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ON THE BALL(S)

What is Ed Balls day?

ON April 28, 2011, then-Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls sent an embarrassing tweet - and no one's prepared to let him forget it.

This is why Twitter calls April 28 Ed Balls Day. Here's the bizarre story behind it and how the event is celebrated.

 The jokers of Twitter celebrate Ed Balls Day each year on April 28
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The jokers of Twitter celebrate Ed Balls Day each year on April 28Credit: BBC

What is Ed Balls Day?

Ed Balls Day remembers the eve of the Royal Wedding when Ed, who was the Labour MP for Morley and Outwood at the time, was trying to search for a tweet mentioning his name.

However, in classic technophobic dad fashion, Ed accidentally tweeted his own name - and Twitter erupted in hysterics.

The infamous tweet has now been liked more than 67,000 times.

It's racked up more than 96,000 re-tweets.

 The tweet has thousands of likes
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The tweet has thousands of likesCredit: TWITTER

When is Ed Balls Day?

Ed Balls Day is celebrated on April 28 each year, the same date that he sent the original tweet.

In 2021, the day falls on Wednesday.

This year marks the sixth anniversary and, even though Ed has attempted to change his image with a stint on Strictly Come Dancing, no one's getting bored of the joke.

 Former Shadow Chancellor Ed competed on Strictly Come Dancing in 2016
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Former Shadow Chancellor Ed competed on Strictly Come Dancing in 2016Credit: PA:Press Association

How is Ed Balls Day celebrated?

Sadly, Ed Balls Day is not an official holiday - so most of the celebrations occur at the scene of the original cringe-worthy moment, on Twitter.

From Photoshopping his face on to the Coca-Cola Christmas lorry to mocking up Happy Ed Balls Day cards, the jokes show no signs of stopping any time soon.

Here's some of the best tweets.

Ed Balls kicked in the face by Katya Jones during Strictly Come Dancing live tour
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