On March 23, 1918, Chung Ling Soo was performing at the Wood Green Empire in London. He performed his act without incident until he got to his famous "Condemned to Death by the Boxers" illusion. That night, as one of his assistants fired the modified gun at him, some of the gunpowder exploded in the gun's chamber, accidentally firing the bullet (loaded only for show by the assistant) into Soo's lung. He fell to the ground and said, "Oh my God. Something's happened. Lower the curtain." This was the only time since adopting his persona that "Chung Ling Soo" had spoken English in public. Soo was taken to Passmore Edwards Cottage Hospital, but died the following morning. He is buried in East Sheen Cemetery in East Sheen, a suburb of London. The assistant who fired the gun, Jack Grossman, appeared on the UK TV show "The Paul Daniels Magic Show", broadcast on November 6, 1982, where he assisted magician Paul Daniels to successfully recreate the trick.