40+ Headlines That Prove Fact Is Stranger Than Fiction

If you want to increase the number of people who read your content, you need to make good headlines. The more ridiculous they are, the better. It pays to exaggerate just a tad in order to get the reader’s attention so that once they start reading, they don’t want to stop.

Think of a good headline as a pill. It perfectly encapsulates the story, and all the reader has to do is pop it in their mouth and then wash it down with a bit of curiosity. Once you get the hang of writing the perfect headline, readers will keep coming back for more.

But then there are those rare, once-in-a-blue-moon situations that lend themselves to a headline that far outclasses anything anyone could’ve come up with in a board room. Headlines that do more in a few words than a news story can in a few pages. There are entire internet compendiums of these legendary bits of breaking news, and we’ve collected no fewer than 40 for your enjoyment. Read on to see what hard-hitting journalism really looks like.

Us too

We had always imagined elderly folks to be strapped in a wheelchair, mumbling about the good old days. But there are a few who remain rebels at heart. Take this dynamic duo, for example, who escaped the nursing home to attend a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Security must have had a field day looking for these two. We just hope their dentures didn’t fall out while they were headbanging to Metallica or Slipknot. If we were kept in a nursing home for most of the year, we would want to headbang too.

A Vampire’s Nightmare

This was one of those bittersweet moments where you could either fix the problem or just let the moment wash over you and relinquish control. Everyone could smell what was happening from a mile away, but to be fair, it did not smell of trouble—it smelt of deliciousness.

Firefighters were on the scene within 20 minutes of the call. That was long enough for nearly three-quarters of the factory to burn down and fill the air with garlicky fumes. We guess Australians will have to rely on homemade garlic bread for the next few months.

When You’re Too Focused on the Gold

It’s hard to earn a living in this day and age. However, if you keep up the hard work, then you should be able to make some cash. That is what this man was thinking when he risked his life to unearth the hidden treasure his metal detector had picked up on.

He had been at it for days, intensely digging to free the treasure. However, going to work without sleep also made for hasty judgment. He hadn’t noticed that his machine was only detecting the steal toe cap on his safety boots!

Top Marks for Invisibility

A lot of people vie to be noticed at work. Maybe they want to be promoted; perhaps they want to build their connections. This man is different. He relied on being unnoticeable to earn himself steady pay at his company.

Imagine how mindblown management was when they discovered that the employee who had won the award hadn’t clocked in, in over six years. Either management was negligent, or this guy was too smart for them. Kudos to him for early retirement.

The Only Silver Lining

You know what they say: when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. So, when this woman was served a petition for divorce, emotion drove her to tear it apart and repurpose it into something more useful. And thus, this amazing dress was created.

Who would have thought that the world’s most cynical art student would bring such joy and entertainment to the Twitterverse? Within minutes of posting this design online, other cynics started bidding to buy the dress. At least she now has money to pay the divorce lawyers.

Prey Becoming Predator

You should never let your guard down when faced with the enemy, no matter what sad story they tell you. The facts are as follows: A crime has been committed, it’s highly likely that the person in front of you has committed it, and the offender has mad mad skills!

The offender’s name is Deji Ayoola, a 28-year-old pick-pocketer from Nigeria. Ayoola confessed to committing a crime right after he was apprehended and taken into police custody. Not long after, he decided to add the investigating officer to his list of victims—bad move Deji.

Did He At Least Win A Guinness World Record?

As kids, it was easier to win people’s attention. But when you’re an adult, you only gain fame if you’ve done something either utterly genius or downright stupid. A local man shot to fame after becoming paralyzed from eating chicken nuggets.

What was in the nuggets? We can’t tell for sure. All we know is that he ought to have washed the taste of those chicken nuggets down with a Diet Coke. Everyone knows that diet soda cancels out all of your culinary misdeeds.

For the Love of Fish

Just when we thought that fish in the arctic were becoming endangered because of environmental factors, we were proven wrong. This penguin has gained international notoriety for eating all the fish in the arctic region and gaining a ton of weight.

The guy doesn’t even look guilty, not one bit. He stares into the camera, challenging the person on the other side to a stare-off contest. Of course, the penguin wins. Not even the cameraman can handle its stoic, piercing gaze.

The Proper Way To Burn Bridges

This man’s ambitions were just too big for his townsfolk. Whenever he would share with them his grand ideas, they would shoot him down for wanting more than a simple life. Well, he found a way to burn those bridges…

…and he never looked back. Then again, there would be no town to turn back to now that they have labeled him a persona non grata. Like-minded folks who have also wanted to pack up and leave could only whistle and congratulate him for taking the leap.

Nature’s Way of Setting Boundaries

Admit it: You’re hooked to your phone. When last did you take the time to admire nature’s beauty? Well, don’t think that nature hasn’t noticed. It’s taking the internet down, one submarine cable system at a time. And there’s an unlikely hero doing the grunt work.

Submarine cables are responsible for nearly 99% of international communications. If this shark successfully pulled off this stunt, then the internet would only be routed through the Pacific. If the sharks want to actually take the internet down, they’ll have to enlist the help of megalodons to snap multiple cables at the same time.

No Love, No Fridge

A broken heart can never be underestimated. When this man found out that his girlfriend of five years had been cheating on him, he broke into her home, yanked the cables out, and then carried an entire fridge out the door.

Any sane woman would have gone berserk at the sight of a useful piece of home utility being taken away from her. Worse still, she had filled the fridge with food just before her ex-lover took it. Oh, one thing about karma: it always circles back.

Thor, is that you?

Having superpowers would be pretty awesome. However, think back on how your favorite heroes gained their abilities. It probably was neither pretty nor a walk in the park. Most of them just happened to survive a freak accident, as this kid did.

We admire the way he has managed to reframe the situation. Never mind that nearly 100,000 volts of electricity passed through him (that’s nearly 900x times the electricity passing through an ordinary electrical outlet)—as long as he can hurl a magic hammer and possess the power of Thor!

Hope Gaylord Won

After all that they have done for you, there’s no sane reason why you should turn your back on your parents, let alone sue them…with maybe this one exception. In Missouri, a minor caught headlines after suing his parents for naming him, Gaylord.

We’re guessing he won because after looking for updates on the case, we couldn’t see any more news of Gaylord. Whatever he is named now, he’s likely living peacefully, free from the taunts and mockeries of the people around him.

Wise Choice

We’re starting to understand why it’s so easy to be addicted to the internet. With just a couple of swipes and a few refreshes, your feed will serve you a nice platter of gossip and pure entertainment. Next up, we have this pet owner.

After being sold a giant ferret pumped with steroids, we would lose all trust in the internet—not that anyone should place much trust in the interweb anyway. We just hope that the poor ferrets are being treated like royalty, even if they aren’t the Toy Poodles the guy expected.

When You Wanna Make Sure She’s The One

This next headline is giving us a migraine. It might be because we have to do some math. But it’s largely because of how long these two waited to tie the knot. Did they really have to wait a lifetime?

Of course, marriage is a serious thing. You commit to spending your life with one person and choosing them every day, even when you feel like giving up on them. This man probably just wanted to do a trial run for 80 years before getting hitched.

They Let Him Through

Grandparents will spoil you rotten. It is all a masterful plan so that you love them more than your actual parents. Well, the plan worked on the young lad. He stole his parents’ car and then drove to his grandparents’ house miles away.

Of course, after telling the police that he was a dwarf, they would have believed him and let him through. The only problem is that he had a broken tail light. You can’t drive a car without having it replaced. That is just an accident waiting to happen!

It’s All A Conspiracy

The internet has its pros and cons. Just a few people stating their opinions about the Earth being flat is harmless. However, if it becomes one too many, they’re like dogs herding a flock of sheep into believing that Australia doesn’t exist.

Well, let’s pretend that Australia doesn’t exist. Does that mean that the 26 million people who live there are all a part of the conspiracy? How would they communicate and keep the act going? That would make for one massive WhatsApp group!

Caring Criminals

Despite what you think, criminals are just like us. They are a human who might have resorted to committing crimes to satisfy a universal need—such as food, safety, or even gardening aesthetics. The sooner you accept that the sooner you’ll understand their motives.

This man didn’t want to steal a lawnmower. He just had to. To absolve himself of some of the guilt he would feel, he decided to do his victim a favor. He mowed the victim’s lawn for free. Then, he stole the lawnmower. Seems fair, doesn’t it?

That Went According to Plan

This woman was due in just a couple of months, but she and her hubby couldn’t wait to find out if the baby was a boy or a girl. She had gotten an ultrasound and was set to tell him the good news—he was going to be the only male in the house!

Or, more like, there wouldn’t be a male in the house. We can’t tell if it was the hormones or the excitement that got this woman into a frenzy and made her put the pedal to the metal. Or perhaps this was the plan all along.

When the Stork Takes the Shape of a Postman

Having a baby is good news. But that wasn’t the case when residents read the local paper. Most of the men spat out the coffee their morning coffee and turned to look at their philandering wives. Suddenly, all of the package deliveries made sense.

This guy must have been quite busy back in his day. You can bet there were lawsuits filed against him—some for emotional damages, but many more for child support. It’s a bummer that he only has a monthly pension to divide among his 1300 kids.

The Right Time To Have An Attitude

Nowadays, pet owners brag about their critters as if they were their kids. They talk about stats, personality traits, and even their pets’ talents. The crazier, the better for these folks. However, this one takes the cake! It was not exactly the best time for the parrot to have an attitude.

If it were up to this firefighter, then he would have left this parrot perched on the roof. Unfortunately, all eyes were on him as he struggled to save that parrot who was sportin’ an attitude. Surely the parrot could have just…flown down?

The Crime We See Ourselves Committing

We could survive the week with only one hour of sleep as teens. We could attend a rave all night and still wake up fresh-faced for class the next day. But as adults, we get all the sleep that we can and still end up yawning throughout the day.

The only thing that keeps us going on those long days is some good ole caffeine. A Red Bull a day keeps the doctor away; isn’t that what they say? So, we can totally see why this dozy shoplifter would steal all of that Red Bull.

Needs Some Practice

You will never guess how this perpetrator was caught by the local police. Neighbors called to say that they couldn’t sleep on account of the horrible music coming from next door. Police apprehended this forest bear which had broken into the Colorado home.

You would have thought he broke in to steal some food. However, it was the desire to learn music that compelled this forest bear to commit a crime. Unfortunately, he was not brought to justice—police authorities released Bear Mozart back into the wild.

Stupid Games, Stupid Prizes

Do something too often, and it becomes a habit. It seems that some women have the misfortune of having husbands who have a habit of doing dumb things. No wonder the wives nag. They are trying to save their husbands from themselves.

Of course, every husband loves adding fuel to the fire. This hubby egged his wife on by sloshing the cereal around in milk and then slurping down spoonfuls of the expired goods. The moment she left the room, he puked it all up into the sink. It must have been too soggy.

Comes Up With An Idea

Ever heard of an idea that was so stupid that it was actually genius? Well, this man sued himself, and it worked. Despite the stupidity of his plan, he was able to leech off of his insurance company. What a guy!

However, take this post with a grain of salt. This fake news item has been published on the Weekly World News, a supermarket tabloid company that loves posting fictional content. So, this isn’t the most reliable source of news, but boy, oh boy do we want it to be true.

Before Vaseline, There Were…

Does size really matter? Locker room meetings have men obsessing over having bigger junk to make up for their lack of self-esteem (and/or personality). Nowadays, some men have taken to injecting Vaseline into their manhood. But before that, you had…

…snakes. Of course, having a bulge that hissed and slithered was enough to catch anyone’s attention. When police removed the wild creature from this man’s trousers, they were more than surprised to find out that he had no need for it.

A True Fan

After his rise to stardom, this local celebrity has been hounded by paparazzi and fans. He has had photographers break into his home and rummage through his trash; even some policemen have pulled him over just to get his autograph.

Without waiting for the officer to explain why he had pulled him over, this Florida rapper hits eject and hands the cop the mixtape. He might have even asked the cop if he wanted a picture. Unfortunately, the only picture he would be providing this police officer would be a mugshot.

Equal Rights

Nothing can stop a mom from protecting her cubs. She will go to extreme lengths to keep them safe and to make them happy, even if it means earning the ridicule of people online. This Florida woman is fighting for equal rights for her son Rambo.

Rambo also happens to be a fully-trained, flesh-eating gator. Never mind that he fancies the likes of human meat clamped down between his teeth. All that matters to this human mom is that her “kid” gets equal rights to drive a wheelie.

Forgetful of Good Graces

Sometimes it is tough to keep afloat through life’s challenges. The only way to get through the darkest periods of life is to make a joke out of the things that get us down. Many might find this type of humor distasteful. We call it therapy.

Well, apparently, that might mean that dementia is on the horizon. Funny enough, we have yet to forget that one embarrassing moment that happened in fifth grade. So, that means that there is no way that this post is real, right?

At Least They’re Married

Getting a tattoo is an important life decision. You are most probably going to be stuck with it for the rest of your life. It’s only a good idea to get tatted if you’re sure about having the result plastered on your skin for all eternity.

It pays to have a good design inked on your skin. But no one is stopping you from having your snoring wife’s face plastered permanently on your thigh. The funny thing is, she’s the one embarrassed about this atrocious design tatted on his skin.

Clone Conspiracy

There is no shortage of conspiracy theories online. Just a couple of days ago, we were fed a juicy piece of gossip about Eminem. As it turns out, he was laid to rest in the early 2000s. The Eminem appearing on stage is, in fact, a clone.

If you’ve never heard of the Illuminati, it is allegedly a cabal of rich and famous entertainers, world leaders, and entrepreneurs who control the world. If the clone conspiracy is real then that would explain the state of Eminem’s music after the 2000s.

Cheater on Cam

Breaking news: we have another philandering wife caught in an unlikely manner. What are the odds of being immortalized sitting on a public bench with a man’s head across your lap (a man who is not your husband)? Nearly one in a billion!

This woman was unlucky that her husband chanced upon this image because he was finding the directions to a hotel. It was just a coincidence that the hotel also happened to be the preferred rendezvous point for his wife and her lover. Ouch!

Gotta Have Inflation

After nearly two decades of working for the company, this man was sacked for something beyond his control. When gas prices adjusted to the market demand, the oil company blamed him for it. Seems like a rude way to recognize a loyal employee.

Not to worry; when gas prices soared the week after, the company called this man to offer him his job back. The silver lining was that he negotiated higher pay to the tune of $69 more per hour. Does that sound like a win or what?

Nothing Like Mom’s Cooking

The worst person to pick a fight with is a hungry person. This man came home thinking he would be able to have a decent dinner with the family. However, someone played a rude joke on him and took his serving of pork chops.

Mom was holding him back while his younger brother was physically restraining his cousin. “Hope you choke on it, man!” he yelled at the younger lad with oil smeared on his face. You could tell the cousin was guilty. In fact, you could smell it from across the dining room.

True Love

We don’t know why, but this man has been getting a string of wins in his life since July 2022. Guess there’s truth to the saying, “the universe will conspire to get you what you want.” It all started with him wanting to win the $181-million lottery—so he did.

Not long after that, he met a woman who, of course, fell for his charisma and dazzling good looks. It’s pretty convenient, isn’t it? He met her only two days after he was declared the lottery winner. We wish these lovebirds the best of luck.

Every day is Christmas!

The best thing about Christmas is receiving gifts. Well, this man came up with a plan to ensure it would be Yuletide season all month round. First, he signed up for a dozen dating apps and then swiped right on every one.

In a matter of hours, he had matched with many singles. At first, he was wooing them, showering them with gifts and attention. Afterward, they were practically buying him off with presents just to get him to stay in a relationship. Smart!

Inventing Anna, the Male Version

We can’t believe the number of people who have made money off of pretending to be someone or something they’re not. Not too long ago, Netflix exposed the story of a woman pretending to be an heiress. And then there’s this Nigerian scammer…

…who successfully sold a multimillion-pound airport to an international bank. Whatever happened to due diligence? Guess if you’re believable enough, and if you have the forged papers to show for it, you can achieve anything you want in life! Honestly, get the bag, bro.

No Regrets

Some people recommend that one does a ritual purging of the system every now and then. They say it helps with digestion. However, we didn’t know that it also helps get rid of excess baggage. It all has to do with pooping the right way.

A quick toilet break was all it took for this woman to flush her memories away. She bid adieu to all the embarrassing memories of her emo phase. The memories of her crying to Linkin Park songs just washed away. She was a woman reborn.

Woke People Nowadays Be Like…

We used to look up to enlightened people. We could come to them, confide our problems, and they would ask a couple of questions to guide us to the right answers. We used to listen. Nowadays, some of those who call themselves “enlightened” are just dim.

Considering the first movie theatre was opened in 1896, and the first Marvel movie only came out in 2008, we can say that movie theatres were doing just fine without Marvel. Sure, theatres took a hit in 2020, but he might be giving Marvel too much credit.

Doppelganger Dog

Imagine the locals’ surprise when they tuned in to the news to find out that a lion was on the loose. He had been missing for days. In his place was a hairy dog with a golden mane, put there by the zookeepers to keep the incident hush-hush.

We can’t say that we see the resemblance. However, to be fair, if we had so many animals to look after, we wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between a dog wearing a brown wig and a lion with its untamed mane.