THE circus is in town, the Big Top should be a place to find fun and laughter, for wide-eyed astonishment at the antics of the clowns and the amazing skills of acrobats, jugglers and trapeze artists.

But sadly for the animals who perform in circuses, 'life' is one of misery and pain.

Majestic wild animals live day after day confined in wagons, travelling from town to town on a journey that leads nowhere except certain death after an existence of sadness and degradation for what some humans call entertainment.

The Great British Circus has included elephants in its programme this year, the questions that must be asked are: Where have they come from and in what form of transportation?

In what country were they trained? Are they just leased for this season and where will they go to the next?

In the wild, elephants are highly sociable animals who live in close-knit family units within large herds.

They walk 25 miles a day while foraging for food and water, an activity as essential to their mental wellbeing as to their physical health.

Their favourite daily pastime of wallowing in mud and submerging their entire bodies in water is vital to the condition of their sensitive skin.

Does the life in a travelling circus meet any of those basic needs of this wonderful animal?

The illusion that circus animals are happy and well cared for in their captivity is essential to the continuing existence of the circus, but, I believe, it's just that, an illusion.

Melanie Dickerson, The Avenue, Healing.