That bloody clown! I think I was about six when I first overheard somebody talk about that American dummy that was supposed to have had a body hidden in it. It was evening time and Blackpool Pleasure Beach has a sinister feel to it after dark, especially down the alleyways that lead out of the brighter parts. That eidetic memory of being there, seeing the clown, in the dark, stayed with me ever after, and I never liked it. When it heard about the fire at the Fun House fire in 1994, I really hoped the clown had gone up with it. Darn, why did it have to be away being cleaned? But if it had, I wouldn’t have been able to write this story – or I’d have had to set it pre-1994.

This story will not help anyone who has a fear of clowns – the medical term is Coulrophobia, by the way. Most Americans seem to suffer from it having seen Stephen King’s It. In Britain, the clown on the old BBC test card does it for some people, or visiting Blackpool Pleasure Beach.

Now, I LOVE the Pleasure Beach. I always have. This story was great to write because I know the place intimately. Apart from the clown, and apart from ever walking through it at night when everyone has gone home, it is fantastic. I once had to walk through part of it after it was shut to claim a lost bag. It was strange. That is how the scene where Kohb goes to look for Camilla’s wrap comes about.

The rides mentioned in the story are all within a short walk of each other. The ghost train would be the first encountered, and a little way past it is the Magnolia café. If you suspend disbelief a little and don’t mind the fibre-glass, plasticness of it. The café is a lovely place. The river from the River Caves ride is charmingly lit and the trains from the Gold Mine ride overhead are fun. The intersection of all three was ideal for the chase scene, and also for the final defeat of the clown.

I considered several times whether the man really should have been murdered. It does make the story very much darker and it leaves Chrístõ with very guilty feelings because it was he who stopped the clown and made it desperate enough to leave its case. I have considered rewriting the story so that the man is only injured, not killed. So far, however, it stands.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulrophobia

http://www.blackpoolpleasurebeach.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackpool_Pleasure_Beach

http://www.coastergrotto.com/pictures/blackpool-pleasure-beach-photos.jsp