Car-Driving Clown Gets Whiskey Road Ban

One of the country's oldest performing clowns – whose act involves a customised vintage vehicle – will not be able to perform on public roads for the next year after he was banned for being in charge of a car while over the drinks limit.

Rudi Wallenda, 80, of Wesley Avenue, Harlesden, who performs all over the country with his Comedy Car Act – a multi-coloured 1926 BullnoseMorris – says he only started drinking whiskey after the car he was driving suffered a flat tyre.

He was convicted of being in charge of a Ford Granada outside the Ramada Hotel, London Gateway Services, Mill Hill on January 7 with 196 milligrammes of alcohol in his urine – the legal limit is 107.

North West London's Brent Magistrates Court disqualified him from driving for twelve months and fined him £85, with £200 costs and ordered him to also pay a £20 victim surcharge.

Wallenda was born into the famous European Flying Wallenda's high wire and trapeze act family.

He says he was not in charge of the vehicle after pulling into the services with a flat tyre and had no intention of driving the vehicle away.

The court heard Wallenda fell over and cut his face when trying to deal with the tyre and relieved his situation by drinking whiskey he had in the vehicle.

He had called his son Anthony for help, but the police turned up and arrested him.