There is an art to telling an amazing April fool’s joke. Numerous newspapers, politicians, celebrities and Randburg residents pulled a few that left us laughing out loud. Here are some of our favourite pranks:
- Our very own Northcliff Melville Times pranked its readers with a killer front page story about a wave of darkness set to hit South Africa. Journalist Lesego Maja claimed that there would be load shedding from 1 April to 30 May for at least 10 hours per day. The paper went as far as suggesting that business owners should rent government office space for R950 per day to have access to electricity.
- The Randburg Sun team had its own moments of fun. The team sent a letter of resignation to Group Editor Sammi-Jo Botha making outrageous demands. The team also claimed to be unhappy with the work environment. [See picture above for a snap shot of what was in the letter. Please note that this was a prank and not the true views of the Randburg Sun team]
- Charity Khumalo a Windsor West resident made her sister call her boyfriend Tebogo Maboa saying she had been admitted to the Joburg General Hospital after suffering a heart attack that left her in an induced coma. They claimed Charity would no longer have full use of her right side of the body due to a minor stroke. Maboa rushed to the hospital only to find that it was a prank.
- The Sowetan newspaper website posted a “breaking news” alert stating that Zuma had abruptly resigned saying that “due to the recent Nkandla report, and various attacks towards me, I simply cannot defend myself any longer”.
- Taking a note from President Jacob Zuma, the DA announced a R20 million upgrade to Hellen Zille’s home. The upgrade would include a decontamination jacuzzi, a security surveillance theatre, an underground safety gym and an emergency helipad that will also serve as a tennis court.
- ITV claimed chickens at a Suffolk farm became the first in the world to have laid square eggs.
Share with us your April fools moments.
