On Saturday night (actually in the early hours of Sunday morning) Dan Tidd and his friends were out for a drink at The Rampant Horse Fakenham to celebrate Dan’s upcoming birthday. Dan’s one of the talented tattoo artists at 4Skin in Norwich Street, which is just below my office.

As the group were leaving the pub, they were attacked by a pair of men who pulled them from the taxi they’d just entered. The aftermath of the assault left one girl hurt and all three guys in the group unconscious, with Dan suffering a severe beating which has hospitalised him. This wasn’t just another pub brawl, but a particularly vicious and nasty premeditated attack by violent thugs.

If you were a witness to these events, especially in the street outside the Rampant Horse, by the TSB in Norwich Street, or in the alleyway next to Superdrug, please get in touch with the police. This was a cowardly and nasty violent assault which could easily have had even worse consequences than it did – these people need to be caught before they get the chance to do it to somebody else.

The result was bad enough. I’m told that Drew was unconscious until the police arrived and had a very weak pulse. Ben suffered a similar fate and injured his hand too. Dan’s jaw was broken in two places and he needs facial surgery – his head took a stamping, as did the other guys (as I said, this wasn’t just another fight).

Dan, in particular, will be out of action for a while. As self-employed tattoo artists, when the guys don’t work they don’t get paid. To that end, a collection box has been set up at 4skin so that concerned members of the public can show their support financially. Just drop into the shop and pop something into the box – it’ll show you care about the guys as well as our town and will display your solidarity with them in a practical way.

If you’re not near Fakenham, please use the Paypal Donate button below. Don’t worry – Clive, who’s the owner of 4Skin, will make sure it gets to the right people. Payments are secure and you don’t need a Paypal account to donate via card.

Thanks!