The thirteen club get together at luncheon because this is Friday the thirteenth . Because of the day is Friday , and the date is the thirteenth , the ' Thirteen Club ' , an orginisation which exists for the purpose of defying superstition met for their luncheon in the Savoy Hotel , London . At the luncheon , which is onlyheld when the thirteenth day of the month is Friday , the members of the club do everything they can to flout time honoured superstitions . They spill salt , they walk under ladders and they open umbrellas indoors . Photo shows , Bill Randall , secretary of the Thirteen Club , arrives for luncheon by passing under a ladder with a human skull and cross bones on a plate . 13 April 1934