EXCLUSIVE BOY BAND CHRIS:
HAPPY SLAPPERS BLACKED BOTH MY EYESEXCLUSIVE Mobile phone thugs ambush heart-throb
By Nick Owens
BOY band heart-throb Chris Park told last night how he was left bruised and battered in a brutal "happyslap" attack.
Chris, 24, a member of Phixx - who have had four Top 20 hits including Hold On Me - was pounced on by three thugs as he walked home from a night out.
He was left with two black eyes, as well as a bruised face and body after the unprovoked beating.
Despite his injuries, singer Chris - who tried to defend himself using cage-fighting skills he had learned for a new TV stunt show - said he felt "really lucky" that the attack was not worse.
His ordeal unfolded as he returned home in the early hours from a night out with pals in his home city of Newcastle. He was attacked by one thug and, as he fought back, two others joined in.
One of the hoody-wearing trio, who were in their late-teens or early-20s, recorded the attack with a mobile phone, which the yob then used to attack the singer.
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Chris, who had been visiting his mum in Gosforth, said: "I just thought, 'Why me?' It was so random and pointless - it shows everyone has to be careful. It can happen to anyone, anywhere. It was late but I was walking in a nice area.
"Friends have said I should have just taken the punch, but it is my nature to fight back. Now I realise I was really lucky, as they could have been carrying weapons."
Chris has been working with kickboxers for Sprung, based on cult US show Jackass, which will see him take on cage-fighter Tony Thompson in a number of wacky dares.
He said: "Because of the training I was able to defend myself. When the first guy hit me, I hit him back and he fell to the ground.
"But then another person appeared from out of the dark and cracked me in the back of the head.
"I saw this other guy come out of the dark with a mobile. He hit me across the head with it. That's when I started feeling really dizzy.
"I was pushed against a wall and just tried to cover myself. The guy on the floor had joined in - so it was damage limitation from there."
Chris went to hospital for treatment, but decided not to report the attack to police, fearing he could get into trouble for hitting back.
He added: "But I decided to speak about it because something needs to be done about happy slapping. People think it's funny - it is not."
Later this year he will head to China for a tour with Phixx, who formed in 2003 following the ITV show Popstars: The Rivals, hosted by Davina McCall.
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despite the flippancy of the title of this thread i think it's a sad indictment on society and it's seemingly snowballing lack of respect and human decency. is there anyone on here willing to admit they've participated in a happy slapping incident? infact lets not sugar coat it here, 'cowardly thuggery' is a better name, whoever thought of the term happy slapping, deserves a slap as it dilutes the seriousness of the crime. why not use a term such as 'ultraviolence'? cos it's all very reminiscent of kubricks clockwork orange.
