Clowns may not be everyone’s cup of tea but for people in Victorian Britain, the prospect of seeing one sail up river in a bathtub pulled by four geese was too alluring to resist. In Great Yarmouth, a crowd had gathered on a suspension bridge stretching across the river Bure to watch the ridiculous spectacle, but their joy and laughter would soon turn into pain and anguish.
In 1845 a large crowd had gathered on the Yarmouth suspension bridge to watch the novel and weird publicity stunt. According to Snopes, the incident occurred on a Friday evening in May, with people chowing up to see an act known as “Mr. Nelson.” The show was all a part of William Cooke’s circus and flyers from the time depicted Cooke, dressed as the clown, sitting in a bathtub with four swans pulling him along.
