Playing a clown got me through my cancer hell
WHEN children’s clown Wayne Oakes got throat cancer his family thought he’d pack away the face paint and red nose while he fought the disease.
But the dad of four surprised everyone by drawing on his big smile and throwing himself into being Mister Mudge, his fun character loved by hundreds of kids.
Now, a year on and in remission, Wayne, 47, believes it was playing the clown that got him through his ordeal.
He says: “I didn’t want to waste away in bed feeling sorry for myself. Seeing kids smile made me feel the same old Wayne, not someone facing a death sentence.”
He defied doctors by getting through 125 shows while having chemo and radiotherapy. He carried on with his Crazy World of Mister Mudge shows despite losing a stone and a half, vomiting on the way to shows and being fed by a tube.
Wayne found a lump on his neck last May. It was stage two throat cancer that had spread to his lymph nodes.
His first thoughts were for his family and new girlfriend Vicky Clements. He says: “We had only been together three months and my illness seemed a lot for her to take on. But she stuck by me.”
After his tumour op, his oncologist told him to cancel bookings for six months. Wayne, of Irchester, Northants, refused. He says: “I wasn’t ready to give up.”
He moved into Vicky’s flat with his two youngest sons, and teacher Vicky took leave from work to help him.
In October he began six weeks of treatment. As he grew weaker, son Jake joined his act to do the unicycling and tumbles.
Vicky, 36, said: “I begged him to at least cut back on his shows, but he insisted he could do them all. I drove him to gigs, pulling over so he could vomit after chemo. I’d watch as he dabbed paint over his drawn face. It broke my heart, but I could see he loved the escape from being ill.”
At Christmas he and Vicky got engaged and he is now in remission. Wayne says: “I’m so lucky I had Mister Mudge to hide behind when I was in such a dark place. But I’m even luckier my family knew how important it was to keep performing.”