Dad knocked out as trick goes wrong at circus show
WHEN Ben Garnham went to the circus with his family on Monday night the last thing he expected was to be knocked unconscious by a clown.
But that’s exactly what happened to the 37-yearold from Cefn Fforest after a clown demonstrated a trick at the Circus Zyair in Blackwood – and it backfired.
Ben, a DJ at Knightmoves Discos & Karaoke, ended up landing underneath the clown and being knocked out cold.
He said: “I had no intention of going to the circus but my daughter had spare tickets and my wife was working so I thought ‘why not?’.
“When we got there we all sat ringside and were clapping and singing along – just generally having a good time.
“The clown obviously spotted us having a laugh and chose me and two other children to go into the ring.
“He spun the two kids around and then he came to me. All I remember is him asking me to grab the back of his knees.
“I honestly thought he was joking and was just going to squirt me with water or do something else ‘clowny’. But then I got knocked out.
“All I remember is waking up in a daze and loads of people gathering around me.”
Ben said he suffered a number of injuries including a cut on the top right side of his head, a lump “the size of a golf ball” on his face, a headache, and pain in his back.
“The swelling has gone down now but I’m just a bit angry about the way I was handled and that there were no paramedics on site. In an event like that they should at least keep some medical staff on site.
“But I can see the funny side of it now – I went to the circus and got knocked out by a clown.
“To be fair the clown has been in touch with me and he was really apologetic. I think he was shocked and upset and he was in tears when I spoke to him.
“He’s obviously done this for a number of years – with men who are even bigger than me – and has had no problems, so it’s not his fault. We’ve since been offered a full refund and a chance to go and see the show again in Carmarthen.”
Circus Zyair hadn’t responded to our request for a comment at the time of going to press.