Comedian Jason Manford is taking no chances on Friday 13, saying he will not leave his house and may hide in the airing cupboard. The 45-year-old said: “You can’t be too careful on Friday 13.”
Why Friday 13 is considered unlucky
Friday 13 has been considered unlucky for hundreds of years. Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th guest to arrive at The Last Supper, and Friday was once known as ‘Hangman’s Day’ because it was the usual day for hangings.
Manford does not restrict his superstitions to this one day. He said: “I won’t walk under ladders, I'm a bit funny about the cracks in the pavement and I always say ‘touch wood’.”
Empty pockets and lucky underpants
Convinced that empty pockets improve his live performance, the comedian said: “If I've had a weird gig, I come off, check my pockets and go, ‘ah, it was this receipt!’”
The Salford-born Manchester City supporter, who lives in Stockport, also has lucky underpants that he wears to matches. He said: “When you’ve worn the same boxer shorts or whatever for the last three wins, you think, ‘It's on me. It's not Haaland, it's my boxers.’”
Theatrical superstitions
Actors and performers are notoriously superstitious, so Manford, who has two children with his second wife, TV producer Lucy Dyke, and four from his first marriage, is in good company. He said: “Within my industry, there's so many superstitions. You can’t whistle backstage in a theatre, it’s bad luck. I got a telling off from Michael Ball when we appeared in Sweeney Todd together.
“I heard this booming voice - ‘who's whistling?’ I had to go to his dressing room. He said, ‘right, you need to turn around three times.’ I said, ‘give over.’ He went, ‘do it.’ So I did. He went, ‘okay, the curse is gone.’
“Back in the day, you had sandbags that would drop to pull the curtains back. You would tell the guy in the flies to drop them by whistling. So you can't be wandering around a theatre whistling in case a sandbag drops on your head.”
Millions of superstitious Brits
New research produced as part of the Lloyds Insurance Can’t Bank on Luck campaign, which stresses the need to be prepared for the unexpected, revealed that 7.2 million Brits dodge Friday 13 to avoid bad luck.
Fifty-four per cent of Brits say they’re superstitious, escalating to 73% of people in their 20s. Belfast is the UK's superstition capital, followed closely by Birmingham, Edinburgh, Manchester, and Nottingham.
Manford, who is hosting the Royal Variety Performance 2026 at the Royal Albert Hall on November 20 in the presence of King Charles and Queen Camilla, a gig he describes as being like a comedian’s “Wembley Cup Final,” will be ensuring he has empty pockets on the night. He will also be playing Dick Whittington in panto at Manchester’s Opera House from December 5.
Recounting more theatrical superstitions, Manford said: “You'll never hear an actor say ‘Macbeth.’ They always say ‘the Scottish play.’”
The UK’s top five superstitions, according to YouGov, are broken mirrors, walking under a ladder, opening an umbrella indoors, the groom seeing the bride on the wedding day before the ceremony, and putting new shoes on the table. The Lloyds Insurance ‘Don’t Bank on Luck’ campaign, in partnership with Manford, explores the nation’s superstitions this Friday 13 and highlights the importance of being prepared for the unexpected.
