The Darkest April Fool’s Day in Hong Kong

On the first of April, people often like to prank their friends with benign jokes, while the media frequently include a harmless fake article in the day’s news to fool their readers or viewers. Hong Kong is no exception to this tradition. However, in 2003, April Fools’ Day took a dark turn in the city.

As Hong Kongers opened their newspapers on April 1, 2003, one article stood out from the usual news: superstar singer and actor Leslie Cheung, famous throughout East Asia, had jumped to his death from the 24th floor of the luxury hotel Mandarin Oriental in Central. Across the city, people found the prank in very poor taste.

In 2003, Leslie Cheung, then only 46 years old, was immensely popular across the sinophone world, in South Korea, and in Japan. Often dubbed the father of Cantopop, with hits such as Monica in 1984, and starring in some of the most popular Hong Kong and Chinese movies of the late twentieth century—such as the Palme d’Or-winning Farewell My Concubine in 1993—Leslie Cheung was at the peak of his acting career, which coincided with the Golden Age of Hong Kong entertainment.

Yet, the articles were not pranks. Leslie Cheung had indeed passed away that day, leaving millions of fans across East Asia mourning his death.