THE Disco Bunny has been left with an injured face after being punched in the face in the centre of town.

Pablo Woodward, whose glittery persona attempts to “infest others with a lust for life”, said the blow by a passer-by has made eating a challenge and it now hurts to give his trademark smile.

The incident occurred at around 10pm on Friday as Mr Woodward, who had just finished dancing on Brighton’s streets as The Disco Bunny, was walking with a friend on North Street up to Churchill Square.

The Disco Bunny sustained the injuries after he stepped in to stop a dispute between a man and a woman he was with.

Mr Woodward put himself in between the two and received a blow to his cheek.

He said: “It wasn’t so much what he said, but it was the way he came out with his misogynistic remark as an uncalled interruption to our unrelated private conversation that pressed both our buttons.

“He went for her, so I stepped right in and I saw it coming.

“One punch came to my right cheek and jaw, an almighty thud from the impact of it hitting my teeth.”

The Disco Bunny, who achieved internet stardom after a clip of his antics on the streets of Brighton was seen by more than 70 million people on Facebook, has become a regular addition on the city’s streets.

He now takes his act across the UK, travelling the country in his campervan - dubbed the Bunny Bus.

He said: “I am not a fighter, I am a lover.

“But I am strong, my reflexes are good.

“And if my power, passion and energy had to be channelled in that way to protect another I would fight not flight.”

Support for the entertainer has been flooding in online after Mr Woodward told his 7,500 Facebook followers about the incident.

Fans from Brighton and beyond have sent well wishing messages and commended him for not retaliating.

One fan writes: “It is a shame that such horrid things happen to such lovely people. Thankfully not all Brightonians are like that. We love You Mr Woodward”

Mr Woodward said that the incident has not been reported to the police.