Hoax! Podcast – "April Fool's Day: Google, Spaghetti Trees and Sid Finch"

Hosts: Dana Schwartz & Lizzie Logan
Release Date: March 30, 2026
Summary of Episode Theme:
This episode of Hoax! is a deep dive into the oddball, delightful, and occasionally infamous world of April Fool's Day hoaxes. Dana and Lizzie explore why humans are so susceptible to being fooled, the traditions that underpin April Fool's around the globe, and two of the most iconic (and surprisingly wholesome) pranks carried out by media institutions: the BBC's "Spaghetti Tree" and Sports Illustrated's Sidd Finch. Through engaging banter and a lens of nostalgia, the hosts also reflect on changing attitudes toward pranks, how communal jokes create a sense of belonging, and why “fun” hoaxes feel different from the modern, often alienating fakery enabled by AI.

1. Setting the Stage: April Fool's Day & Personal Pranks

[02:27 – 05:22]

• Dana and Lizzie open up about their own (mostly mild) experiences with April Fool's pranks.
• Lizzie: “The one time that I, like, did something was … I had, like, a bunch of old teen magazines … and I … covered her [roommate’s] room in the posters.” (03:19)
• Dana: Reminisces about possibly trying the classic cream cheese deodorant prank: “Even if I did it, and I’m not sure if I actually did it or not, it didn’t, like, look good enough to actually work.” (04:06)
• Both hosts admit they don’t love doing pranks personally, especially as adults and especially not when brands do them:
  • Dana: “I don’t find pranks very funny.” (04:46)
  • Lizzie: “Brands, absolutely. It became cringe … maybe like 2005 was the last year they could do it.” (05:10)

2. Brand Hoaxes and Google’s April Fools

[05:36 – 07:53]

• Discussion about how companies, especially Google, used to get in on April Fool’s trends.
• Early pranks included fake Google services (“you could Google where your socks are”), but Google stopped in 2020 out of concern for “fake news” and the need for sensitivity during the pandemic.
• Fun fact:
  • Dana: “Do you know that Pokemon Go started as an April Fool's prank?” (06:24)
    • Google Maps did a fake “catch Pokémon” event—eventually inspiring the actual hit game.
  • Gmail was announced on April Fool's Day, leading some to think it was a hoax.

3. The Origins of April Fool’s Day across Cultures

[07:54 – 13:24]

• The beginnings of April Fool's remain murky—possibly dating to the switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar (~1560s).
  • Those who stuck to the “old” New Year (spring) were deemed “fools” by others.
  • Story of Emperor Constantine and the jester “Kugel” is itself a fabricated anecdote—created as a meta-prank by a BU professor in the 1980s.
    • Lizzie: “If you see that, listener, you know that it's not a very good journalist, because that is a lie.” (09:29)
• European traditions:
  • France: “Poisson d'Avril” (“April Fish”) – taping a paper fish to someone’s back.
  • Scotland: “Hunt the Gowk” – sending kids on a fool’s errand, but only until midday. (10:47)
  • Iceland: “Halaipa” (“Run April”) – tricking crowds with enticing but fake news (e.g., “TVs are only $10 at Best Buy!”).
• Reflection on why these gentle prank days exist so widely:
  • Dana: “Sometimes being funny is like a human need … It’s almost like a proto meme.” (13:05)

4. The BBC’s Spaghetti Tree Hoax

[20:13 – 25:57]

• [20:13] Introduction to the legendary 1957 BBC “Spaghetti Harvest” prank:
  • The respected broadcaster Richard Dimbleby narrated a “newsreel” showing Swiss families harvesting spaghetti from trees.
  • Dana: “[The anchor] is walking us through the early spaghetti harvest … with specific details about the plant and how it's grown … I find it actually genuinely astonishingly plausible.” (21:14)
  • Context: British audiences in the 1950s rarely saw fresh pasta—canned spaghetti was the norm.
  • After the broadcast, the BBC received calls asking where to acquire spaghetti bushes.
    • Their (gentle) response: “Place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best.” (23:06)
  • Origin of the idea: Panorama’s cameraman, inspired by a schoolteacher’s taunt, “You’re so dumb, you’d believe that spaghetti grew on trees.”
  • This prank’s legacy endures: Remade for Australia (with new absurdities), featured in commercials, and even repeated by Martha Stewart on her show.

5. The Curious Case of Sidd Finch

[26:12 – 37:56]

• [26:12] Sports Illustrated’s 1985 April Fool’s hoax:
  • George Plimpton pens an elaborate piece about mythical Mets pitcher “Sidd Finch,” who throws a baseball at 168 mph, wears only one hiking boot, is a Buddhist, plays French horn, and is indifferent to fame or money.
    • Lizzie: “He can throw a ball 168 miles an hour.” (26:56)
    • Dana: “If you don’t know baseball, that’s not possible.” (27:01)
    • The piece was supported by composite photos, fake interviews, and the cooperation of the Mets organization.
  • Many journalists, fans, and even baseball officials took the bait, believing in the legendary new player.
    • Satirical details (his subhead is an acrostic for “Happy April Fool’s Day”), but the magazine’s reputation lent credibility.
  • The prank had an afterlife:
    • Fans sent letters; Joe Burton (the model for Sid) gained cult status, attended Mets games, and was memorialized in bobbleheads and a 30 for 30 documentary.
    • Dana (reflecting): “It’s like the buoyant spirit of Sid Finch carried them on … to win the World Series.” (35:49-35:57)

6. Why “Wholesome Hoaxes” Matter | Pranks, Belonging, and the Problem with AI Fakery

[37:59 – 42:40]

• The episode ends with the hosts comparing traditional, labor-intensive hoaxes to modern, AI-generated fakery.
  • Dana: “News you can use, because this is news that makes you feel good in a world that can be very challenging and difficult … These are stories about people coming together just to have a little bit of fun.” (37:59)
  • Lizzie: “It gives people a sense of, like, an inside joke that everyone can be a part of.” (38:42)
• Modern “AI misinformation” is seen as less communal, less creative, and more about tricking or isolating viewers.
  • Dana: “I find AI misinformation odious … Because I don’t think it’s a joke for everyone. It is to trick you, the viewer.” (39:44)
• The hosts express nostalgia for the days of creative, big-budget journalism—where making an audience laugh and feel connected was the point.

7. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On kids and belief:

  • Lizzie: “If you go on Reddit, there’s a few British adults who saw that as a kid, didn’t know what April Fool’s Day was … I was pretty old when I realized that spaghetti doesn’t grow on trees.” (24:45)

• On what makes a good hoax:

  • Dana: “A lot of our hoaxes have dark sides and are manipulations … These ones are just … to have some fun.” (38:15)

• On AI fakes vs. human-crafted pranks:

  • Dana: "There's no artistry. I think I will be on the record as saying I am anti-AI. I think it degrades creativity in human culture." (40:32)

• On shared silliness:

  • Lizzie: "So often I'll see a video that brings me such delight until I realize that it's AI ... The idea that the BBC went through the trouble of pretending that spaghetti grows on trees, I'm like, that's delightful. Because even though it's the same letdown ... someone did that." (39:00-39:44)

8. Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:05] | April Fool’s Day and personal prank stories
• [05:36] | Brand/Google pranks
• [07:54] | The origins of April Fool's Day
• [20:13] | The BBC Spaghetti Tree hoax
• [26:12] | The Sid Finch/Sports Illustrated hoax
• [37:59] | Discussion of prank positivity vs. AI fakes, communal benefits, nostalgia
• [42:40] | Call for listener submissions, closing remarks

9. Listener Engagement

• The hosts invite listeners to share their own joyful April Fools’ stories for a potential future mailbag segment.
  • Dana: “Please share any, like, good, fun pranks that you were involved in on April Fools? Yes, I would love that.” (42:47)

Final Tone:

Warm, witty, thoughtful, and (for once in hoax history) delighted by the power of jokes that unify rather than divide.
Lizzie's sign-off: "Please hoax responsibly." (43:30)

This episode is a celebration—not of duplicity, but of community, creativity, and good, old-fashioned fun.