A Bristol Evening Post lensman was "wrestled" by a policeman he tried to photograph whilst the officer was investigating a local barber's April Fool's Day prank.

Snapper Stephen Lewis and reporter Bob Beale had been sent to cover the story of barber Chico Galli who had informed the newspaper he was planning to advertise Bristol's "first legal brothel" in his shop window as a joke.

Mr Galli had also told Avonmouth police in advance to ensure they were in on the prank - but they failed to see the funny side.

When Stephen and Bob arrived at Mr Galli's shop, they were told not to report on the story, which the police described as an "ongoing incident".

The officers also refused to give their names to the Evening Post men and when Stephen tried to use his camera, one of the officers grabbed his arm to try to stop him.

Bob told HoldtheFrontPage: "By the time we arrived, Mr Galli had already torn up the notice - clearly, he didn't want to do anything that would upset the police or lead to his arrest.

"We suggested to the two officers that we do an 'April Fool's prank foiled by police' story, but they told us not to do anything until the inspector arrived.

"An hour-and-a-half later they left with no inspector having turned up and so we ran it on the basis that it was an hour-and-a-half of wasted police time."

Bob described the incident as an "over-reaction" by the police, but said he'd had no response to the story.

A comment article in the Evening Post read: "So what DO we want from our police force? Protection, support, prevention and a good deal of thief-catching for a start. A sense of humanity and a sense of humour wouldn't go amiss either.

"[Mr Galli] actually phoned the police the day before to warn them about the prank, and was somewhat surprised when two officers turned up and threatened to arrest him if he went ahead.

"And the officers didn't enhance their reputation by then hassling an Evening Post photographer, insisting he couldn't photograph what they laughably called an "ongoing incident".

"Listen, guys. The public who pay your wages are worried about violent crime, burglary, drugs, prostitution and many other things. They are not worried about a daft April Fool prank.

"You rely on the support of the public to do your job effectively. A little more thought about ways to maintain that support would be welcome."