Omicron anagram leads to ‘Christmas hoax’ claim

And other stories from the stranger side of life

A Covid lab
Matt Hancock says new rise is ‘concerning’, but is a harmless quirk of the testing system to blame?
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Conspiracy theorists have claimed that Omicron is an anagram for “no Crimbo”, presenting it as proof that the new variant is a hoax designed by the authorities to spoil Christmas. The missing “b” is said to come from B.1.1.529, the name scientists first gave to the variant. Others have noted that Omicron is in fact an anagram for “moronic”.

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