1976-08-30 Daily Mirror cover.jpg

Title

1976-08-30 Daily Mirror cover.jpg

Description

From Phil the Owl:

The cause of the incident was an excess of lighter fluid. It seems John had already put some on the robes and then left them to one side out in the sun. Somebody else came along for the robes and when he picked them up they felt dry, so he added more fluid. The weather being very warm the fluid formed a layer of flammable gas on the inside of the robe and that's what ignited and caused the burns. He did get serious burns but was flirting with the nurses in the hospital that evening.

Creator

Daily Mirror

Contributor

Phil (the Owl) Harris

Text

IT‘S the moment every stuntman dreads - when something goes horribly wrong. And it happened to 28-year-old John Ham yesterday when he was playing the part of a blazing monk at a medieval pageant at Charnock Richard, Lancs.

Five thousand people saw him running with his monk's habit on fire. They thought it was just part of the act when John dashed off, screaming.

But behind the scenes, John was in danger of his life. Colleagues beat out the flames, and he was rushed to hospital.

Last night he was "poorly" with third degree burns.

"He was lucky he did not die," said a pageant official

More dramatic pictures Page 3