Creepy Clown Is Freaking Out a British Town

If you suffer from coulrophobia, stop reading. The British town of Northampton has been reporting jarring sightings of a creepy clown, who first appeared on Friday (the 13th). The Herald & Post reports that the clown, a man fully decked out with red hair and white face with severely arched eyebrows, has been seen about two areas of town. How spooky is he? The Independent likens his appearance to that of Pennywise from the film version of Stephen King's IT, notes that he has been seen holding a clown teddybear, and reports that when he appears he just stares at people.

The clown has made its way to social media, with the quick rise of the #northamptonclown hashtag and a Spot Northampton's Clown Facebook page. He has possibly spawned imitators as well: The Northampton Chronicle reports that two teens dressed as clowns knocked on a resident's door and asked if they could paint her windowsills—though they had no paint or brushes. On Facebook, the clown denied he played any part in that, and noted that "If what i am doing does get too much for people, I will have to stop." Stay tuned. (Click to learn which famous actor is very afraid of clowns.)