Press Assoc. - Tuesday, September 23 12:02 am. A circus said that its clowns had been silenced by licensing regulations which banned them from playing their trumpets. Zippos Circus said it was told by council officials that the show could not go on unless the clowns dropped the musical part of their act. The circus, which is performing in Birmingham, fell foul of the Licensing Act 2003 which forbids the playing of live music without a licence.

I would have thought that the music would be exempt from licensing requirements, as it is merely incidental to the main activity.

Anyway, I bet they're not real clowns, just men dressed up in clown outfits.