'Killer' clowns in the UK

Whose stupid idea was it to import the sinister clowns from the USA?

That's another thing to add to the list of things of which I'm scared.  Not satisfied with a roll-call that already includes spiders, heights, any furry creatures smaller than my hand (mice, rats etc), snakes, worms and slugs I now have to add clowns.

I've never been keen on clowns, although they haven't made my list before now. 

I didn't like Ronald McDonald - probably why I hadn't eaten a McDonalds before the age of about 16, that and the fact that's when they opened up in Kettering town centre I imagine.

Then there was the BBC testcard girl with the chalkboard and her clown that used to appear when your TV service was playing up - thanks for bringing that back in Life on Mars just as I'd managed to erase that particular memory - so double freak out, your telly's not working properly and there's a clown staring at you.

But this new craze brings a whole new level of terror.  Seriously, who thinks that it's ok to dress up as a clown - which ranks as one of the most common phobias in the UK anyway - and then either jump out or chase some unsuspecting member of the public down the road brandishing what may or may not be a real weapon?

What if they surprise somebody with an underlying heart condition and then that person has a heart-attack and dies?  Suddenly a prank turns into a manslaughter charge.

I've heard unconfirmed reports of somebody locally dressed as a 'killer clown' sitting on a swing in a children's play park singing nursery rhymes.  That's not funny, that's not clever - it's just creepy and weird and could mentally scar a young child. 

There are some things that just shouldn't be imported from across the Atlantic.  Donald Trump's 'locker room' attitude to women is one, so-called 'killer clowns' are another.