “among the most spacious of any airline” and said it would charge passengers an extra $12 to sleep in them. Customer service lines were jammed with requests the next day.
Italy: Fashionable magazine Vogue Italia reported in 2011 that the famous Canals of Venice would be immediately filled in to combat rampant flooding due to the sinking of the island. Distraught Venetians entered the canals and refused to leave.
Taiwan: In 2009, the Taipei Times claimed that “Taiwan-China relations were dealt a severe setback when it was found that the Taipei Zoo’s pandas are not what they seem.” The paper reported that the pandas, a gift from the Chinese government, were brown forest bears dyed to resemble pandas.
Germany: In 2009, BMW ran an ad promoting its new “magnetic tow technology.” The invention enabled drivers to turn off their engine and get a “free ride” by locking onto the car ahead via a magnetic beam.
Egypt: With solemn regret, the Egyptian Ministry of Culture in 2005 reported that the Great Sphinx had been sold to a U.S. hedge fund and would be disassembled and removed from its resting place on the west bank of the Nile River to its new home in Las Vegas.
The three fakes are China, Italy and Egypt. All the others actually happened.
Gary Bennett is a longtime Frederick resident who spends his time hiking, biking, volunteering and providing childcare for grandchildren. He is married and retired from his career as a nonprofit marketing executive.