French mayor apologises after Ikea April Fool’s falls flat
Caroline Cayeux announced 4,000 jobs were coming to Beauvais before revealing it to be ill-judged joke
A French mayor has apologised following an ill-judged April Fool’s Day joke.
Caroline Cayeux, mayor of Beauvais in northern France, announced on Twitter that Swedish furniture company Ikea would be opening a store in the small town later this year.
Cayeux wrote that Beauvais “beat off competition from other French cities,” for which she “congratulates herself.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The “joke was initially too deadpan for some, with several excited residents offering gratitude and writing ‘very good news’”, reports RT.
But as Cayeux was forced to explain that this was in fact a joke, the merriment turned to anger.
Locals “were not amused when the mayor, hours later, clarified that the news about job opportunities was not true”, says the BBC.
“What a joke! I leave my hometown in a week, because impossible to find a job here,” wrote Twitter user XavierL.
According to RT another local, Julien, wrote on Twitter: “Yeah, it's funny to make us think there are jobs when there aren't any.”
While a third, ArMelo, said: “We will all vote for you in the next election...joke.”
Cayeux later apologised, admitting her choice of topic had been “unwise”, explaining that her communications team sends out a fake April Fool's Day announcement every year.
She told French newspaper Le Parisien: “This was a mistake and we will do better next year. On Sunday, I spent the day responding to internet users and did not remove the original tweet or any jokes criticising.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Has the Taliban banned women from speaking?
Today's Big Question 'Rambling' message about 'bizarre' restriction joins series of recent decrees that amount to silencing of Afghanistan's women
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Cuba's energy crisis
The Explainer Already beset by a host of issues, the island nation is struggling with nationwide blackouts
By Rebekah Evans, The Week UK Published
-
Putin's fixation with shamans
Under the Radar Secretive Russian leader, said to be fascinated with occult and pagan rituals, allegedly asked for blessing over nuclear weapons
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Chimpanzees are dying of human diseases
Under the radar Great apes are vulnerable to human pathogens thanks to genetic similarity, increased contact and no immunity
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies hang over Sydney's Mardi Gras
The Explainer Police officer, the former partner of TV presenter victim, charged with two counts of murder after turning himself in
By Austin Chen, The Week UK Published
-
Quiz of The Week: 24 February - 1 March
Puzzles and Quizzes Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will mounting discontent affect Iran election?
Today's Big Question Low turnout is expected in poll seen as crucial test for Tehran's leadership
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Sweden clears final NATO hurdle with Hungary vote
Speed Read Hungary's parliament overwhelmingly approved Sweden's accession to NATO
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published