April Fools' Day 2024

April Fools' Day 2024 is on Monday, April 1, 2024 (in 122 days).  Calendar for 2024

April Fools' Day 2023 has already passed: it was on Saturday, April 1, 2023 (243 days ago).  Calendar for 2023

April Fools' Day, also known as All Fools' Day, is observed every year on the first day of April by playing harmless pranks on unsuspecting recipients and spreading hoaxes. The pranks as well as the victims themselves are called April fools. Shouting "April Fool" at the victim of the joke usually serves as the resolution of the prank. Many newspapers, radio and TV stations and other media outlets take part in the tradition by publishing practical jokes, mostly spectacular stories, narratives or information. They contain subtle clues that the story is a hoax and are usually resolved the next day. It is a generally accepted custom that the pranks should not be harmful and have to cease by noon. The tradition of All Fools' Day exists in North America as well as in most European countries. April Fools' Day is not a public holiday in any country where it is practiced and there are no vacations from work or school.

In one of the most famous April Fools' Day jokes, broadcast on the BBC current affairs program Panorama on April 1, 1957, farmers were shown picking spaghetti from "spaghetti trees" during the "spaghetti harvest" in Switzerland. The BBC subsequently received a number of inquiries about the program from people requesting further information about spaghetti cultivation and how to grow spaghetti trees.

Very detailed accounts of the historical background of April Fools' Day can be found here: All Fools' Day and The Origin of April Fool's Day.

Further reading: April Fools' Day on Wikipedia

April Fools' Day 2025 is on Tuesday, April 1, 2025 (in 487 days).  Calendar for 2025

Dates of April Fools' Day 2024 and surrounding years as downloadable image file