Why is ‘Lois Griffin dead at 43′ trending on Twitter and Tik Tok? The joke explained
A slightly morbid practical joke has been doing the rounds online over Christmas as users trick their families into thinking that celebrities have died.
Over the holidays many people have travelled to spend time with family, taking the opportunity to eat, drink, and trick loved ones into believing that their favourite celebrities have passed away.
That’s the prank at the centre of a new craze on TikTok which has caused a storm online and divided the internet. TikTok users have been recording themselves breaking the fake news to their family, pretending to read the headline of an article about a supposed celebrity tragedy.
On TikTok announced, “Oh my God, Cher dead at 81,” prompting a cry of “Nooo!” from her parents.
Another shouted, “Oh my God, Howard Stern dead at 68″ at a male relative watching television, drawing a shocked response.
@stevescooche This is all over my fyp and I can’t stop laughing 😂 #fakecelebrityprank #fakecelebritydeath #fyp #oprahwinfrey
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This format - *name of celebrity* dead at *age* – has been used in many of the videos and has become a meme online. In fact, in became so widely known that in recent days the phrase ‘Lois Griffin dead at 43′ has been trending on Twitter, leaving many users very confused.
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Well fortunately neither the character, voice actor Alex Bornstein nor any of the celebrities mentioned in the various versions of this prank have passed away.
Also cited as a celebrity death in TikTok videos are Bon Jovi, Jennifer Lopez, Martha Stewart, Billy Joel, Paul McCartney and Zac Efron.