Yes, some people have survived hanging due to botched executions or medical intervention, famously John "Babbacombe" Lee, known as "The Man They Couldn't Hang," who survived three attempts in 1885, and more recently, Alireza M. in Iran (2013) who survived a 12-minute hanging, though authorities sought to re-execute him. Historical accounts also show survivors from cases where spinal cord damage was avoided or where resuscitation occurred after prolonged suspension, like those studied in medical journals.
John Smith was an English burglar, who was sentenced to be hanged. and recovered afterwards in 1705. He is said to have remarked ”I could have hanged the people who set me free” due to his headache after reviving.
Ellis was hanged at London's Holloway Prison. She shot Blakely outside The Magdala pub in Hampstead, London, following a tumultuous relationship involving infidelity on both sides.
From that day forth, John Lee became "The Man They Could Not Hang" and was also renamed by many as John "Babbacombe" Lee. We now need to look back into John's life to see what led him to this astonishing day's events.
The world's longest-serving death row inmate was Iwao Hakamada from Japan, who spent 46-47 years on death row before being exonerated in 2024 for a 1966 quadruple murder, a case marked by coerced confessions and fabricated evidence, leading to a record compensation payout for his wrongful conviction. Other notable long-stayers include Raymond Riles in the U.S., who spent 45 years on death row, and Richard Jordan, who was executed after a very long legal battle in Mississippi in 2025.
John Henry George "Babbacombe" Lee (15 August 1864 – 19 March 1945) was an Englishman famous for surviving three attempts to hang him for murder.
The shortest time on death row before execution in modern U.S. history, particularly in Texas, is Joe Gonzales, who spent 252 days (about 8 months) before his execution in 1996, while another notable short time was Steven Renfro at 263 days; these are significantly shorter than the average of over a decade, showcasing how quickly some cases can proceed due to streamlined appeals, though many cases take decades.
On 13 August 1964 Allen hanged Gwynne Evans at Strangeways Prison in Manchester for the murder of John Alan West; at the same time, Stewart hanged Evans's accomplice, Peter Allen, at Walton Gaol in Liverpool. They were the last hangings in English legal history.
Williams' last moments
Williams' last statement, witnessed on September 21, was “All Praise Be to Allah In Every Situation!!!” Williams was a devout Muslim, an imam for prisoners and a poet, according to his legal team.
Derek William Bentley (30 June 1933 – 28 January 1953) was a British man who was hanged for the murder of a policeman during an attempted burglary. His accomplice, Christopher Craig, then aged 16, was convicted of the murder.
Ellis confessed to her crime, and “she did it” – and, it has to be admitted, with a necessary degree of pre-meditation and preparation.
And in 1955, there was public outrage when Ruth Ellis was executed, not least because she had suffered incredible physical and emotional abuse at the hands of the man she killed. These manifestly unfair hangings galvanised the anti-death penalty movement and spurred parliament to suspend the death penalty in 1965.
The longest-known reported case of successful resuscitation after cardiac arrest and accidental hypothermia is of a 31-year-old man who was revived after eight hours and 42 minutes.
Some say that Maggie survived because she had become a "good friend" of the ropemaker who supplied the hangman: and the early breaking of the rope allowed her survival.
Wenceslao Moguel - The man who survived execution Sentenced to execution by firing squad during the 1915 Mexican Revolution, Wenseslao Moguel survived despite being shot nine times, the final coup de grâce, a bullet shot through his head by an officer to ensure death.
The 19 Most Memorable Last Words Of All Time
Robin Williams's last words to his wife, Susan Schneider Williams, were tender goodnights, including "Goodnight, my love" and "Goodnight. Goodnight," on the night before he died, following a tender moment where he offered her a massage, which she declined, leaving him with sad eyes but hope when he returned for his iPad before passing away in his sleep from severe Lewy body dementia.
The TDCJ website has stated since at least 2012 that "this offender declined to make a last statement." However, there are last words of Garrett reported from the time of execution re-quoted frequently, and reported by APBnews as: "I'd like to thank my family for loving me and taking care of me.
Saddam Hussein, the former president of Iraq, was executed on 30 December 2006.
Ruth Ellis was executed in 1955 after killing David Blakely her partner, who she had met while working in the nightclub she managed two years earlier. At the time, she was portrayed as a “cold-blooded killer” but evidence has since emerged that Blakely, a racing-car driver, physically and emotionally abused her.
Charles I remains the only English monarch to have been tried and executed for treason. In the years after his death, the muddle of Parliament, sober life under the Puritans and ultimately failure to establish a functioning government meant people started viewing Charles I differently.
KAZAKHSTAN and SIERRA LEONE abolished the death penalty for all crimes. PAPUA NEW GUINEA, the CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC, EQUATORIAL GUINEA, and ZAMBIA abolished the death penalty for all crimes. ZIMBABWE abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes.
Most death row prisoners in the United States are locked alone in small cells for 22 to 24 hours a day with little human contact or interaction; reduced or no natural light; and severe constraints on visitation, including the inability to ever touch friends or loved ones.
The state of Texas alone conducted 596 executions, over 1/3 of the total; the states of Texas, Florida, and Oklahoma make up over half the total. 17 executions have been conducted by the federal government. Executions increased in frequency until 1999; 98 prisoners were executed that year.