Is Goldfinger's electrocution of Odd Job possible?

Leading scientists and engineers have studied stunts in James Bond films.

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

James Bond (Sean Connery) can't hurt Odd Job (Harold Sakata) with a punch, a kick or a wrestling move. However, when Goldfinger's (Gert Fröbe) henchman tries to retrieve his bowler hat, stuck in-between some iron railings in Fort Knox, 007 grabs a nearby live electric cable and jams it into the railings.

The current flows through the metal, through the hat and into Odd Job, electrocuting the villain.

Professor Ian Cotton, director of Manchester Energy and professor of high voltage technology at University Of Manchester, says it is completely feasible for the electricity to discharge when someone touches it, as the feet on the ground make it a full circuit (person to ground to circuit back to substation where the supply came from).

'This can be done through any conventional electricity supply,' Professor Cotton says.

'The fireworks and sparks you see in the film are also possible. The cable whips around. When the cable is pulled apart from something, like the floor, sparks are made. They can also be created at that magnitude,' he adds.

Source: James Bond 007: 7 Bond stunts - E & T Magazine

Goldfinger's electrocution of Odd Job: POSSIBLE