THE CIRCUS may have rolled into town but not everyone is looking forward to the clowning around.

Uncle Sam’s Great American Circus had to set up its big top on the County Ground car park after its usual haunt at Wescott Recreation Ground became waterlogged and Swindon Council agreed to let them use the site.

The popular show, which opened last night and will run until Sunday, is expected to attract thousands of people but residents and other car park users have complained about disruption caused by the switch.

One County Road resident, who asked to remain anonymous, complained that she had been unaware the council had given permission to use the car park.

She said: “I woke up in the morning and opened the curtains to see a circus outside my window.

“The council never told us they were going to put them there. I know they have to put them somewhere but why in a residential area? There will be a huge number of people visiting the site.”

Kim West, treasurer for the Swindon Down’s Syndrome Group, said the charity was not informed until Monday that their car boot sale would have to make way for the circus.

She said: “Unfortunately due to circumstances beyond our control with Westcott Place being waterlogged and the council giving the County Ground car park to the circus, we are no longer able to hold our Trash and Treasure car boot sale there this weekend, which has been booked for about six months.

“We are very disappointed because it has taken a long time to organise and it was going to be our first car boot sale. We have moved the date to Sunday, July 22, at the County Ground.”

The circus will run every day until the last performance on Sunday at 4.30pm.

Ringmaster Matthew Wingate said the circus was a community event and assured locals it would be responsibly run.

He said: “We were contacted by the council last Thursday and they told us the site we usually go to was waterlogged. We arrived at this site on Monday at 7.15am.

“We are only here until Sunday. The circus is really for the community to come and see. Our shows are finished by 9.30pm and music is kept at a reasonable level.”

A Swindon Council spokesman said: “The circus enquired about the possibility of using the County Ground car park as the site was big enough to meet their needs.

“The switch of venue was agreed with local councillors subject to local residents being informed and we had no objections from the football club or the police. We asked the organiser of the circus to contact local residents by letter.

“We understand some residents may not be happy with the alternative arrangements and, under normal circumstances, we would have given more notice.

“However, if the council had not provided an alternative venue at such short notice the event would have been cancelled leaving many people in Swindon who had bought tickets disappointed.”