A tragic accident while performing a stunt, a kidnapping thwarted by lions, and a lucky
escape from an icy tomb.
Are these tales rooted in reality, or are they figments of our imaginations?
It's time to test your abilities to decipher between fact.. or fiction.
The line that divides the factual from the unreal has long since blurred, the tales we
once thought fantastical now implanted as truth.
To decipher verity from the imagined, you must break from the ordinary and consider
a universe where the outlandish prevails.
Can you expand your mind to see beyond our perceived reality?
Can you decide what's fact or fiction?
Sword swallowing has roots in ancient civilizations, and it is an illusion that takes years of
physical and mental preparation.
The dangers of this activity is clear, and it seems that poor Bill Tilman found out the
hard way.
Story # 1: A Fatal Illusion
Bill had grown up in Cardiff in the UK obsessed with the greats of magic.
Harry Houdini was his favorite, and he grew up learning his most famous tricks.
One day he read an article on Houdini and in it, the great magician was speaking about
sword swallowing.
From that moment, Bill knew that he had to learn it.
There was just one problem though: he was terrified.
Bill decided to make a compromise with himself: he would learn to swallow an umbrella instead.
After all, that must be easier, right?
Well, no, it turns out that it’s equally as hard.
It took months for Bill to get past his gag reflex, but eventually, he was able to slide
his prized black umbrella all the way to the pit of his stomach.
Bill was so proud of his skills that he decided to enter into his very first amateur magic
competition with his newly learned illusion.
When the day of the show arrived he was filled with terror but was excited enough to be paying
tribute to the magical greats with the traditional trick that he persevered.
Bill was up fourth, and in front of a small audience, he introduced himself and the trick
that he was about to perform.
Then, he started.
He went slowly, inch by inch, until the entire umbrella was inside him.
It was just as he’d practiced and the crowd was audibly impressed.
It must have been the gasps from the crowd that made Bill lose concentration, and just
as he was beginning to remove the umbrella he made a fatal mistake: he pressed the button
to trigger the opening mechanism.
The umbrella jumped into life inside him and caused internal injuries that would later
turn fatal.
We all know that accidents can happen during magic tricks, and swallowing swords and umbrellas
obviously has its dangers.
But did Bill really make such a simple error that took his own life?
Or, did we conjure up this story ourselves?
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below and by using the on-screen poll as we
get ready for our 2nd story.
Up next is an unbelievable tale of three lions rescuing a little girl that was in serious
danger.
Story # 2: The Pride’s Duty 12-year-old Faith was making her way home
from school as she always did.
It was a hot day in the south of Kenya and the dust blew up in clouds in the refreshing
afternoon breeze.
Faith knew the 15-minute walk like the back of her hand.
All she could think of was dinner as she strolled along on the well-tread path.
Completely in her own world, she was an easy target when four men ran up behind her to
abduct her.
Witnesses say they saw her being carried kicking and screaming into a van, but then she was
gone.
That is, until one week later when she reappeared in the strangest of manners.
The four men were attempting to move Faith from the house they were hiding in, but as
they did, three full-sized adult lions ran at the group.
The four men dropped Faith and ran for their lives, leaving the little girl for dead.
That’s when the lions did the unthinkable.
Forming a circle, the lions sat and protected the terrified little girl until police arrived
to escort her to safety.
In an odd twist of events, the lions walked away as if they knew their job had been done.
Little Faith’s survival may have been a miracle, but wildlife experts think that her
cries may have fooled the lions into thinking she was a cub in danger.
Whatever the reason, Faith had a lucky escape and was left with an incredible tale to tell.
Lions are notoriously protective of their cubs, so it’s perfectly possible that they
could have saved Faith, thinking she was one of them.
But, why wouldn’t the lions attack the police officers?
Would they really have just walked away?
Let us know what you think in the comments and with the poll, and let's get ready for
our third and final tale for tonight's episode.
The Arctic Circle is an unforgiving place and one wrong move spells out certain death.
Or does it?
Story # 3: An Icy Escape It was 1956 and when Harold Shutz and his
two colleagues set out for an Arctic expedition.
They didn’t expect it to be easy but they had no idea exactly how challenging things
were about to get.
The expedition started well, and all three men were feeling strong and happy by the sixth
day.
It was only on the seventh when they turned around to return to base that things began
going wrong.
Tragedy struck just a few hours into the return journey when Harold’s long-term colleague
and friend, Andrew Holmes, fell into a crevice and dragged most of their dogs and supplies
in with him.
Harold and his remaining colleague, Jack Lawson, had no choice but to walk through the snow
and thick ice.
They knew that their situation was dire now that they had no shelter or food and not enough
dogs to pull a sleigh, but there was nothing to do but persevere.
They were 300 miles from base, after all.
The men were soon starving and exhausted, and the only thing that stopped them from
eating their dogs was the thought of having to pull their own sleigh.
After a week of relentless walking, Jack Lawson succumbed to the cold and died.
But somehow, Harold carried on, finally reaching the hut at base camp after a staggering 32
days walking through one of the most unforgiving environments on earth.
Walking for 32 days in arctic conditions with no food or shelter is surely an impossible
feat.
So did Harold ever exist?
Or could someone really have lived to tell such an incredible tale?
Let us know now in the comment section while we get ready for the moment we've all been
waiting for.. the reveal.
Are you ready to find out if you can decipher between fact or fiction?
Let’s look back at tonight's three stories and find out which were born from reality
and which were fabrications of the imagination.
First, we’re back with Bill Tilman and his ill-fated umbrella trick.
Did Bill really lose his life trying to pay homage to his favorite magicians?
Did his delight at the audience’s reaction really make him lose concentration at such
an important moment?
Thankfully, no, this never really happened.
Next, we’re back in Africa and to the incredible story of a 12-year-old-girl named Faith.
Did lions really save her from kidnappers without making a mark on her?
They certainly did!
The event actually took place in Ethiopia, but three lions saved a young girl from four
men who were thought to have been selling her into a forced marriage.
Finally, we’re back in the Arctic with Harold Shultz.
Did he really survive an ordeal that killed both of his colleagues?
Well, Harold didn’t, but Australian scientist Douglas Mawson did.
He and two colleagues took on the Antarctic in 1912 and only Douglas lived to tell the
tale.
How well did you do in tonight's video?
Did you look past the deception of our world and define the oft-blurred line that struggles
to separate lies from the truth?
Let us all know in the comment section below and should you find the urge to test your
perceptions again, be sure to subscribe and join us next time when we ask you to decide
what's fact... or fiction.