LONDON - Britain's royal wedding is off! Oh no it's not, it's an April Fools' joke.

The big royal occasion later this month was the top target for traditional April 1 pranks in the press on Friday, including bride-to-be Kate Middleton shopping for baby clothes and the left-leaning Guardian joining the pro-monarchy bandwagon.

Beyond the royal nuptials, British tycoon Richard Branson has snapped up Pluto in a bid to reinstate it as a planet while his Virgin Atlantic airline will encourage first class travellers to grow their own vegetables on long-haul flights.

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And the Daily Telegraph reported a "secret memo" about Labour Party plans to hold royal wedding-style street parties to mark the upcoming marriage of its leader Ed Miliband on May 27.

In terms of journalistic resources, few put in as much effort as the Guardian, traditionally a bastion of royal-bashing republicanism.

"In something of an about turn, the Guardian today pledges its 'full throated support' for the monarchy," it said in its online edition, which features a comprehensive live blog poking fun at rival newspapers and broadcasters.

It includes a photograph of Prince William's best man and brother Prince Harry holding "what appears to be a draft of his best man's speech" which refers to an incident involving a goat and royal pal Guy Pelly at the exclusive Bouji's nightclub.

A Breaking News headline at 10:11 am declared the royal wedding was off, but four minutes later a "Correction" informed readers that it was on.

Most readers were in on the joke, but those in two minds might refer to the blog heading in Latin: "Sis tranquillus est iocum". Fret not, it's a joke.

The Daily Mail has a Middleton look-a-like studying infants' clothes a month before she gets married. The photographer was "Will Sandkate".