Where does the saying saved by the bell come from?
This expression like many others came merry old England. After the cemeteries started filling up the British started constructing ‘bone yards.’ When this began and previously buried bodies were dug up, there was sometimes evidence that a person was buried alive. It could have been for a number of reasons, but this was to be avoided by having a wake where the body would usually sit on the dining table for a few days to make sure they were dead, and then the person assigned the ‘grave yard shift’ would listen for a bell tied to the toe of the supposed deceased, and if it rang, they were ‘saved by the bell.
