Everyone loves a good parade, so perhaps that’s why so many turned up to line O’Connell Street after falling for a bizarre Halloween hoax which advertised an event in the capital that was never planned and didn’t take place.
Pictures and footage posted online show crowds lined up along Dublin’s main Street waiting for the parade to start, unaware that the whole thing was a hoax. .
Journalist Robbie Kane said that hundreds had descended on Dublin city centre for a “fake parade”, while Gardaí said: “Please be advised that contrary to information being circulated online, no Halloween parade is scheduled to take place in Dublin city centre this evening or tonight.
“All those gathered on O’Connell Street in expectation of such a parade are asked to disperse safely.”
One eagle-eyed journalist said that a “website posted yesterday about Halloween parade supposedly taking place on O’Connell St at 7pm this eve, gave it a search-friendly title (it landed pretty high up if you Googled ‘Dublin Halloween‘) and explained where to go to get good spots and how to take part”.
It’s not yet known if that was the main driver of news of the event or if other factors were at play.
The Dublin Airport account on X seemed to be getting in on the general sense of amusement at the whole affair.
The crowd who gathered for the fake event also caused brief disruptions to Luas services, with Red Line services were not operating between Smithfield and The Point and on Green Line services between St Stephen’s Green and Dominick Street for about half an hour.