A passenger in a clown outfit reportedly sparked a massive brawl on a P&O cruise ship.
The huge fight is reported to have taken place in the early hours of Friday morning (July 26) following a black tie event on board.
But the party soon descended into chaos and innocent onlookers were reportedly forced to run and hide as those involved in the brawl used furniture and plates as weapons.
Good Morning Britain journalist Richard Gaisford, who was on board, reported blood being "everywhere" and that “large amounts of alcohol” had probably been a contributing factor.
In a series of tweets about the incident Mr Gaisford said: “Violent late night brawl at the buffet onboard P&O Britannia cruise left staff who intervened injured, as passengers used furniture and plates as weapons.
“Witnesses told me they were so frightened they had to hide, as family groups fought.
“The violence occurred on the final leg of a week long cruise to Norway’s fjords.
“I became aware of trouble when officers made an emergency tannoy at 2am for security staff to rush to the 16th floor restaurant.
“I went too and found passengers shocked by what they’d seen.
“One witness, part of a group involved in the trouble, explained to staff that things kicked off when another passenger appeared dressed as a clown.
“This upset one of their party because they’d specifically booked a cruise with no fancy dress. It led to a violent confrontation.
“The buffet area was immediately sealed off as medical teams went to help the injured.”
The ship was en route back to its Southampton port when the incident occurred. It was met by police when it docked.
A P&O spokesman said: “Following an incident on board Britannia on Thursday evening we can confirm that all guests have now disembarked and the matter is now in the hands of the local police.”
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