The grand finale of Zippo's Circus fell strangely flat before its Birmingham audience. Three Spanish clowns, Nicol, Michael and Pappa, had been due to introduce themselves with a blast of trumpets. However, this had to be cut from the act.

Also gone was the moment, midway through the routine, when Nicol sounds three notes on a tuba, which then explodes, the bell landing on another clown's head while Nicol blows a puff of smoke from his rear.

And instead of the recorded flamenco track that usually accompanies their performance, there was silence.

These last-minute alterations were insisted upon by an official from the licensing department of Birmingham City Council. Half an hour before the show was due to start, the officer was insisting that the show could not go on if the clowns sounded their trumpets, or blew the exploding horn. It would need to be classified as a live music performance and the Big Top would require a licence.

Martin Burton, proprietor of Zippo's Circus, and a former clown himself, was not amused: “I'm a big fan of silent comedy, but this is ludicrous.”

Mr Burton had thought such issues had been settled in lengthy exchanges with the council's licensing department before the circus even came to town. “There was some discussion about whether skipping on a tight-rope was dancing,” he told The Times yesterday. “Tight-rope walking is not regarded as regulated entertainment requiring a licence; dance is.”

They also considered the trained horses, and a Jack Russell called Clopsky (“his master's wife is Russian”), that leaps over a gyrating German acrobat and perches on the acrobat's feet while he performs a handstand. Neither Clopsky nor the acrobats were thought to be performing regulated entertainment: it was neither dance nor professional sport. “Although the acrobats wouldn't like to hear me say this, they are not Olympic quality,” Mr Burton said.

Finally, there were the clowns. Mr Burton thought he had persuaded the council that the music in their act was purely incidental. “It's just a quick blast of trumpets at the start,” Mr Burton said. “Then three notes from the exploding tuba: pa-pa-pa-bang!”

Nevertheless, long after the health and safety officials had left, satisfied that all was in order, an official for the licencing department remained. “Normally we would have stood our ground, but we had only half an hour,” Mr Burton said. “I agreed to cut the music. It was ludicrous.”

Jacqui Kennedy, director of regulatory services at Birmingham City Council, said: “Under the Licensing Act 2003, elements of the programme proposed by Zippo's would fall into the category of regulated entertainment and such events would require either a licence under the Act or a temporary event notice.”

The Act, in force since 2005, means that circuses could technically require a licence for every site they visit. “It's £1,000 a time and we are visiting 30 different places,” Mr Burton said.

While some circuses have closed, Mr Burton has opted to negotiate with each council in turn. Birmingham has been the first to object.

Malcolm Clay, secretary of the Association of Circus Proprietors, told The Times last night that an application would shortly be submitted to Whitehall for a change in the rules. “There is now an acceptance that something needs to be done for circuses,” he said.

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