A clown is terrorizing the English town of Northampton, resembling the frightening Pennywise character from Stephen King’s "It," appearing in random places at all hours of the night to the fright of local residents.
The man, whose identity is unknown, began popping up throughout the quaint English town on Friday the 13th, having since posted multiple menacing photos of himself in full clown garb all about town in what appear to be desolate areas where he stares at passersby.
As of Thursday morning, the clown has more than 126,000 fans on his
Facebook page "Spot Northampton's Clown."
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On Thursday,
the Northampton Chronicle scored an exclusive interview with the mystery clown, who, while still refusing to give his identity, told local reporter Callum Jones that his appearances around town is because he "just wanted to amuse people."
"Most people enjoy being a bit freaked out and then they can laugh about it afterwards," the clown said. "It’s like watching a horror movie, when people get scared they usually start laughing."
"Naturally, some people would have been extremely frightened by what they saw, but I hope many are starting to see it as a bit of harmless fun," he added.
Earlier in the week, the menacing clown posted an ominous message on Facebook, writing, "I'll be seeing you all very soon (in the day!) but i'm going to lay low for a bit as i have a big surprise for you all hopefully due at the end of the week!! Beep Beep!"
The "beep, beep," is in reference to Stephen King’s Pennywise character who would end his statements with that signoff.
The potential sightings have already frightened several residents who shared their fears recently
with CNN.
"I'd be terrified if I saw that clown at night," one English woman told CNN while she herself was flanked by a person wearing an oversized pink pig suit.
When asked how he would react if he encountered the clown on the street, another man told CNN "I'd probably run away, he's got quite a mean face on him."
In an interview with CNN, Northampton Chronicle reporter Callum Jones said he believes the clown is "probably an older guy," adding, "I think he's quite clever, [but] I don't think he understands social media that well, because he says he doesn't understand how Twitter works."
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While reassuring his Facebook fans that he is not armed and means no harm, except to give a little scare now and then, the clown told the Northampton Chronicle that he intended to keep appearing in town "for as long as people are interested" and he may even start holding a particular "clown" day every week.
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