Talk:Max Fosh

New sources since last AfD

I scanned the references of the new article and compared them to the article's state since the last AfD; there's this article in The Guardian; not entirely about Fosh, but with a fair amount of content; There's also this on in Living North which has sufficient WP:DEPTH but seems to be a local source of questionable notability. Then there are a number of articles mentioning or interviewing Fosh relating to the London mayoral election, with varying degrees of coverage. User:Bondegezou, User:Drmies, User:0xDeadbeef, any thoughts on whether this merits going into a 3rd AfD? OhNoitsJamie ^Talk 19:59, 24 April 2024 (UTC)

• User:Ohnoitsjamie, I think there's enough chatter that passes for sourcing for it to be kept at AfD so we can call it "notable", even if it's by the lowest of standards. Drmies (talk) 21:53, 24 April 2024 (UTC)

I think it remains a borderline case and an AfD could go either way. The Guardian article is a fairly brief mention, but is there enough cumulatively here? Don’t know.

The article does need some work. I’ll start on that. Bondegezou (talk) 06:22, 25 April 2024 (UTC)

OK, I’ve trimmed a lot of unencyclopaedic trivia, but, yes, I think there’s enough sourcing to justify an article now. Bondegezou (talk) 06:39, 25 April 2024 (UTC)

The Guardian article borderlines on sigcov, but agreed with comments above that this is probably enough for a weak keep. 0xDeadbeef→∞ (talk to me) 11:35, 25 April 2024 (UTC)

Personal details and sourcing

I've removed and Strugglehouse has restored various details about Fosh sourced to primary sources. In particular, I would like to discuss use of his full name and date of birth. The article, as now, cites one of his YouTube videos for his full name and an old tweet for his birthday.

WP:DOB is relevant here. It states, Wikipedia includes full names and dates of birth that have been widely published by reliable sources, or by sources linked to the subject such that it may reasonably be inferred that the subject does not object to the details being made public. We don't have the former for either full name or d.o.b. We do have one of his YouTube videos for the full name, so maybe that's OK under WP:ABOUTSELF. (That said, I am unconvinced on other grounds. The guy does prank videos. I don't see how any video he does can be trusted. He could well be making stuff up to be amusing.)

I am more concerned about his d.o.b. WP:DOB does say A verified social media account of an article subject saying about themselves something along the lines of "today is my 50th birthday" may fall under self-published sources for purposes of reporting a full date of birth. However, I note that only says may and a single tweet 11 years ago, when he was 18, does not seem to be very solid ground for believing Fosh is happy for this information to be publicised. We must err on the side of caution with WP:BLP. I think the d.o.b. should be removed (or alternate sourcing provided).

What do others say? Bondegezou (talk) 12:55, 30 April 2024 (UTC)

His full name should definitely be included. It is, without a doubt, Maximilian Arthur Fosh. It is mentioned in many of his videos. See here, here and here.

Perhaps his full birth date should not be included if a better/more up to date source cannot be found. We can instead use sources such as this this and this, which mention his age at the time of writing, and use Template:Birth based on age as of date  to give an estimated age and year of birth, to render as 1994 or 1995 (age 30–31). I will add this now. Strugglehouse (talk) 13:43, 30 April 2024 (UTC)

Thanks for making those changes. Bondegezou (talk) 18:35, 30 April 2024 (UTC)

@Bondegezou No problem. Strugglehouse (talk) 18:40, 30 April 2024 (UTC)

Superlative Achievements

Many of his videos center around some absurd concept like becoming "the richest man in the world" "a member of the royal family" and "the worlds youngest grandpa." While these are obviously humorous, they are also technically true statements and notable achievements in their own right. I propose the creation of a section dedicated to listing the most notable of these accomplishments with a short explanation of how he did each. Jdftba (talk) 21:18, 12 March 2025 (UTC)

Wikipedia articles follow what reliable sources say, not the whims of editors. What you are suggesting sounds like original research (see WP:OR) and is not allowed. Bondegezou (talk) 06:59, 13 March 2025 (UTC)

Shame it has to be like that, considering a link to the video itself would prove it. 74.209.42.16 (talk) 02:10, 4 July 2025 (UTC)

Death

Max Fosh technically and legally died in the principality of Seborga 2601:681:780:F990:31A2:61CD:2655:4D81 (talk) 20:14, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

Wikipedia does not participate in Youtube jokes. OhNoitsJamie ^Talk 20:20, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

This is not a joke, he has a real death certificate that was accepted for an airline refund claim. Of course he's not actually dead, which makes it fraudulent, but not a joke. 170.247.192.155 (talk) 20:29, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

And this is a real encyclopedia, so no. OhNoitsJamie ^Talk 20:32, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

The death certificate is from an unrecognized micronation. Hardly legally credible Vikrant Panday (talk) 22:12, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

I'm heavily late, and I of course don't mean to question your judgement on this, @Ohnoitsjamie but doesn't WP:Humor#Humor_in_articles apply here? I do apologize if I'm mistaken of course, PerryPerryD Talk To Me 09:54, 21 July 2025 (UTC)

Fosh's death is invalid since there's staggering proof that his death was no more than humorist attempts S0m3oque (talk) 22:20, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

Depending on if other independent third party sources has picked it up, it could be on worth including it in the article regardless if it was done as a joke, as part of describing his "YouTube projects/hijinx" - such as getting adopted, married and divorced, and now died. But not as a "death date" obviously. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 23:49, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

Agree; the Luton Airport joke is mentioned because it was covered in multiple reliable sources including the BBC. If this received coverage from multiple reliable sources, it could be mentioned in that sort of context. OhNoitsJamie ^Talk 23:53, 30 June 2025 (UTC)

Still, it actually happened. He is legally dead in the micronation of Seborga, whether the media picks it up or not. Wikipedia doesn't only store popular information, it stores as much true info as possible for collective human knowledge. It is important, especially so if the media doesn't talk about it, for us to save any information on any and every topic. His legal death shouldnt be recorded as his death date, but it should be recorded. 2600:1700:7CB0:1990:418B:1207:9BCF:C2C2 (talk) 00:11, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

Have you seen said certificate? We require better sourcing than primary sources such as the self-published YouTube video to start with regardless. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 00:15, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

(1) Micronations are fun, but they are not recognized by any other real states (2) Wikipedia does not "store as much true info as possible." OhNoitsJamie ^Talk 00:21, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

I agree that it shouldn't be added as an official "death" as such, however, I do think it's worth mentioning regardless. Maybe in a designated 'trivia' section? RavenM3 (talk) 05:28, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

Well, please no, per MOS:TRIVIA. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 23:27, 4 July 2025 (UTC)

I was WP:BOLD and added it with three sources. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 23:48, 4 July 2025 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit requests ("death")

For his Date of birth to date of death put, 6/2025 then a note on top that says "Max is legally dead to try to get a flight refund" Media chicken (talk) 05:32, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

chnage from born in 1995 to 1995 - 2025 becaause he technically died in his latest video and then change that to 1995 - 2025 - 2025 because he came back to life 2406:5A00:2800:D700:2D6B:6AE8:1391:31C (talk) 06:12, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

Distraught to hear about Max Fosh's untimely death in the principality of Seborga whilst attempting creating joy and laughter. It is how he would've wanted to go.

I request that we add his date of demise and perhaps a eulogy. Thespitoon (talk) 10:42, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

 Not done: If this prank receives third-party coverage, we could maybe cover that somewhere in the article. But we're not adding a death date based on a fake death certificate from an unrecognised micronation. the wub "?!" 11:08, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

Family

I don't exactly know how I could find a reliable source for this, but he does technically have a son, which should obviously be included in the article. Would the video of him adopting his son count as sufficient sourcing for adding the information, or will I have to search for different sources (if they exist)? Dual The Eggist (talk) 09:15, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

WP:BLPPRIVACY applies. I would not rely on primary sources. Bondegezou (talk) 10:07, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 1 July 2025

I would like to add the fact that he has an official death certificate to the first section. Just like it is in the German version of the page. The following video can be seen as proof: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z3SsckJmMc It would be something like: "On the 30th of June 2025 or earlier, he was officially declared dead at the age of 30 years by the principality of Seborga." Asterix2017 (talk) 12:34, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

 Not done: This is not notable enough. When secondary sources talk about, then we can at it. Gilliebillie🤡 (talk) 12:51, 1 July 2025 (UTC)

https://aviationa2z.com/index.php/2025/07/05/youtuber-fake-his-own-death-to-claim-50-refund-seriously/

https://www.uniladtech.com/social-media/youtube/youtuber-legally-died-50-airline-refund-max-fosh-116421-20250702

https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/world/youtuber-dies-in-italian-micronation-to-outwit-airline-refund-policy-heres-how-he-did-it-watch/ar-AA1I1si5

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/max-fosh-dead-british-youtuber-airline-refund-b2783113.html

https://www.unilad.com/community/viral/youtuber-dies-airline-refund-max-fosh-890577-20250702

There's some secondary sources, for you. 86.18.201.131 (talk) 09:46, 6 July 2025 (UTC)

It’s already added under the YouTube section. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 23:00, 6 July 2025 (UTC)

Trivia

I removed the "Other" section, which described two jokes Fosh did at charity football matches. Josve05a removes, saying "actually this got a bit of news media attention. Perhaps not suited under an "Other" section, but it is a notable event in the persons life per sources".

No, that is not how Wikipedia works. We don't cover everything that has been covered in news media. Wikipedia is an encyclopaedia and covers the key facts of someone's biography. We don't need to describe every joke they did. See WP:NOT. Bondegezou (talk) 15:51, 21 July 2025 (UTC)

The events removed are covered in reliable sources and received notable attention in the media. Per WP:V and WP:DUE, verifiable and well-sourced material deserves inclusion if presented with due weight. Dismissing it as "trivial" is subjective, the fact that multiple media outlets covered it suggests that these moments were seen as noteworthy parts of the subject’s public image. This isn’t WP:TRIVIA, it's a reflection of the person’s public persona, and should be integrated appropriately, perhaps merged into the YouTube section since it was part of a charity YouTube match. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 16:07, 21 July 2025 (UTC)

Neither WP:V or WP:DUE are relevant here. Neither supports the inclusion of this material. Wikipedia articles have never covered everything a person has done that is reported in sources. The sources do not say that these acts were a reflection of the person’s public persona. Other articles on comedians don't describe individual jokes they did in such detail. Bondegezou (talk) 09:18, 22 July 2025 (UTC)

The fact that he participated in the Sidemen Charity Match should be mentioned somehow at least, but remove all the minute details of the games, given that those are covered in that article as well. Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 16:08, 21 July 2025 (UTC)

I will shorten the section then. Bondegezou (talk) 16:35, 23 July 2025 (UTC)

A good compromise in my mind, thanks! Jonatan Svensson Glad (talk) 16:40, 23 July 2025 (UTC)