BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • Trending

How 'Laughing Man' spread around the world

  • Published
    19 March 2015
Share page
About sharing
Media caption,

Spanish laughing man

ByBBC Trending
What's popular and why

His loud guffawing and rapid-fire delivery has been mistranslated into English, Arabic and Russian. But who is 'Spanish Laughing Man' and what is he really talking about?

A video in which Laughing Man is depicted as an Apple engineer has more than 4 million views on YouTube, external. He's also been used to criticise Russian president Vladimir Putin, and Muslim Brotherhood supporters used Laughing Man to make their point during last year's elections in Egypt.

But it turns out that in the original Spanish, Laughing Man isn't really laughing about politics at all.

Video journalist: Alvaro A. Ricciardelli

Next story: Do Chinese tourists lack good manners?

For more videos subscribe to BBC Trending's YouTube channel., external

You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, external. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending

Top stories

  • Live. 

    Trump to meet King in Windsor Castle on first full day of state visit

    • 4780 viewing4.8k viewing
  • 'Completely different, yet genuinely get on' - BBC correspondents on Starmer and Trump

    • Published
      12 hours ago
  • Eritrean man wins block on removal to France under 'one in, one out' deal

    • Published
      9 hours ago

More to explore

  • 'The ego has landed' and 'Don in... none out'

    The front page of the Daily Mirror and Metro in a composite image. "The ego has landed" reads the headline on the front page of the former and "Don in... none out" reads the headline on the front page of the latter.
  • Trump, Air Force One and the Beast are coming. Here's what the president is bringing

    Donald Trump waves as his black, bulletproof car is seen behind him with small USA flags attached to the bonnet.
  • Fake medicine almost killed my cat - here's how to keep your pet safe

    Smokey lying on the table
  • End of the road for manual drivers? More learners opt for automatics in tests

    Two women in a car. The younger one is at the wheel. She is white and has blonde hair and is wearing a hoodie. An older mixed-race woman is instructing her. The car is yellow-green
  • Robert Redford: An enthralling star with an aura that lit up Hollywood

    Robert Redford is seen in later life.  He is smiling and looking slightly off camera.
  • Syria's worst drought in decades pushes millions to the brink

    Sheep walk among the dried-out bed of the Orontes River in Jisr al-Shughour, Syria
  • Politicians get rich while we suffer - so I helped bring down our government in 48 hours

    Tanuja Pandey holding a paper showing an anti-corruption slogan during the Gen-Z protests in Nepal
  • 'The bombing has been insane': Palestinians scramble to flee Israeli assault on Gaza City

    A man with a bandaged hand steers the handlebars of a bicycle while two small children lie on the front bars and seat. Some bags hang from the bike's handlebars as they journey in the night, with a bright light shining on to them.
  • Bowen: UN commission report on genocide is blunt indictment of Israel's actions in Gaza

    Women cry as they mourn the death of a loved one killed during overnight Israeli bombardment on June 12, 2025, at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militant group.
loading elsewhere stories

Most read

  1. 1

    'The ego has landed' and 'Don in... none out'

  2. 2

    Eritrean man wins block on removal to France under 'one in, one out' deal

  3. 3

    End of the road for manual drivers? More learners opt for automatics in tests

  4. 4

    Charlie Kirk suspect confessed in hidden note to roommate, prosecutors allege

  5. 5

    Robert Redford: An enthralling star with an aura that lit up Hollywood

  6. 6

    Fake medicine almost killed my cat - here's how to keep your pet safe

  7. 7

    New AI deal could rapidly boost UK economy says Microsoft boss

  8. 8

    Two Labour MPs denied entry to Israel

  9. 9

    'It took 20 years but I brought my rapist to justice'

  10. 10

    Politicians get rich while we suffer - so I helped bring down our government in 48 hours

BBC News Services

  • On your mobile
  • On smart speakers
  • Get news alerts
  • Contact BBC News

Best of the BBC

  • Rob and Rylan embark on their own passage to India

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Rob & Rylan's Passage to India
  • What drives young women to risk it all in the MMA cage?

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Girl Fight
  • The life of Gordon Welchman, a WW2 codebreaking hero

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Bletchley Park: Codebreaking's Forgotten Genius
  • A night of frighteningly great film music

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    BBC Proms
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • Terms of Use
  • About the BBC
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Accessibility Help
  • Parental Guidance
  • Contact the BBC
  • Make an editorial complaint
  • BBC emails for you

Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.