WEIRD STUFF

Coma survivor 'stood next to the devil'

A dad-of-two claims he "stood next to the devil" and watched souls being ground to a pulp during a chilling five-day coma.

Gerhard Schug says his near-death experience in 2020 was nothing like the peaceful, bright-light visions often described by others.

Instead, he believes he saw hell.

Speaking to Thanatos TV EN, Gerhard said: "In my near-death experience, I didn't pass into a bright light nor into an afterlife where everything is beautiful."

He described a vast grey stone palace with a high canopy roof "like those found in China or Japan" and a flat stone throne.

On it, he claims, sat the devil.

"It was hot there - he had horns, how you might imagine a typical devil," Gerhard said.

He alleges souls arrived by boat and were brought before the throne, where a terrifying selection process began. Some, he claims, were fed into a funnel and crushed beneath giant stone structures shaped like lion's claws.

"The whole situation was terrifying. I was scared to death."

Before the coma, Gerhard had endured years of heartbreak and illness.

Following the death of his beloved daughter Tanja in 2019 from a pulmonary embolism, he spiralled into isolation. Already battling a spine injury, Parkinson's, lung disease and mental health conditions, he says the grief became unbearable.

"I didn't want to live any more," he admitted.

After being hospitalised with a virus, he fell into a coma. Doctors reportedly warned his family he might not survive.

But he did.

Gerhard says the experience "burned itself" into his memory and lasted the entire five days he was unconscious.

Raised Catholic, he now believes the vision was a warning.

"It was clear to me that God had given me life," he said. "I did not have the right to take my own life."

Today, he describes himself as living "glass half full" - determined to wait until, as he puts it, God decides his time is up.

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Criminals get dance lessons behind bars

Rapists, killers and convicts serving life behind bars are being invited to "heal from within" with "inner dance" classes at one prison.

At HMP Perth, in Scotland, a Category A jail housing some of the country's most serious offenders, inmates are being offered "inner dance" classes designed to soothe their minds and tackle stress, according to the Daily Star newspaper

Inner dance is described by trauma counsellor and movement therapist Caroline Georgiou as a "sensory experience supported by music".

Participants lie down with their eyes closed while layered soundscapes guide them on what she calls an "internal journey".

Caroline says the sessions begin with mindfulness exercises to help the men relax, before encouraging them to move in whatever way feels natural.

Many, she claims, are able to sleep properly for the first time in years.

The classes are run from the prison's Recovery Hub, a space aimed at supporting rehabilitation.

Caroline, who says she has "counselled with heart for over 24 years", has been working with 15 inmates at Perth for six months and insists the impact has been powerful.

"In my 20 years of counselling, I've never encountered a practice that supports such immediate self-healing," she said.

According to Caroline, sessions have led to personal insights, shifts in addiction patterns, emotional breakthroughs, and a sense of closure some never believed possible.

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Ed Sheeran lookalike 'trapped' by fame

An Ed Sheeran lookalike was told to insure himself for a whopping PS10 million (approximately J$2.1 billion) to film inside a shopping centre.

Ty Jones, 30, has spent the past decade working as a professional Sheeran double.

But now he claims his resemblance to the Shape Of You singer has left him feeling "trapped".

Ty says he actively avoids shopping centres - especially Trafford Centre in his home city of Manchester - after allegedly being told he'd need PS10 million insurance cover just to film inside.

He said: "I need to be insured for PS10m to film there and give notice.

"I went in there and caused giant crowds that followed me all over the place."

Ty admits he has to be "mindful of the stir Ed Sheeran actually causes", describing busy public places as "potential trouble".

The lookalike life has its perks - his online following has soared - but it's not all selfies and singalongs.

He's been mobbed in the street, shouted at for not being the real Ed, and even witnessed injuries sparked by the confusion.

"A man went flying over his handlebars on his bike," Ty revealed.

"It was a proper Carry On moment - and he looked devastated when he realised I wasn't Ed."

According to Ty, fans can switch in seconds - from tearful hero worship to pure annoyance once they realise they've been Sheeran'd by mistake.