Electric fence around Bognor bowling green 'utterly over the top'

Media consultant Carl Eldridge was walking past when he spotted the electrically charged fence seemingly guarding the green.

"I honestly thought I was seeing things — it's not a nuclear plant or Porton Down. I was astonished," he said.

"They have got a kind of club house and there's a gate which allows you entrance to it. t's a nice stroll through there. It's not as if it's protected."

Carl recalled another time electric fences sparked a backlash in sport when former Chelsea manager Ken Bates had a 12-foot electric fence around the stands to deter would-be pitch invaders.

It took place in 1985 and a legal battle saw that the fence was never switched on.

"This was highly controversial," he added.

"Maybe there's a reason for it but I think it's completely and utterly over the top."