For his latest stunt – not something you usually say about a survival expert – Bear Grylls abseiled down a seemingly on-fire Battersea Power Station, one of London’s most iconic buildings. But his special effects team were so…effective, they managed to alert the authorities who arrived to find a false alarm.

Bear Grylls

The London Fire Brigade said it was called at 19:50 BST and realised it was a false alarm on reaching the site. A fire service spokesman said: "We attended and as soon as we got there we realised it wasn't an incident for us. But we take every call seriously." (BBC)

This weekend, thousands of people queued up to take a peek inside Battersea Power Station at the weekend, for the last time. The Open House project offered to let people see the giant Art Deco structure before it undergoes a multimillion-pound redevelopment. The event was so popular, hundreds of people missed out.

Grylls was taking part in the stunt as a promotional act for his new show on the Discovery Channel. It’s called Escape from Hell, and, according to The Discovery Channel’s website, it:

“reveals the true life stories of ordinary people trapped in extraordinary situations of survival. From bandit attacks, to avalanches, being lost in ferocious sand storms to being confronted with real life bears…these are stories that none of our survivors anticipated but which they all fought tooth and nail to survive.”

Battersea Power Station
Battersea Power Station Is An Iconic Building On The London Skyline.

Grylls has been criticized for not actually participating in the dangerous stunts he’s shown on his various TV shows. Some have alleged that he stays in hotels and eats blueberry pancakes instead of cutting open a buffalo and chewing on its intestines to shield himself from dangerous conditions.