September 11th 2007 is the sixth anniversary of the World Trade Centre disaster, and the date of the inaugural London Laughter Bomb.

The London Laughter Bomb takes place across the capital, at busy commuter areas and major shopping areas. A group of colourfully-dressed, lively characters with brightly-painted banners, kazoos and a bubble machine will burst into laughter, attempting to “infect” passers-by.

Laughter is a powerful force and one that, as we all know, can be highly infectious. In 1962, there was an outbreak of contagious laughter in Tanganyika, which spread from person to person, eventually causing the closure of schools. It lasted for an unbelievable six months, an epidemic of “laughter” across the country.

One of the participants described the event:

“We’re hoping to put a smile on the face of some of the commuters, to show them that life can be an opportunity to Celebrate and Be Creative, that we don’t have to live our lives over-shadowed by Worry and Fear. Most of all, we want to have a good party in the streets, to express ourselves and celebrate, and put a bit of colour into the streets of London.”

Since September 11th 2001 we have lived in an atmosphere of mass hysteria and fear about Terrorism and the possibility of Terrorist attacks. We have constant announcements on the Tube about keeping hold of your bags and reporting suspicious behaviour and frequent articles in the mass media about Terrorist suspects. The Government has passed various Terrorism Acts, seemingly partly as an excuse to generate Fear and stifle protest and freedom of expression. This culminated in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (SOCPA) which criminalizes protest and public freedom of speech within a “designated area” around Parliament.

The London Laughter Bomb is promoted on the website (www.myspace.com/londonlaughterbomb) as a way to “reclaim our Freedom, Creativity and Spontaneity” and “Celebrate the fact that we are alive.”

As one participant put it:

“We offer the utmost respect to the friends and relatives of those who have been victims of Terrorism. But we refuse to be part of the culture of Fear, which tries to suppress our right to express ourselves. Through such a harmless act as Laughter, we express our Right to be Creative, Joyful and Spontaneous on the streets of London.”