Mark is a bulky, 34-year-old architect; the sort of former rugby forward you would make way for on a crowded pavement. With cropped hair, you would probably avoid eye contact, as well.
Last week, Mark looked decidedly meek, nursing his drink in the local pub with a troubled, soul-searching stare reminiscent of just being dumped by a girlfriend. Asked what was wrong, he replied: 'I've just been 'happy slapped'.'
Happy slapping, for those unacquainted with the growing craze among London's more feral teenagers, is the practice of being slapped about the head or face, be it by hand or rolled-up newspaper, while being filmed for posterity on a cellphone camera. The stunned, bewildered reactions of victims are apparently hilarious, and are relayed across the ether for friends to see.
Happy slapping started in the playgrounds of south London schools, a childish version of a ritual beating filmed on camera phones that first surfaced in the macho, violent world of London's garage music scene.
With bullying firmly on the political agenda, schools and police have not taken too kindly to happy slapping, especially as it has now spread on to the streets and public transport.
Lone women at bus stops, joggers in parks, and middle-aged commuters have all been attacked. And, as the craze spreads nationwide, things are turning more violent. One video file, recovered by police and entitled 'Bitch Slap', showed a youth approaching a woman at a bus stop and punching her in the face. Another file, 'Bank Job', recorded an ATM customer being beaten up and robbed. A third, called 'Knockout Punch', showed a boy in a school uniform felling another pupil with a single blow to his head.
