Literature’s Great Escapes: 6 Tales of Escape to Get Lost In

The Man in the Iron Mask print from 1789

We love a good escape film here at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game, but if you really want to get invested in whether or not the hero makes it out in one piece, a book is the way to go.

Below, we list six of the most riveting escapes found in literature.

1. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (1844–45)

The oldest and some would argue the best escape tale on our list. Dumas’s enduring swashbuckling adventure sees Edmond Dantès falsely imprisoned and thrown into jail to rot, only to escape and get the best revenge of all: complete and total success.

2. Papillon by Henri Charrière (1970)

It’s hard to believe Papillon is a non-fiction autobiography, but it is. Henri Charrière, another victim of false conviction, was given a life sentence of hard labour in the Devil’s Island penal colony. As nice as that sounds, Charrière plotted an unbelievable escape instead.

3. The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood (2015)

This dystopic novel centres on a group of ten young women who have been kidnapped and locked up in dismal conditions in the middle of the Australian Outback. As food supplies dwindle and their captors grow ever more unpredictable, the women must find a way to escape not only their imprisonment but the harsh desert environment.

4. The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later by Alexandre Dumas (1847–50)

Better known as the tale of the Man in the Iron Mask, this second entry from Dumas comes from his Three Musketeers series. Though mostly about the Musketeers, the novel revolves around a real, unnamed person who spent his life as a prisoner of Louis XIV—with his face completely covered the entire time. In Dumas’s version, the man escapes (wasn’t so lucky in real life).

5. Room by Emma Donoghue (2010)

Less about the escape and more about what comes after, Donoghue’s book follows the story of a five-year-old boy named Jack, who has been held captive in a small room his entire life, alongside his mother. Until, one day, he learns the there is more to the world than the four walls he lives in.

6. Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King (1982)

Yet another book that’s been made into a film and yet another tale of false imprisonment and, Stephen King’s novella about a postwar banker named Andy Dufresne continues to be one of his most popular stories and film adaptations. Plus, it includes one of the most famous escape scenes of all time.

You can book your own escape adventure for you and up to seven friends in one of Krakit’s four-themed escape games here.

History’s Great Escapes: The Catalpa Rescue of 1876

Thomas Darragh, one of six Fenians to escape during the Catalpa rescue

This incredibly impressive escape happened more than a 140 years ago, back when Australia was still considered one big giant jail for the British Empire’s undesireables. As much as we’d like to see an escape game made out of the Catalpa’s story, there are far too many moving parts and unbelievable scheming needed to make this a room anyone could break in 45 minutes or less.

Let us elaborate.

In the 1860s, the British sent dozens of members of the Irish Republic Brotherhood—otherwise known as Fenians, who were fighting for Ireland’s independence—to what was then the penal colony of Western Australia. A few of the Fenians managed to escape from Australia and several others were eventually granted pardons. Yet by 1876, there were still six men imprisoned—but they were not going to let their story end there.

One of the prisoners, James Wilson, managed to smuggle a letter out of Australia and to one of his escaped brothers who now was living exiled in New York. Upon receiving the letter, John Devoy and his fellow Fenians masterminded a rescue plan that would go down in history as one of the greatest prison escapes ever.

Escape of Fenian convicts from Fremantle, Western Australia, engraving

They bought a three-masted whaling vessel called the Catalpa, and, on April 29, 1875, they left New Bedford, Massachusetts, with 22 sailors onboard—who were none the wiser of their true mission. There would be no whaling done on this ship.

Instead, they pointed themselves toward Australia—relying on their own navigational skills to get them there, since they learned too late that their navigational tools were broken.

After dropping anchor in international waters, the rescuers assumed fake identities, managing to: 1) become chums with the Governor of Western Australia; 2) get an official tour of the prison where their friends were; and 3) organize the destruction of all the telegraph lines in the area that would otherwise spread word of their daring escape.

Not bad, right?

Nearly one year after they had left the USA, the day of the escape arrived: April 17, 1876. One rowboat chase and several cannon shots later, the six remaining Fenians were aboard the Catalpa. Though the authorities gave chase, the Fenians informed them that any attack would be considered a hostile action against the entire country of America, since they were in international waters.

Beaten by their own rules, the police backed off and the Catalpa headed for the Indian Ocean.

Don’t worry—our escape rooms don’t take a full year to crack, but less than an hour! Book one of four themed escape games here: bookeo.com/krakit

History’s Great Escapes: Napoleon's Escape from Elba

Napoleon greeted by the 5th Regiment at Grenoble after his escape from Elba (Charles de Steuben)

On February 26, it will be exactly 201 years since Napoleon Bonaparte made his great escape from the island of Elba. Being one of the most famous exiles of all time has really got to put a damper on your chances of making a prison break, which is why we at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game consider this one of the greatest escapes of all time.

It’s true that a lot of negative qualities are associated with Napoleon—being overly aggressive as a way to compensate for a lack of height being just one of them—but no one can argue that he wasn’t also a great strategic mastermind. This is precisely what led him to seize power as the new leader of France following the Revolution.

Unfortunately for him, people eventually tired of his antics, which mainly included invading other European countries. After ten years, his enemies finally got the better of him and ousted him from his position as Emperor of France, exiling him to the island of Elba in the Mediterranean Sea.

Napoleon lived on Elba for the better part of a year, at which point he caught wind that his rivals planned to move him to an even more remote location—an island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. So, on February 26, 1815, Napoleon made his escape.

Taking advantage of in-fighting among the European powers who had placed him on Elba in the first place, Napoleon managed to slip past his guards who were otherwise preoccupied. He and his 1,000-man army—which he had amassed on Elba using his undiminished powers of charisma—boldly marched aboard a French ship and sailed to Provence. A regiment was sent to overtake Napoleon and his army, but instead, these men simply joined his ranks.

Two days later, Napoleon returned to Paris—and to his former title of Emperor. This wasn’t fated to last very long, however, with Napoleon’s power lasting just two days before he was exiled again. This time, to a new island a thousand miles off the west coast of Africa, where he would be unable to duplicate his Elba escape. He died on St. Helena five years later.

Pull a Napoleon and make your own escape when you book one of our four Vancouver escape rooms here: http://bookeo.com/krakit

New Year’s Escape: Riot and Prison Break at Oakalla Prison in Burnaby

Interior view of a jail cell at Oakalla Prison (Vancouver Archives)

With snow continuing to rear its ugly head much more than we Vancouverites are used to, the only thing most of us are thinking about escaping this New Year’s Eve is subzero temperatures.

However, there was one New Year’s past when a much bigger escape happened. This escape involved 13 maximum-security prisoners—and it happened right here in Burnaby, British Columbia, just a ten-minute drive from Krakit Escape Game, in what is now Deer Lake Park.

It all began 29 years ago, on December 28, 1987, when tensions at Oakalla Prison were at an all-time high. In this atmosphere, a minor disciplinary incident acted as spark that would erupt into a full-fledged riot involving more than 100 people. It took three days for the prison guards to turn down the rioting prisoners, who smashed cells, lit fires, and made weapons out of anything they could find.

By New Year’s Eve, the rioting had spread to the east wing—where the worst offenders, including murderers, were kept. To keep on top of the escalating situation, the guards moved these max inmates to a set of underground cells that hadn’t been used since the days when Oakalla was a prison farm.

When the guards came back to serve the prisoners coffee, the inmates jumped the guards, locked them in the segregated cells, and made a break for it.

That was that, and the 13 inmates found themselves with a sudden New Year’s resolution to keep—hold onto their new ill-found freedom.

From its opening in 1912, Oakalla Prison was no stranger to escape attempts, with its inmates able to slip out from between cast iron bars, scale the razor-wire fences, and run into the surrounding forest. Some were recaptured, but some ere not. It reportedly even became a game for particularly sneaky criminals to get caught, be placed in Oakalla, and then make an escape attempt—just to see if they could. One year, there were more than 40 escapes in seven months.

Over the course of its nearly 80 years in operation, 850 inmates escaped from Oakalla Prison. Not a very good record, to say the least. The 1987 New Year’s Eve prison break was the beginning of the end for the Burnaby prison, which had been making local residents understandably nervous for quite some time. It was decommissioned and demolished just a few years later, in 1991.

You and your friends can make your own escape attempt this New Year’s Eve by booking a slot in one of our four themed escape games here: http://bookeo.com/krakit. But please, no maximum-security inmates need apply.

Real-Life Escape Games: 3 Daring Historical Escapes Made by Women

Mary, Queen of Scots in captivity

In the list of Great Escapes, you’ll notice a lack of women’s names. But that’s definitely not because women didn’t commit a whole lot of impressive escape feats. Handily, Krakit Vancouver Escape Game is here to fill that gap with this list of three of the most daring escape efforts made in history—all done by women.

1. Mary, Queen of Scots, escape: 1568

Mary, Queen of Scots did a lot of things most women didn’t do during the 16th century, like rule a country, get involved in a murderous love triangle, make enemies with Elizabeth I, and be taken political prisoner.

In 1568, after one year locked up in Lochleven Castle following a rebellion of Scottish nobles, she disguised herself as a laundress and tried to make her break by boat. Alas, she was recognized and turned back to her cell. However, that didn’t stop her from making a second escape, two months later, with the help of an orphan kid she befriended and a horse she stole from her captors. This time, she was successful.

Despite her penchant for daring escapes, Mary unfortunately would be no stranger to prisons throughout her life, ultimately being executed in 1587.

2. Harriet Tubman, escape: 1849

Harriet Tubman was born into a life of slavery in 19th-century Maryland. When her master died in 1849, instead of going to work at the neighbour’s house, Tubman took advantage of the disarray and made her escape to Philadelphia.

However, she didn’t stop there. She returned to her former home to help her family escape, along with dozens of other people. When the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was passed, she returned to her knack for arranging escapes, helping get people across the border and into British North America (now Canada) along the Underground Railroad.

Because Tubman was just an overall badass, when the Civil War came around, she joined up as an armed scout and spy.

3. Countess Andrée de Jongh, escape: 1941

An active member of the Belgian Resistance during WWII, Countess Andrée de Jongh made her escape from Belgium at the age of 21, crossing the Pyrenees Mountains on foot to reach Spain. Like Tubman, de Jongh really did not stop there. Instead, she organized the Comet Line, an escape network that helped captured Allied soldiers escape occupied France and Belgium and reach safety in British-owned Gibraltar. All in all, de Jongh made 30 double crossings, escorting 116 escapees.

Following the end of the war, de Jongh worked in leper colonies in several African nations, and was ennobled as a countess in 1985.

Plot your escape in one of Krakit’s four Vancouver escape rooms by booking here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Once Upon an Escape Game: 3 Modern Fairy Tales that Should Definitely Be Escape Rooms

Technically, a fairy tale should come from a folk tale and be so old we’re definitely not sure who the “original author” was. But who needs technicalities!

Here at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game, we think any good story that has a little bit of magic and a whole lot of delight for both kids and adults is worthy of being called a fairy tale. We refuse to discriminate against recently written stories—especially when they’d make top-notch escape games, like our three faves below.

1. Alice in Wonderland

Has there ever been anyone more desperate to escape their situation than poor Alice? Lewis Carroll’s beloved children’s tale sees Alice thrown into all sorts of bizarre situations that take some serious wits to escape, along with a riddle-spewing Cheshire Cat to throw spanners into the works.

Could you get out of Alice’s mind-altering Wonderland in 45 minutes or less? Because we’re not so sure.

2. The Princess Bride

Whether it’s Wesley trying to escape the torture dungeon of his true love’s soon-to-be husband or Princess Buttercup trying to flee from her captors (and the shrieking eels), The Princess Bride is all about daring escapes. Really, you could do an entire escape game themed solely on the Fire Swamp and those dastardly ROUS’s.

3. Spirited Away

The most recently written fairy tale we’d like to see turned into an escape room is Hayao Miyazaki’s modern masterpiece Spirited Away. Like Alice, Chihiro finds herself engulfed in a strange and unusual world full of tasks she must complete to get herself and her parents home to the real world. And a Spirited Away escape game wouldn’t be lacking in great visuals, that’s for definite.

Fall down the rabbit hole of our Vancouver escape game by booking here: http://bookeo.com/krakit. Our Alice in Wonderland escape room opens Wednesday, August 31!

Once Upon an Escape Game: 3 Classic Fairy Tales that Should Definitely Be Escape Rooms

Hansel and Gretel ... Once upon an escape game (Illustration: Alexander Zick)

If there’s one thing that every fairy tale is good at, it’s helping us to escape. Because who needs reality when you can have gnomes and never-ending childhood and talking gingerbread men?

While we at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game often visit the darker regions of our brains to come up with our eerie escape room themes, we’ve also got soft sides too. To prove it, here’s our the top three classic fairy tales we’d like to see made into escape games.

Beauty and the Beast

One of the classic tales of incarceration, ain’t it. Boy meets girl, girl meets Beast, girl meets Beast’s custom-built jail cell. Ultimately though, both players in this escape story triumph (what with finding true love and all), which makes for a nice change of pace from the ending of our Zombie Apocalypse room.

The Princess and the Pea

Imagine the confusion on the escape gamers faces when they enter the room to find nothing but a stack of mattresses. A scaled-back escape room like Princess and the Pea would offer opportunity for some seriously inventive clues. Plus, watching participants search for something as tiny as a pea would be highly entertaining for the escape game master.

Hansel and Gretel

If there’s anything that will provide more motivation to solve an escape game than a cannibalistic, candy-loving witch, we can’t think of it. Also, imagine all the fun clues you could plant in a Hansel and Gretel-themed escape game: jellybean counts that lead to lock combinations, maps made to look like chocolate box selection cards, and a whole lotta sour keys (wonder if they make sour locks ...).

Got any other escape game themes you’d like to see, Vancouver? If so, you’re always welcome to drop us a line and pitch the idea here.

In the meantime, book a go in one of the four current themes at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Escape Games: The Legend That Is Frank Abagnale Jr.

Escape Games:
The Legendary Frank Abagnale Jr

What’s more impressive than outsmarting law enforcement—time and time again—through nothing but your own fast thinking? Being that quick on your feet when you’re just fifteen years old.

We’re sure that solving escape games are no tough feat for Frank Abagnale Jr., who, although he is now a trusted American security consultant, is best known for his time as a teenage con.

Despite his criminal career ending at the tender age of 21, Abagnale remains one of the most famous imposters in history. He took on eight different identities—from airline pilot to medical doctor to lawyer—before he was arrested. Made famous in the movie Catch Me If You Can, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, Abagnale’s tale of hijinks and narrow escapes is one of those true stories that most definitely is stranger than fiction.

Not only did he—as a teenager—work in a hospital for nearly a year in addition to clocking upwards of a million miles on commercial flights, he also managed to escape police not once, but twice.

His first escape from the authorities happened on a runway at JFK, where he scaled a fence and went by rail to Montreal. Unfortunately for him, a Mountie recognized him and sent him back into US custody. Abagnale’s second escape happened from within a prison—by convincing them he was an undercover police officer.

Ah, must be nice to be blessed with a platinum tongue.

Abagnale’s legendary con streak eventually came to a close in 1969, when he was incarcerated for five years. These days, at the age of 68, Abagnale works for the authorities, as a security consult who stops the kinds of crook he used to be. (You can read more about his current work in this recent TechCrunch article.)



Though we at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game certainly don’t commend criminality, we can’t help but be impressed by Abagnale’s extreme quick-thinking confidence and aptitude for escape.

Test out your own wits by attempting to break free of one of Krakit’s four themed escape games. Book here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Right Twists and Wrong Turns: Jim Henson’s “Labyrinth” Turns 30

It’s hard to believe, but it’s true: this month, the ever-popular film Labyrinth turns 30 years old. Unsurprisingly, it’s an old favourite with the folks here at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game.

Starring a very young Jennifer Connelly, the film follows the somewhat tempestuous teenager Sarah as she attempts to rescue her brother back from Jareth, the Goblin King (the unforgettable, late, great David Bowie)—who she sort of accidentally maybe gave her baby brother away to.

It’s hard to say what’s most memorable about the film. Is it Sarah’s insanely gigantic ball gown, the Goblin King’s many song and dance numbers, or perhaps the image of one dog using another dog as his steed? When it comes down to it, it’s really the Labyrinth itself that sticks in the brain: the sprawling, constantly changing, dangerous and tricksy maze that dominates the entire story.

Here are some of the best wrong turns the Labyrinth has to offer.

The Oubliette

Though she just wants to get away from the creepy hands that compose the walls of the hole she has fallen into, Sarah never should have instructed them to send her downwards.

The Fireys’ Forest

After she becomes separate from her gigantic furry friend Ludo, Sarah unfortunately runs into the domain of the Fireys, who are convinced her head can come off just as easily as theirs.

The Bog of Eternal Stench

An act of kindness—kissing her reluctant helper Hoggle after he saves her—lands Sarah and company quite suddenly in the Bog of Eternal Stench. Luckily, Sir Didymus and Ambrosius are there to help them get back on track.

The Junk Yard

For a split second, Sarah gets to think her experience in the Labyrinth has all been a dream. Until the walls of her room come crashing down, and she realizes she is, in fact, in the middle of a trash heap.

The Escher Staircases

It all comes to a head when Sarah finally confronts Jareth in his castle—and finds herself in a vertigo-inducing mishmash of staircases straight out of an M.C. Escher drawing.



Love labyrinths as much as we do? Check out this previous post on real-life labyrinths and mazes before booking your own escape adventure at one of our four escape rooms, here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Not a Horror Fan? 10 Escape Films Just for You

Though we’re huge fans of horror (you might have been able to tell), we know that not everyone enjoys having the living daylights scared of out of them.

That’s why alongside our horror-themed escape games we have one that has all of the brain-teasing fun without all of the hair-raising chills. Currently, that’s our One Night Stand room—which offers a different kind of horror as motivation: You need to find out what exactly happened “the night before,” before your 45 minutes is up and the game is over.

For those who prefer the excitement of escape with minimal gore, we list 10 of our favourite non-horror escape films, with a title for every taste.

Labyrinth (1986) 

A selfish teenager has to solve a magical labyrinth to save her brother from goblinhood. Plus Davie Bowie, Jim Henson puppets, and a baby in a stripey onesie. What’s not to love.

The Shawshank Redemption (1994) 

Tim Robbins plays the long game in this prison-escape film that comes from Stephen King’s sentimental side.

The Martian (2015)

Another long-game escape. Matt Damon’s only hope of getting off the desolate planet of Mars is some serious scientific calculations and quick-thinking problem solving. And lots of waiting.

Battle Royale (2000) 

This classic Japanese film sees ninth graders pitted against one another, fighting for the chance to be the one who escapes a deserted island with their life.

The Matrix (1999)

Yes, a sci-fi masterpiece, but also a tale of ultimate escape. For what is the Matrix if not one giant hallucinatory prison from which humanity must break free?

Escape from Alcatraz (1979)

Though it’s been decommissioned for decades, Alcatraz is still known as being the inescapable prison. Clint Eastwood begs to differ.

Papillon (1973)

Another prison break film, set on another island. This time it’s Steven McQueen who attempts to escape his cell—over and over again.

The Maze Runner (2014)

A bunch of boys and one girl are tasked with navigating a shifting maze full of deathbots. Poor things are destined to run into even more obstacles in the forthcoming sequel, The Scorch Trials.

Chicken Run (2000)

Chicken run? More like chicken prison. This family-friendly claymation sees a bold chicken attempt to lead his fellow fowl to freedom.

The Hunger Games (2012)

An unsurprising entry, but one we can’t leave out. The first of the popular franchise has Katniss trying to escape the Hunger Games with her life, before going on to attempt freedom from larger political shackles.

Book a round in our One Night Stand Vancouver escape room here.