'˜Killer clowns are making people afraid' says Lincolnshire circus star

Clown Alex Morley (27), who is appearing with the Mablethorpe-based Russells International Circus at Cowbit, wants the public to rediscover the joys of watching clowns at the circus.

“I am a comedy character,” says Alex, who is in his sixth season with Russells.

He said: “I started professionally as a clown when I was 16 but I was doing it before then. Since I was about five I wanted to be a clown so I have been clowning around for a long time since I saw my first circus and fell in love with the circus.”

Nationwide, over the last few days, there have been reports of killer clowns leaping out at people in the streets to scare them, including an incident where four children were followed to school in Durham by a sinister clown carrying a knife.

In Peterborough this week a killer clown got his come-uppance when he was punched in the face by the passer-by he tried to scare. Killer clowns are the talk of local schools and social media and there have been reported sightings in Spalding.

Alex says: “There are a lot of people who are scared of clowns anyway but I think this is going to make even more people scared of clowns.”

He was inspired by tradition embodied by great stars of the circus, like Coco the Clown and Charlie Cairoli, but wears less make-up – like most 21st Century clowns – because Big Tops no longer accommodate audiences as vast as 8,000 people. In bygone days, clowns wore a tremendous amount of paint on their faces so people sitting right at the back could see them.

Alex would love to speak to killer clowns face-to-face and point out they are harming entertainers like him, real life comedy clowns.

Russells International Circus is now open at Moulton Chapel Road, Cowbit – the car boot field – and weekday shows are at 6pm, Saturday’s shows will be at 3pm and 6pm, followed by a final show on Sunday at 2pm.

Alex says families of four can take this article along to the box office to get half-price tickets. Seats can also be booked on 07752 218805.

• Have you encountered a ‘killer clown’? Are they harmless fun or a danger? Email [email protected]