English town stalked by man dressed as clown from Stephen King’s “It”

A smirking clown has been sneaking around the streets of Northampton, England with a white face, bushy hair and gaudy, red-painted lips, in what appears to be a prank campaign that's become a creepy mystery.

Pictures posted to social media show someone disguised as a clown has been popping up around the British town of Northampton, standing on streets carrying balloons or hiding in drains under sidewalks, posting cryptic notes on Facebook about where the trickster clown might turn up next.

The sightings started on Friday the 13, and the Northampton Clown has become an Internet wonder among followers who are either amused or terrified at the idea of opening their front doors and encountering a clown.

Posts seemingly by the person behind the clown mask suggest the intention isn't to keep Northampton residents cowering in fear, but local police wrote on Twitter they had been receiving calls about the clown's spooky behaviour.

[ Related: Couple stages playful, costumed wedding at Clownfest ]

"I don't terrorise people I just want to be spotted," the administrator of Spot Northampton's Clown wrote on Sept. 13. Police wrote on Twitter they hadn't arrested any clowns lately — at least not the costumed kind.

The Northampton Chronicle & Echo reported two teenagers dressed as clowns also knocked on a resident's door last week and offered to paint her window sills, but they weren't carrying any paint.

A post on the "Spot Northampton's Clown" Facebook page says the teenage clowns were not connected to the original local clown, but one thing is certain: Northampton has gone to the clowns.

Someone call in the Clown Catcher.