There are officially less than three weeks left until Christmas, and by now most people have put up their decorations and brought a little festive cheer to their homes.
But one man on TikTok is being criticised for his “comedic” take on Christmas after he shared a video of the decorations outside his house.
Rich Ferguson, @officialrichferguson, decided to play a prank on his neighbours with his display by only putting up half his lights – and then hanging a mannequin from his gutter with a ladder toppled over on the ground.
The prank was supposed to make it look as though the ladder had fallen while Rich was putting up the lights, and he was now stuck dangling from the roof.
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In the clip, a kind stranger who was out walking their dog runs over to pick the ladder up to help the mannequin, before realising the scene isn’t real.
Rich captioned the video: “It’s fun to watch cars stop and stare … But it’s pretty hilarious to watch a person walking their dog run to the rescue of this mannequin whose ladder fell over!”
The man’s video went viral and has almost 15 million views – but his method has split opinion among commenters.
Some found the video “hilarious”, with several comments praising Rich for his unique take on decorating for the festive season.
One person wrote: “This is a harmless joke, I think it’s hilarious.”
While another said: “I watched this 13 times, it gets better every time! This is absolute gold!”
But others thought the prank was in bad taste, as they criticised the man for making light of a situation that could result in serious injury if someone were to actually fall from a roof.
Someone said: “As a healthcare provider in a hospital, I’ve seen so many people with permanent paralysis from ladder falls. Let’s just … not do this.”
And another agreed, posting: “At first glance it looks like an emergency, which is why you think it’s a funny prank. But lots of people are telling you that it’s tasteless and triggering for real trauma.
“Just hear people out and open your mind when it’s brought to your attention. Would you consider taking it down?”
As a third wrote: “I love jokes, but it’s kind of cruel to watch people be genuinely scared for them.”
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
