A young British man who had his head replaced with a giant orange as part of a trilogy of wishes granted by a lamp-dwelling genie is suing the Arabian spirit in a historic legal action.

He complains the genie did not warn him of the drastic outcome of the body-altering wish which has led to him having to constantly retell his story to an endless parade of curious strangers.

Despite remaining satisfied with the significant increase in financial and sexual status granted by his first two wishes, the man said he felt pressured to adhere to the “rule of three” comic trope in which the third and final event in a sequence must contain either a humorous misunderstanding or a subversion of the premise.

The irreversible operation involves removing the head, and replacing it with a giant orange.

For eight days he lay in a blur of painkillers. His first thought as he recovered his lucidity was “Oh God, what have I done?”

In a statement, the genie said it could not comment on individual cases, but added: “Wishes are collaborative and tailored to each client’s needs and goals, and decisions are made following a thorough assessment in line with national recommendations. Clients are under no obligation to make the third wish funny, or something that would undermine the advantages obtained via the first two.”