It was on was this day in 2000 that pranksters caused a major stir in Hampshire by painting a zebra crossing across three lanes of the M3.

Early morning commuters were caught out by the April Fools prank which saw a bogus crossing painted on the northbound carriageway near Farnborough but, amazingly, there were no reported accidents or calls from the general public.

When the prank was finally uncovered, the motorway was closed for a period whilst maintenance workers were summoned to remove the white paint with high-pressure hoses. Fortunately, the pranksters had used emulsion paint rather than gloss, making it easier to tackle.

Nobody was ever charged over the incident with a Hampshire Police spokesman admitting: “I don’t know how they managed to do it without being caught."

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