Villagers terrorised by TikTokers pounding on doors in viral trend

05 March 2023 , 23:30

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Villagers in Little Paxton have been disturbed by young people pounding on their doors in pranks thought to be connected to a TikTok trend (Image: Eirian Evans/WIkipedia)

A TikTok trend has reportedly been wreaking havoc on a quiet village as young people are said to be filming themselves banging on doors to the beat of a 2012 club hit.

Residents in the rural village of Little Paxton, Cambridgeshire, say they have been subject to a recent social media trend featuring pop star Kesha's dance hit Die Young.

The so-called 'heartbeat' challenge shows TikTokers banging on doors to the tune of the chart hit, then fleeing before residents answer.

While it may have racked up millions of likes on the platform, less enthusiastic are the people behind the doors in the bucolic village, some of whom have apparently resorted to getting CCTV installed to deter the pranksters.

Police forces have even had to put out warnings to residents following concerned reports of youngsters banging on doors and upsetting residents.

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The trend involves banging on doors to the beat of pop star Kesha's 2012 hit, Die Young, which plays in the background (Getty Images for iHeartMedia)

Pamela Russell and her partner Brian Johnson were watching TV on a Saturday evening when they were startled by the loud bangs.

“We were sitting watching true crime stories in the living room when a huge bang shook the whole house,” Pamela, 50, told The Times.

“It felt like the walls had bounced. I thought they’d taken a run up at the door and gone in with two feet.”

The prank led the couple's two-year-old Border Collie Amber to start barking loudly, and Pamela said she'd been left frightened since.

Neighbours in the peaceful village said they'd been startled by the bangs "like thunder" (Alamy Stock Photo)

Meanwhile, an 82-year-old thought she was being burgled when she heard the noises, adding: "I was still shaking the next day, until my 14-year-old granddaughter said it was a silly TikTok trend."

And local radio DJ David Thomas said that while the trend may seem a light-hearted joke to those doing it, it could have serious consequences for vulnerable residents.

The peaceful village is not alone in reports of the banging on doors, however.

Residents in London and Barnsley, South Yorkshire, claimed to have been disturbed by loud knocks thought to be from the TikTok trend.

Police across the Pond have also had to warn youngsters off the trend, saying some could mistake the bangs for a home invasion.

One man in Des Moines, Iowa, was reportedly charged with criminal mischief after driving his son and friends around a neighbourhood as they pounded on doors.

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