When Smokin’ Ed Currie realised he had managed to breed the world’s hottest chilli pepper, it seemed logical to mark the occasion by eating one – and getting others to do the same. “I like hot peppers,” he says. “And I like hurting my friends with hot peppers.”
The tasting of Pepper X was filmed to mark its official recognition as the world’s hottest chilli by Guinness World Records. The show was a special edition of Hot Ones, a popular YouTube series in which the host, Sean Evans, normally interviews celebrities as they work their way through an escalating series of spicy chicken wings, answering questions as their composure unravels. This time, the effect was quicker. The subjects were immediately incapacitated; they twitched, writhed and lost the power of speech. Only Currie, on the surface, appeared to be unaffected, standing by calmly, his arms folded.
