Ten things you never knew about... April 1st

TODAY is April Fool’s Day but the following facts about April 1 are all quite genuine.

Here are 10 facts about April 1st

1. April 1 is also Edible Book Day, celebrating the birthday of French gastronome and writer Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826). For details, see books2eat.com.
2. Since 2004, April 1 has also been celebrated as Fossil Fools Day, with demonstrations against the use of fossil fuels as sources of energy. 

3. In Ancient Rome, April 1 was the date of the festival of Veneralia, praising the goddess Venus.
4. The earliest known connection between April 1 and folly is in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (1392)... 

5. ...though some say his supposed reference to the “32nd of March” (April 1) actually meant 32 days after the end of March (May 2).
6. Since the early 16th century, French children have celebrated “poisson d’Avril” (April fish) on April 1 by sticking fish pictures on people’s backs. 

7. On April 1, 1698, many were fooled into going to the Tower of London to “see the Lions washed”.
8. Companies founded on April 1 include Wrigley’s chewing gum (1891) and Apple Inc (1976). 

9. Singer Susan Boyle was born on April 1, 1961.
10. On April 1, 1889, the first successful dishwasher went on sale in Chicago. Its inventor Josephine Cochran said it washed faster than her servants.