Russian Illusionist Rushed To Hospital After ‘Hook From The Eye’ Trick Goes Horribly Wrong

Russian illusionist Ilya Safronov was performing his “hook from the eye” trick when something went horribly wrong and he was whisked away to a nearby emergency room.

The magician was performing his trick in front of a live Ukrainian television crew when they realized his illusion wasn’t going as planned.

Shortly after starting the trick in which Safronov was supposed to appear as if he had swallowed a hook and then retrieve it from his eye it become abundantly clear something went wrong.

Instead of pretending to eat the hook Safronov accidentally swallowed the prop for real and it became lodged in his throat.

The illusionist had both of his brothers on set with him and they thought about attempting to remove the hook themselves but instead Safronov called off the filming and an ambulance rushed to the scene.

According to a spokesperson for the New Channel’s press department:

‘Doctors arrived on the scene within minutes. After a brief examination, they told the film crew that they would take Ilya to the regional hospital, where the illusionist would see an ear-nose-and-throat specialist.’

While Illusionists rely on slight of hand, various proprietary props and other help to make their illusions seem real, many tricks do involve dangerous stunts that are perfected through experience and a ton of practice. Perhaps Ilya Safronov should have performed his hook from the eye trick a few more times before taking it live on national television.

The illusionist is in stable condition but he might think twice the next time he decides to put a hook so close to his mouth.