British Royal Family

Does Bob Cratchit, a character from the Charles Dickens classic novella "A Christmas Carol" make the equivalent of $530.27 a week, which is more than the current weekly federal minimum wage in the United States? Probably not: The novella, set in Victorian-era London, states that Cratchit is paid 15 "bob" -- a colloquial term for British shillings -- per week…

Did Romana Didulo become commander in chief of Canada? No, that's not true: according to a spokesperson from the Canadian government, the head of state of Canada is still Queen Elizabeth II and the head of government is Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Didulo is simply the leader of Canada1st, a group that is not "part of or beholden to the…

Did the media fail to report the deaths of 11 Marines in Afghanistan this week? No, that's not true: The deaths referred to all occurred in 2010. Only two were Marines. News media reported on each of the deaths at the time. They did all happen in a single week: July 13-18, 2010. The story reappeared in a post (archived…

Was Queen Elizabeth found guilty in a missing children murder case? No, this is not true: A claim that the British monarch tried and convicted in the disappearance of 10 native children from the Catholic-run Kamloops residential school in British Columbia is completely made up. There is no evidence such a crime ever occurred. The story appeared as an article…

Did courts "quietly confirm" that the MMR vaccine, which protects children against measles, mumps, and rubella, causes autism? No, that's not true: Court cases cited in articles falsely making the claim concluded with damage awards for encephalitis blamed on vaccinations, and not for autism. These misleading reports also cite research from Andrew Wakefield, a doctor who lost his medical license…

Did 34-year-old Henry Hampshire from Dorset claim he bedded hundreds of credulous girls by pretending to be Prince Harry? No, that's not true: the story was made up by a Canadian entertainment website that makes a living by publishing fictional stories often involving weird crimes, bizarre sex acts or strange accidents. It is not real news. The story originated from…

Was 31-year-old James Francis Alexander found dead in a hotel room in Dublin, Ireland and did this man claim he was the "real" Prince Harry? No, that's not true: the entire thing was made up in 2016 by a site that habitually invents stories about weird crimes and bizarre sex acts for entertainment purposes. It was not real. Despite this…

A U.S. based gossip website posted an article titled "Queen Elizabeth Names Prince William and Kate Middleton King and Queen (Sorry, Prince Charles!)". It opened: What a royal family shake-up! Queen Elizabeth has officially named her beloved grandson Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, the next King and Queen of England, according to Life & Style magazine. Unfortunately, this…