A LAKE District clown has been left down in the mouth after being denied permission to perform his routine in Bowness.

Peter Jewell had been hoping to relaunch his alter ego – Cornelius Cliff – on the tourist hotspot town's promenade as he did in the 1990s.

Unfortunately for the wig-wearing wise cracker, a mix-up with South Lakeland District Council has prevented him from returning to the Glebe, leaving him somewhat red nosed.

It is not the first time Mr Jewell, of Prince's Road, Windermere, has experienced difficulty in obtaining permission to perform.

In 1995 he was involved in a dispute with SLDC, which he claims was settled with a document giving him permission to perform 'for life'.

"I hung it up (being a clown) in 1995 and went away and did scientific research and all sorts of interesting things," he said. "In 2001 I wrote to SLDC from Switzerland and they confirmed then it was still there (the document).

"I asked about transferring the right to my son and they wouldn't. The right was mine for the rest of my life."

But when Mr Jewell contacted the council earlier this year as he looked to dust off his bow tie and suspenders, there was no record of the agreement to be found.

A spokesman for SLDC said: “Despite a thorough search of our records we have not found a copy of any permission notice and Mr Jewell has also not been able to provide us with a copy.

“There is a long-standing by-law in place which covers Bowness Promenade which states that a person shall not ‘sell or offer or expose for sale any commodity or article’ unless with the prior agreement of the council.

“It appears Mr Jewell was given permission to trade on the promenade in 1995, but we can find no evidence that any permission extended beyond then."