Photo by SlapBcn.

Clowns are brilliant. They bring joy and laughter to the world. They're larger than life, clumsy, confused, very silly, and full of nonsense.

I've been reading a lot about clowns and jesters recently, working out how to be a clown in my everyday life. Here's what I've learnt.

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Photo by moriza.

If you have lived in a city or large town for any period of time, you will have probably noticed how commericialised the city centre has become. If the centre of a city defines the identity of that city's residents, then it would be true to say that the urban dweller's primary identity is that of the consumer. Who we are is defined by what we are able to buy.

This means that it is hard to do anything playful in a city without buying something. Shopping, the cinema, restaurants and cafes, the local pub - even some city parks now charge an entry fee.

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In March 2003 trainee lawyer Jo Wilding visited Iraq as an independent observer to the Anglo-American invasion. She found many shattered lives; people's homes and businesses were frequently destroyed by stray bombs. Others were shot or imprisoned and tortured arbitrarily if there was even a remote suspicion that they were part of the insurgency against the invading forces. Experiencing firsthand the everyday brutality of war led Jo to question the way the world is. She started wondering why we allow anyone to produce weapons, let alone use them:

'Why is it considered a legitimate way to live, for a person to get up in the morning, kiss his or her kids goodbye, and go and spend the working day experimenting and discussing and planning and building novel and ever-more efficient ways of severing soft, beautiful, living human bodies?'

She also asked people in Iraq about their experiences under the rule of previous dictator Saddam Hussein, and was told many stories of oppression and torture. Yet the US - and Britain - supported Saddam's regime whilst it suited them. This led Jo to ask:

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