A Father Christmas collapsed and died while meeting young children at a school in Siberia. The Russian Santa was energetically performing with the children when he suddenly stood still and fell backwards. Some of the youngsters thought it was part of the game, which involved them touching their noses, and ran towards him laughing.
But the actor playing Grandfather Frost, as Santa is known in Siberia, had collapsed next to the decorated Christmas tree after suffering a heart attack. Dramatic footage shows the moment a woman dressed as a clown rushes behind the tree to help the actor. As kindergarten staff rushed to ensure the students were okay, the actor was taken to hospital in Kemerovo but died on the way.
The man was identified as Valery Titenko, 67, a well-known professional actor in the city, 2,230 miles east of Moscow. He had not been feeling well and had complained of chest pains but did not want to let the children down so came to perform for them. A spokesman at the Musical Theatre of Kuzbass where he was a star said: ‘In recent years his health was not ideal. He had been through complicated heart surgery, but still performed on the stage and had been working at full capacity, not sparing himself.’
He had been given a day off from the theatre but insisted on attending the children’s festive party.