16th Century Castle-Trapped British Ivy League PhD Uses This to Escape Like MacGyver

Trapped in a Centuries-Old Toilet
Escape Using Cotton Swabs and Eyeliner

A doctor trapped inside a building at the University of Cambridge, one of the world's top prestigious universities, reportedly escaped using a 'cotton swab.' On the 3rd (local time), BBC highlighted the story of Christina Ilko, a PhD candidate at the University of Cambridge. Dr. Ilko is a scholar affiliated with Cambridge and currently resides in the Queens' College building.

This building is also a historic landmark where the 16th-century philosopher Erasmus once lived. Cambridge, boasting centuries of history, has many buildings constructed from the medieval to the modern era. Some buildings have only undergone interior renovations and are still in use today. The building where Ilko resides was constructed with thick walls and heavy wooden doors. Ilko was reportedly trapped inside while using the restroom.

The campus house at Cambridge University where Dr. Christina Ilko resides. It is estimated to have been built in the 1500s, and the bathroom has no windows. [Image source=Online capture]

She told the BBC, "I suspect the wooden door latch was broken by a plumber." The time she got trapped was last Thursday, and the next restroom cleaning was scheduled four days later. In other words, if no one came looking for Ilko, she would have had to remain trapped in the restroom for a total of four days. Ilko said, "I tried to remember how long a human can survive on water alone," and "I just prayed not to die in the restroom." She added, "I hit the door hard with the showerhead and shouted for help, but no one heard me." She even bruised her shoulder trying to break down the thick wooden door.

Dr. Ilko succeeded in escaping using a cotton swab and an eyeliner pencil. [Image source=Online capture]

Eventually, the idea she came up with was to use a 'cotton swab' and 'eyeliner.' She decided to use the blunt end of the cotton swab as a hook. Ilko used the eyeliner pencil's lead to push the cotton swab into the narrow space of the lock hole and succeeded in opening the door and escaping after seven hours.

Ilko told the BBC, "I got the idea from the 'MacGyver' series, which was my childhood idol." She said, "During the seven-hour ordeal, I worried that I would become another 'legend' of the University of Cambridge," and added, "There is a rumor that the ghost of Erasmus wanders around the campus, and maybe I almost became one of those ghosts."

The American drama 'MacGyver,' well known in Korea as well, aired in the 1980s and 1990s and gained popularity worldwide. The protagonist MacGyver escapes and overcomes crises by using a multipurpose military knife (MacGyver knife) and surrounding objects whenever he faces difficulties.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.