History Main / UnfortunateItemSwap

Overlaps with ScriptSwap and BlindMistake. OhWaitThisIsMyGroceryList is a subtrope. Compare SatchelSwitcheroo, which is about two or more characters accidentally and unknowingly exchanging items. Also see PoisonedChaliceSwitcheroo.

* On ''Series/CornerGas'', when a character wonders how ''[[GrumpyOldMan Oscar]]'' of all people got hired to be the substitute school bus driver, we get a CutawayGag showing the mayor handing two sheets of paper to the guy he put in charge of the hiring: one listing the names of everyone qualified, and the other listing the names of everyone ''not'' qualified. "[[TempingFate Now don't go mixing these up.]]"

* In the Creator/TexAvery cartoon ''Crazy Mixed Up Pup'', a man and his dog are out for a walk and get hit by a car. The paramedics come, but one mixes up "human plasma" and "dog plasma," so that the man gets the dog plasma and vice versa. [[SuperhumanTransfusion The man starts acting like a dog, and the dog like a man]].

* ''Series/MyNameIsEarl'': Chubby has two guns, a real gun and an identical-looking water pistol he keeps filled with vodka. He accidentally kills himself (offscreen, between episodes) when he [[AteHisGun tries to squirt some vodka into his mouth with the wrong gun]].

* On the 19th of August 2014, a woman dining at Dickey's Barbecue Pit in [[UsefulNotes/{{Utah}} Salt Lake City]] took a sip of her sweet tea only to have her internal organs severely burned. The employee making the tea had poured in a packet of the highly caustic "Clean Force Fryer Cleaner" thinking it was sugar.

* On the 19th of August 2014, a woman dining at Dickey's Barbecue Pit in Salt Lake City took a sip of her sweet tea only to have her internal organs severely burned. The employee making the tea had poured in a packet of the highly caustic "Clean Force Fryer Cleaner" thinking it was sugar.
* In 2003, a labelling mix-up occurred in New Zealand with several cans of store-brand hair spray. They actually contained highly-corrosive oven cleaner.
* In his book, ''Screw It, Let's Do It,'' Virgin founder and CEO Richard Branson describes an incident with Mike Oldfield, composer of "Tubular Bells" (yes, the theme from ''Film/TheExorcist''). "Bells" was a huge hit for Oldfield and Virgin Records, even more so when ''The Exorcist'' used part of it. There came a time when Oldfield demanded more money for his contract, and, strapped for cash, Branson was unable to renew the contract. Oldfield wrote two letters: a nice one for Branson, and a [[ClusterFBomb not-so-nice]] one for...well, everyone who wasn't Branson. Naturally, the wrong letter got into Branson's hands.

Overlaps with ScriptSwap and BlindMistake. OhWaitThisIsMyGroceryList is a subtrope. Compare SatchelSwitcheroo, which is about two or more characters accidentally and unknowingly exchanging items.

* One ''ComicBook/TheFarSide'' cartoon has a bug-eyed scientist holding a glass to his mouth as a coworker behind him is asking [[IAteWhat where his sample of dysentery's gone.]]

* In his book, ''Screw It, Let's Do It,'' Virgin founder and CEO Richard Branson describes an incident with Mike Oldfield, composer of "Tubular Bells" (yes, the theme from ''Film/TheExorcist''). "Bells" was a huge hit for Oldfield and Virgin Records, even more so when ''The Exorcist'' used part of it. There came a time when Oldfield demanded more money for his contract, and, strapped for cash, Branson was unable to renew the contract. Oldfield wrote two letters: a nice one for Branson, and a [[ClusterFBomb not-so-nice]] one for...well, everyone else. Naturally, the wrong letter got into Branson's hands.

* In ''Webcomic/BetterDays'', Fisk is home alone with his sister Lucy, who has a cold. Wanting to make her feel better, he asks his mom where the cold meds are and is told the appropriate cabinet and their description, red capsules. He finds a package of red capsules and gives them to Lucy before letting her sleep. Their mother later returns home and goes to check on her daughter...only to check in horror because Lucy is barely breathing. Turns out Fisk had mistaken his mother's blood pressure medication for the cold meds and Lucy barely survives the mistake.

* In ''WebComic/StandStillStaySilent'', a crate of food meant for the main character's expedition and a crate of candles get mixed up due to the guy labelling them getting hit on the head with a thrown object (the guilty party being one of the main characters, ironically).

!Examples:

* In a certain WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko episode, Ulrich is in the dog house for forgetting Yumi's birthday; Odd volunteers to buy a gift on his behalf. During said shopping trip, Odd decides to buy a treat for his dog Kiwi. At the end of the episode, Odd unwraps the package he assumes contains what he bought for Kiwi only to find a necklace. Ulrich remarks that it's kinda fancy for a dog but quickly realizes this wasn't intentional on Odd's part. Cut to Yumi opening a package containing a squeaky bone.

-->'''Kronk:''' You know, in my defense, your poisons all look alike. You might want to think about relabeling some of them.

[[folder:ComicBooks]]

* In ''Film/TheCaptainsParadise'' Creator/AlecGuinness' character, who has a wife in two different ports, accidentally swaps the presents he intends to send them. Fortunately for him, the homebody wife interprets the swimsuit she receives as a sign that he finds her sexually desirable, while the party-going wife interprets the apron she receives as acknowledgement of her domestic side.

* On ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', a pornographic video gets switched with a ''Film/LordOfTheRings'' tape. When Butters accidentally watches the porn video, his confusion translates into acting like Gollum. When Tolkon Black watches it, he is weirded out and decides ScrewThisImOutOfHere.

* A two-part episode of the 2010 ''Series/TheDefenders'' played this for drama. A woman dies (temporarily) and a high school football player is left brain damaged due to two bottles of epinephrine being labeled too similarly. (They were of different potency.) They ended up suing the pharmaceutical company that produces the epinephrine and show the danger by [[spoiler:having Kaczmarek intentionally trigger his shrimp allergy.]]

* After hiking with her friends, Komori from ''Manga/KomorisanWaKotowarenai'' gave some of her pictures to her crush Ootani. The picture in question was [[{{Fanservice}} her wearing a bikini.]] She immediately [[OhCrap realized her mistake]] and grabbed it back.

** In one incident, a young man wanted to store some windshield cleaning fluid in his Jeep. However, the large jug that the fluid came in would take up too much space in the back seat. So, the man decided to pour some of the fluid into a blue Gatorade bottle. Unfortunately, one of his friends came back from playing basketball and took a few swigs of the cleaner thinking it was actually Gatorade. Luckily, the man was rushed to hospital before he died of wood alcohol poisoning, and suffered no lasting effects.

* In ''Film/TheComedyOfTerrors'' Waldo Turmbull (VincentPrice) has a bottle of poison he taunts his father-in-law with, and also a flask. [[HilarityEnsues Hilarity eventually ensues.]]

* One ''ComicBook/FarSide'' cartoon has a bug-eyed scientist holding a glass to his mouth as a coworker behind him is asking [[IAteWhat where his sample of dysentery's gone.]]

* ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'' has the general find out about his wife's affair with a subordinate when she mixed up her letters to her lover and her husband.

* In ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'', General Macarthur figures out his wife has been having an affair with his aide when he opens a letter from her and reads the one she sent the lieutenant. He never said anything (though one officer suspected something), but sent the aide on a SuicideMission, his wife dying of a broken heart sometime later. After that, he never went to church if the TropeNamer for the UriahGambit was the subject of the sermon.