On 31 December 1992 Ben Silcock, a 27-year-old man, climbed into the lion's den at London Zoo where he was mauled by a lion. In the newspaper accounts it was evident that he suffered from schizophrenia. His father Bryan Silcock added that “he would sit up in his room smoking dope”. One national newspaper asked why people like Ben were not in hospital and his father blamed the health authorities for letting his son down.