Clowns may be used as toys for young children, but we have to say there's something very creepy about adults dressed in <clown fancy dress costumes.However, get ready to see a lot more of them as coulrophobia (that's fear of clowns to you and me) prepares to affect a whole new generation of movie fans.
Stephen King's It is due to be remade next year and we've heard it won't be for the faint-hearted, with Pennywise the clown set for a revival as an even more terrifying malevolent force.
He already makes the Irish Independent's list of most frightening movie villains ever, and for good reason, as Deirdre Reynolds points out.
"For anyone who watched the Ronald McDonald-gone-wrong crawl from the drains to claim its victims, balloon animals and oversized shoes just haven't been the same ever since," she shudders.
However, this does provide a great idea for Halloween fancy dress or any other event when you want to look scary!
To frighten the living daylights out of your mates, just slip on a costume like Carver the Killer Clown and watch them quiver like babies.