Viral social media picture doesn’t show world’s oldest living land animal
The tortoise in the post was actually in his 50s when pictured. Read
Fact checks
Sarah Turnnidge
Fact Checker (former)
Sarah previously worked for HuffPost UK, and before that worked in local newsrooms including the Bristol Post, the Essex Echo and the Thurrock Independent.
No record of Sir David Attenborough talking about red and black ants in a jar
There’s no evidence the broadcaster ever made the analogy credited to him. Read
Fact checks
Viral Euro 2020 video shows football fans pushing into Wembley Stadium
Claims that a video shows England and Italy fans clashing after the match are inaccurate. Read
Fact checks
Covid-19 mutated long before mass vaccine roll-outs
All four variants of concern were identified before mass vaccine roll-outs. Read
Fact checks
Only a third of people first heard of the term ‘cancel culture’ in the past year
An article in The Sun far overstates the number of people who have heard of cancel culture. Read
Fact checks
What we know about Matt Hancock’s alleged use of private email
Downing Street initially denied accusations that Mr Hancock and Lord Bethell used private email addresses during the pandemic. Read
Analysis
Education
Pandemic school attendance: fact checked
The Centre for Social Justice has described around 93,000 pupils as “severely absent” in the 2020 autumn term. Read
Fact checks
British Airways hasn’t told their pilots they don’t need Covid-19 vaccine
A Facebook post has also shared baseless claims that some airlines are considering banning vaccinated passengers. Read
Fact checks
Japan hasn’t banned Olympic athletes from taking the knee
Rules prohibiting demonstrations or protests at Olympic venues have been in place for decades. Read
Fact checks
Covid-19 victims cannot be cremated against their wishes
A post on Facebook also wrongly claims that asymptomatic transmission is a hoax, PCR tests are useless and Covid-19 death statistics have been manipulated. Read
Fact checks
