While pubs and shops in England opened their doors for the first time in months, a photo of crowds waiting outside a Primark was shared on social media, causing some users to mistakenly believe it was taken earlier in the day .
Hundreds of thousands of businesses have been shut down since early January when England came to a halt for a third time to prevent increasing infections driven by the “Kent” variant of the virus (here).
On April 12, shops, bars, gyms and hairdressers were allowed to reopen for the first time in three months.
Despite the unpleasant cold weather, enthusiastic shoppers gathered outside their favorite stores.
The same day, a photo of hundreds of people standing in a dark queue outside a Primark was uploaded on social media with the caption: “After 4 months, the nod is about to finally get a refreshment …” ( here).
The image was shared on a Facebook page by The Leicester Bible, stating that: “Everything on this page is about opinions, humor and a satirical version of events related to Leicester and sometimes beyond”.
Despite this, some believed that the photo was taken earlier in the day.
“And then people will wonder why we’re in the lock again in a month,” said one user. “Back in the lock,” another remarked.
Although there have been some reports of long queues forming outside shops in England, including Primark in Leicester (here, here), the statue was actually taken in early December in Birmingham.
The same photo was published by the Birmingham Mail in an article about buyers not respecting social distance at a Primark at Fort Shopping Park on December 2 (here).
VERDICT
Satire. The photo was taken in December, not in April, and was posted on a Facebook page posting satirical content.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our work to check social media posts at www.reuters.com/fact-check/.