A PSYCHOTIC-looking clown who promises to scare children senseless can be booked as a birthday surprise.

For a fee, actor Dominic Deville dresses up in a deathly clown mask and contacts his child "victims" in the Swiss city of Lucerne to tell them he is watching them.

His "evil clown" service unfolds further as he teases his targets with texts, phone calls and booby-trapped letters, warning them that at some point during their birthday party, he will throw a cake in their face, the Austrian Times reports.

Mr Deville's look appears based on the monster clown played by Tim Curry in the 1990 TV adaptation of the Stephen King novel It.

In fact he admitted he set up the chilling business concept after watching his favourite horror movies.

"It's all in fun and if at any point the kids get scared or their parents are concerned, we stop right there," he said, adding that most children "absolutely love" being terrified by his antics.

Originally published as Evil clown stalks kids as birthday treat