A TV hypnotist has forced town hall chiefs in Pendle to rewrite their rules after booking a show at Colne Muni.

Ken Webster, the Mentalist Hypnotist, will perform the popular stage show on November 27.

But current borough regulations do not cover hypnotists and the licensing department has had to draw up new regulations for his performance.

It is the second time Webster, a regular at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, has caused confusion while visiting East Lancashire.

Similar revisions had to be made by Burnley councillors when he appeared at the Mechanics theatre in February.

Webster, chairman of the Federation of Ethical Stage Hypnotists, has provided details of his liability insurance to the authority.

And councillors are being asked to endorse a series of conditions to regulate the stage show produced by Webster, described as a cross between ‘Derren Brown and Chubby Brown’.

Licensing manager Mick Armfield said, in a committee report, that hypnotism was no longer covered by relevant legislation.

“It is necessary for an application to be made to the council to do so under the Hypnotism Act 1952,” he added.

In a 25-year career Webster has performed alongside comics Peter Kay, Jim Bowen, and Jim Davidson, and on Comic Relief.

Under the suggested regulations, all of his volunteers must be 18, and in normal physical health.

Volunteers must ‘not be asked to do anything which is indecent, offensive or harmful’, the rules state.

Webster’s show must get final approval from the licensing committee, which meets on Thursday.