Jousting still dangerous

A man has died after an accident during filming for the Channel 4 programme Time Team, it was revealed yesterday.

The man, who has not been named, was re-enacting a joust scene last month for a forthcoming special episode of the popular programme at Rockingham Castle, Northamptonshire.

During filming, a splinter from the tip of a jousting pole [read: lance -- D.] flew into the eye-slit of the man's helmet after clashing with his shield.

The tip of the pole, made from balsa wood, is designed to split on impact. However, a splinter flew into man's eye-socket and hit the soft tissue behind the eye. He was taken to University College Hospital in Coventry, where he remained in a stable condition for several days but died a week later in hospital.

From the Independent. More on the victim here. Of course, this immediately recalls the death of Henry II of France, and there is mention of a similar, nonfatal, accident in recent years at Sword Forum. That the death in this case happened in hospital a week after the accident, however, suggests that there's more to the story than the initial injury -- especially since it has been reported that the cause of death was blood loss.

Posted by David on October 25, 2007 10:48 AM