Pieing

Pieing or a pie attack is the act of throwing a pie at a person. In Britain, a pie in the context of throwing is traditionally referred to as a custard pie. An aluminium pie pan or paper plate filled with whipped cream or more typically, shaving cream can substitute for a real pie, however, bakery pies such as chocolate cream pie, banana cream pie, coconut cream pie, or lemon meringue pie are also used, especially when one desires a more messy and humiliating effect. Brought to a widespread audience as the "pie-in-face" gag in silent film comedies, pieing may sometimes be intended as a harmless practical joke. However, it can also be used as a means of political protest directed against an authority figure, politician, industrialist, or celebrity, and perpetrators may regard the act as a form of ridicule.

Non-consensual pieing can constitute a punishable offence in criminal law (see, battery). Non-consensual pieing may also be actionable as a civil wrong (tort) giving the victim of the pieing the right to recover damages in a lawsuit.

Pieing and pie fights are a staple of slapstick comedy, and consensual pie "tosses" are also common charity fundraising events, especially in schools.