Daily Northern

Nordic News, Every Day

Finnish media and brands pull off April Fools’ pranks

Wednesday 1st 2026 on 21:15 in  
Finland
april fools, culture, Finland

Finnish public broadcaster Yle has compiled some of the most notable April Fools’ Day pranks that fooled readers and social media users across the country on Wednesday.

Discount retailer Tokmanni announced plans to build the “world’s largest bucket museum,” complete with a rooftop area reserved for speed-dating events operating on a first-come, first-served basis.

The long-running Aku Ankka (Donald Duck) comic magazine claimed it would change its name to Mikki Hiiri (Mickey Mouse) starting April 1, shifting its focus to stories about the clever detective mouse—though it promised occasional duck cameos.

Music publication Rumba reported a “shock decision” by Swedish broadcaster SVT to disqualify Finland’s Eurovision entries, Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius, calling Finland a “clear favourite” to win this year’s contest.

The Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs promoted a new service: MFA Wedding Planners, offering its protocol expertise to help couples organise their weddings. The ministry, known for managing state ceremonies, framed the move as an extension of its event-planning skills.

Climate activist group Elokapina (Extinction Rebellion Finland) claimed Prime Minister Petteri Orpo and Finance Minister Riikka Purra had joined its ranks, declaring the group would soon become obsolete due to this “unexpected U-turn.”

The youth wing of the Christian Democrats, KD Nuoret, introduced what it called Finland’s first AI candidate for parliamentary elections—Anssi-Ilari Bottas—a digital entity designed to bring consistency, accessibility, and data-driven analysis to policymaking, with a focus on youth and family issues.

Source 
(via Yle)