Caught on camera: Maniac films himself clinging to railway tracks as train runs over his body

This is the moment a man miraculously escapes with his life after lying down on tracks and letting a train run over him.

The incredible footage shows the unknown male lying lengthways between the tracks while an approaching train terrifyingly thunders over the top of him.

He seems inches from death as he presses himself tightly to the floor while the train passes by.

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The grainy video shows the man lying face down as the train nears

The man hugs the track as the train begins to pass over him

In the 56-second video, the man, who is wearing a hooded jacket, dark trousers and black shoes, is seen looking up nervously at the camera as what looks like a freight train can be heard approaching in the background.

After it spends 20 seconds thundering past, mere inches from his head, the man casually checks himself for injuries, jumps up, collects his camera and runs off as the train screeches to a halt out of shot.

It is unclear whether the video was shot in the UK but Network Rail have branded the stunt as 'stupidity in the extreme.'

A Network Rail spokesman said: ‘It doesn't bear thinking about what would have happened if the turbulence created had swept the man's coat up into the underside of the train.

‘Not only that but think about the effect on the train driver who believes he has just killed somebody.

‘Nobody who has any regard for their own safety or the feelings of others should attempt a stunt like this.’

The carriages thunder over his head as he holds onto the sleepers

He begins to raise his head after dicing with death on the tracks

Seemingly unharmed, the man rises to his feet after the stunt

Most YouTube users were also outraged, with many branding the video's star - who appears to be in his 20s - as 'crazy' and an idiot.

One said: ‘Dude i will never do that in my life because 1 slightest movement could get you ripped to pices. (sic)’

Another added: ‘How bored, dumb and suicidal do you have to be to try something like this? If you're that dumb you shouldn't be allowed outside, and if you want to die that much seek help.

A number of users predicted that the young man in the video would not live long if he continued indulging his death-defying 'hobby'.

Viewer 'Uncle-Jed' joked the man was 'another future winner of the Darwin Award', a reference to an annual list drawn up of the stupidest deaths on the planet.