Bad news for Coco and Blinko - children don't like clowns, and even older kids are scared of them.

That's the finding of a poll of youngsters by researchers from the University of Sheffield who were examining how to improve the decor of hospital children's wards.

©EPA
Maybe that's why Jobito Globitos (shown here at the XXII International Clown Convention in Mexico City in October) is tearing his hair out: Researchers have found that clowns scare the Globitos out of kids.


The study, reported in the Nursing Standard magazine, found all the 250 patients aged between 4 and 16 they quizzed disliked the use of clowns, with even the older ones finding them scary.

"As adults we make assumptions about what works for children," said Penny Curtis, a senior lecturer in research at the university.

"We found that clowns are universally disliked by children. Some found them quite frightening and unknowable."