So Alex, is this one time you approve of Nanny Statism?

When he returned to the circus he was told by management he could no longer wear the size-18 shoes because they compromised his health and safety.

Mr Kashkin features in the circus' reworking of the Rasputin tale, The Monk's Dream.

His routine includes dressing himself whilst walking on a wire, dress himself within a hoop of fire, and playing a drum-kit, trumpet and double-bass all at the same time.

But he is now worried performing in his regular sized footwear will lose impact on the audience.

Mr Kashkin, 40, from Temruk, Russia, said: "The shoes are an important part of my costume, and I was disappointed to be told I couldn't do this part of my act.

"I feel fine, and think I could do it in the shoes – the impact might be lost on the audience now."

Rejecting that it was a case of health and safety gone mad, Larry Dewitt, Health and Safety adviser to the circus said: "I'm not a believer in political correctness, or doing things for the sake of doing it however.

"You have to take a common-sense approach with these things – if it's stupid, don't do it."

Paul Archer, General Manager for the Moscow State Circus, said: "I think it will definitely detract from the visual aspect of the performance.

"It's very important because there's a language barrier to the whole performance, as it's in Russian."

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