Santa gets stuck (and not in a chimney)

Where's Rudolph when you need him?

At a mall in England, a man dressed as Father Christmas was rappelling from a skylight when his (fake) beard got stuck in the rappelling device, leaving the man dangling several stories high.

The stunt started well enough. Father Christmas (played by Steve Chessell of England's 11th Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, according to Neatorama) began lowering himself, pausing every few feet to wave to the cheering crowd.

But then, disaster. The beard got caught and poor Santa couldn't move. Adding insult to injury—the entire fiasco was being taped.

The U.K.'s Metro spoke with mall marketing manager Stephanie Maynard, who praised Chessell's grace in an awkward situation. "He could have just taken his beard off and let himself down, but he was such a professional and he didn't want to let the children down," she said.

Eventually, Santa escaped when another military man rappelled next to him and freed the beard. The chuckles turned back into cheers.

More proof that it ain't easy being Santa.