London - He was determined to succeed where his hero Harry Houdini had failed. But the attempt to be the first to crack the notorious Buried Alive stunt nearly cost escapologist Antony Britton his life.
He was rescued unconscious after trying to escape from a grave in which he had been left handcuffed and buried under five tons of soil.
Mr Britton had insisted he would be able to free himself from his 6ft-deep muddy tomb. But after nine anxious minutes without sign of him, rescuers leapt into action. They dug him free with their hands, hauled him unconscious from the grave and rushed him to a waiting ambulance.
Paramedics managed to revive the 43-year-old and give him oxygen. Afterwards Mr Britton, only the second person to attempt the escape since Houdini’s failed bid 100 years ago, said: “I almost died. I was just seconds away from death. It was scary.
“The pressure of the soil was crushing around me. Even when I found an air pocket, when I exhaled the soil around me was crushing me even more.
“I could feel myself losing consciousness and there was nothing I could do. I was pretty much dying.’\”
Mr Britton, who made his attempt at a charity event at Slaithwaite Spa, West Yorkshire, on Saturday, suffered a cracked rib and several minor scratches.
It was only the third time the Buried Alive escape has been attempted.
Houdini was already world-famous when he devised the stunt in the US in 1915. He, too, had to be dragged out unconscious.
British escapologist Alan Alan, 22, was filmed by Pathe News when he tried the trick in 1949. But he also failed and nearly suffocated before being dug out.
Mr Britton had admitted beforehand it would be his most terrifying stunt ever and revealed he had to prepare himself by concentrating on breathing techniques to overcome his fear. He clambered into the grave, was handcuffed and lay down as a digger covered him in soil. He was relieved his back-up team acted quickly once it was clear the stunt had gone wrong.
‘Everyone was on the ball and the crew was well-drilled,’ he said. ‘They knew pretty much where I would be under the soil and after the digger had moved in, the team were hand-balling the soil until they could reach me. I gave it my all, but it just wasn’t my day. But I’m in the best company going. I couldn’t be more proud than to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with those guys [Houdini and Alan] on this challenge.’
He said his biggest disappointment was to discover that he was only two feet from the surface when he had to be rescued.
Mr Britton, of Linthwaite, West Yorkshire, is known as a “high risk” escapologist. Last year he was nearly killed after a stunt went wrong. He was suspended upside down from a crane in a straitjacket while the ropes holding him were set on fire.
But he had not realised that the high winds that day would speed up the rate at which the flames burnt through the ropes. He was left dangling by a single burning rope and had to dislocate his shoulder to free himself from the straitjacket and clamber clear before the rope gave and he plummeted to the ground.
Saturday’s drama occurred at an event to raise funds for the charity Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research. It was organised by Escape For Life, a not-for-profit company headed by Mr Britton. He had been due to perform the stunt earlier this year but called it off after unexpected snowfall.
Saturday’s event was also in the balance following rain, but after consulting experts he was given the all-clear. However, he has vowed he will not be attempting the Buried Alive stunt again.
Daily Mail