Number 704 - 21st December 2013
Blackpool
Magic Convention - 21st, 22nd, 23rd February, 2014. The following
performers will be appearing at the Blackpool Magicians' Convention on
21st, 22nd and 23rd February, 2014: Jeff McBride, Dan Garrett, Hayashi,
Woody Aragon, Rick Merrill, Henry Evans, Aldo & Rachel Colombini, Mel
Mellers, Francis Tabary, Jordan Gomez, Daryl Martinez, Oscar Munoz,
Shoot Ogawa, Paul Gertner, Mathieu Bich, Jay Sankey, Rocco Silano, Clive
Webb & Danny, Valerie, Attraction, The Supertells, Claudius Spect,
Graham Jolley, John Martin, Wayne Dobson, Michael J. Fitch, David Ginn,
Ian Rowland, Anson Lee, Colonel Custard with more to follow. That's some
line-up! Registrations are at an all time high and the Convention is
heading for another sell out. Contact Arthur Casson
arthurcasson@aol.com or visit
www.blackpoolmagic.com to register.
21.12.13
The
Illusionists - tonight at 9.10pm on ITV! Six of the world's top
magicians and illusionists give a special performance in front of a
celebrity-packed audience at London's Hammersmith Apollo. The show
features dazzling large scale illusions, comedy magic and death-defying
escape stunts which have the audience enthralled and on the edge of
their seats. Hosted by Stephen Mulhern, with Andrew Basso, Jeff Hobson,
Kevin James, Mark Kalin, Jinger Leigh and Dan Sperry. See
TV Magic.
21.12.13
David
Blaine: Real or Magic. For more than a decade, David Blaine has been
captivating the world with his high-profile endurance stunts. Starting
his career as a magician who appeared to do the impossible with a deck
of cards, he was soon following in the footsteps of Houdini, seeking out
that which seemed physically impossible, and actually doing it. This
special programme follows Blaine's signature brand of street magic and
mystifies some of the most recognisable celebrities in the world,
including Jamie Foxx, Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Ricky Gervais, Katy
Perry, Harrison Ford, Lenny Kravitz and Will Smith, to name a few. Blaine goes into the
homes of Kanye West and Olivia Wilde, and visits Stephen Hawking at his
office at Cambridge University. He also travels the world, astonishing
people from all walks of life with never-seen-before, inconceivable
magic. 9pm on Wednesday 1st January on Channel 4. See
TV Magic.
21.12.13
The
Session (Cheltenham, 11th and 12th January 2014) is just three weeks
away. This unique convention is certainly not afraid to innovate.
This year's Saturday and Sunday shows will be a complete surprise, with
fresh formats with unannounced, mystery acts. On top of that, Emmy Award
winner Larry Wilmore (photo) has just been announced. An accomplished
magician, writer and actor, he is a regular on Jon Stewart's The
Daily Show in the US, had a starring role in Dinner for Schmucks
and was a consulting producer on the US version of The Office.
Larry Wilmore's talk will look at how magic and acting can work
harmoniously together. He will join Guy Hollingworth, Bebel, John
Guastaferro, Joe Barry, John Carey, Morgan & West, Jon Allen, Bizaua
Cristian, Ben Train, Hector Chadwick, Iain Sharkey and many more! Only a
few tickets remain...
www.sessionconvention.com.
21.12.13
Dynamo's
Magician Impossible to air on BBC One in January. Three episodes,
taken from the original four-part series which was first seen on Watch
in 2011, will be shown for the first time by the BBC every Saturday, at
5.35pm, starting on January 11th.
21.12.13
Magic
Night at Madame
JoJo's, London, on Friday, January 17th: "Magic Night returns in 2014 with a
new bag of tricks, some nifty card work, a silent trick, philosophy (I
kid you not), Goose music and Rabbits (very big rabbits) with
clever sleight of hand and mind tricks. Jon Hick’s giant rabbit will
create magic with smaller rabbits, till you think there are no tricks
left to play. AJ will be endangering life, limb and the front row with
large knives, whilst Dee Riley will make you question the very basis of
reality. Siegfried Loew (photo) will perform beautiful manipulation that
is breathtaking. All interspaced with comedy music from We Are Goose and
trickster duo Griffin and Jones presenting bizarre, hilarious and
anarchic tricks." Magic Night at Madame JoJo's. Doors open 7.00pm.
Show starts at 7.45pm. Tickets £12 including entry to Good Foot. Show
ticket plus dinner: £25.
Madame JoJo’s,
8-10 Brewer Street,
London W1F 0SE (Map).
Tickets and more info:
www.magicnight.co.uk.
21.12.13
Granada
scores magic deal with ITV. "The trend for paranormal continues as
ITV lines up a new daytime magic show with a celebrity twist. Granada
International will be launching the format to international buyers at
Cannes this month..." To read the full story by Ed Waller in C21Media
visit
www.c21media.net/granada-scores-magic-deal-with-itv.
21.12.13
Steve
Truglia's Card Shark Show will be moving to a new venue as it heads
into its second year. The show will be running every Friday night, with
two shows per night, from January 24th. "Enter the dark and dangerous
world of the Card Shark. From the middle ages through Wild West saloon
bars to murderous gangsters, discover how sleight of hand techniques
honed by hardened gamblers influenced modern card magic. One of the UK’s
foremost magicians and expert close-up magic star Steve Truglia AIMC
amazes London audiences with classic card tricks, cheats and scams in
this brand new and interactive multimedia show with film, images, music
and live camera action. See world class sleight of hand card magic like
never before. The Card Shark Show is now playing at the stunning
5 star intimate private theatre of the Courthouse Hotel, in London's
Great Marlborough Street. An historic Grade II listed building which was
formerly the Marlborough Street Magistrates Court. Charles Dickens
worked in the building in 1835, and many famous people were tried in the
court, including Oscar Wilde, Mick Jagger and John Lennon. The courtroom
is now the hotel restaurant Silk, and features the original judge's
bench, dock and witness stand. In the bar the original cells remain,
doors open, including the cell that Christine Keeler was held in at the
start of what became the Profumo Affair in the 1960's. The theatre space
hold only 96 people, making the show a truly intimate and personal
experience. A fitting venue to explore the crooked ways of gambling
cheats and con artists." Ticket prices: (There's a 2 for 1 deal using
this 'CARD13' promo code) Premium £58 (front four rows), Standard £47.
Two shows per night at 7.30pm and 9pm. Running time: 1 hour 10 minutes.
Box office opens at 6.30pm, doors open at 7pm. Dates: January 24th, 31st
(2 shows per night 7.30, and 9pm). February 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th; March
7th, 14th, 21st. Venue: Courthouse Hotel London, 19-21 Gt Marlborough
Street, London W1F 7HL (Map).
www.thecardsharkshow.com.
21.12.13
Close
up Success 2.0: "Close up Success 2.0 now have 250 videos live on
the portal. It is fast becoming the world's largest resource of its kind
on the web. Many of the routines have fooled some of magic's greatest
thinkers! See
www.closeupsuccess.com for a brand new video tour now!' 'This is
a gold mine of information, if I had had these two behind me when I
started I may well have chosen a different path' Geoffrey Durham.
'Awesome...just about the most intelligent piece I've ever read, this
duo has gone right to the performance jugular ...the methods discussed
for making your magic real world are so well organised that it makes the
course worth the price alone' Bob Sheets. 'This site is so good I
don't want others to find out about it and use it - I want all of the
material for myself!' Elliot Bibby. You will gain exclusive access
to exclusive content including the '20th Century Book Test', the
'Thought of Card to Envelope' that is taking the magic world by storm,
'Transpire' and many many more routines. If you want 2014 to be your
best year ever, both in terms of performing and income generation, join
this revolution now..." Find out much more by visiting
www.closeupsuccess.com today!
21.12.13
Christmas
Greetings: "The President of the IBM British Ring No25, Neil
Roberts, sends greetings to magicians throughout the world and wishes
them a peaceful and happy time. He would like to remind British Ring
Members that there is an early bird registration at £120 for the
Bournemouth convention (24th – 28th September 2014) running until 31st
January 2014. (On the 1st February it goes up to £130 and on 1st July
increases again, this time to £145. Please be aware of the cancellation
policy). Following the success of the ladies outing this year, for next
year we have arranged an optional coach trip (at a small extra charge)
to Beaulieu which will be open to all. A registration form was enclosed
with the December Budget or you can register online at
www.magicconvention.co.uk where there are also special hotel rates.
The main British Ring website is
www.britishring.org.uk. Bournemouth has ideal convention facilities
with good transport connections and a wide range of accommodation at
prices to suit all pockets. If you are not already a member, perhaps now
is an ideal opportunity to consider joining. Don’t miss this chance to
enjoy your magic and save money too!" Geoffrey Newton PRO.
21.12.13
Michael
Gee performed magic at the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? wrap party
last week following a live filming of the Christmas Special which took
place at Elstree Studios. It was also the last-ever edition of the
long-running quiz show. Chris Tarrant invited stars including former
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and This Morning's Eamonn Holmes
to take the hot seat to celebrate this special occasion. Michael is seen
here with the presenter of the show, Chris Tarrant. Michael also
performed magic for the cast and crew of Coronation Street at their
company Christmas party which took place at the Hilton Hotel in
Manchester.
www.michaelgeemagic.com.
21.12.13
It
has been a busy few days for Chris Dugdale! On Wednesday he appeared
on the ITV national news to review the new design of bank notes and do a
little magic with our existing currency and Thursday saw him drive and
review the new American Super Car the Tesla S electric car, which is
faster than a Porsche 911. He was one of the first to drive it in the
UK. See
www.facebook.com/tvmagician for details.
21.12.13
The
Wowlett - the wallet with the Wow gimmick! From RSVPMagic: "From a
concept by Luke Dancy, ‘The Wowlett’ allows you to perform card to
wallet like never before. At last the Wow gimmick is made logical and
completely invisible. Imagine having two cards selected and shuffled
into the deck; they vanish! The magician now picks up his wallet, that
has seemingly been sitting on the table throughout and opens it to show
the first selected card inside the plastic window of the wallet. Now for
the kicker that makes this unique, the magician then holds the wallet
close to the spectator as they see the first card visibly morph into the
second signed card! This is reputation making magic at its best." See
www.rsvpmagic.com.
21.12.13
If
you're a children's entertainer shouldn't you be on
ChildrensPartyShows.co.uk? From the makers of MagicWeek and launched
back in 2004, this site has been generating thousands of direct bookings
for its advertisers year after year ever since. To read some unsolicited testimonials
Click Here. The main Application Form and advertising rates are
linked via
the contact page:
www.childrenspartyshows.co.uk.
21.12.13
The
Paul Gordon Gold Dust Magic Lecture. "Paul Gordon's fast paced and
informative 'worker' card magic lecture features his best ever magic.
This is commercial, doable and fun card stuff. All delivered in Paul's
humorous and energetic manner." See
www.shropshiremagicalsociety.co.uk for info about the club and see
www.paulgordon.net
for info about Paul. Price to be confirmed. Wednesday 2nd April 2014 at
7pm. Venue: Lord Hill Hotel, Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury SY2 6AX (Map).
21.12.13
Giant
effects pack a punch... "The TwinsFX have been preparing for one of
their busiest Christmas seasons ever. The TwinsFX visual special effects
helped break box office records for Christmas productions across the UK
last year, and included such creations as a 7 metre tall animatronic
silverback gorilla, a 12m long animatronic snake and a brand new flying
effect called the 'Revolver', to name but a few. So what’s in store for
2013? Watch this space, or click
www.thetwinsfx.com
- it’s going to be a giant year for special effects!"
21.12.13
A
Christmas Carol at the Dukes Lancaster is receiving 5 star reviews
in the press and features the illusions of Liam Gerrard who also plays
Bob Cratchitt and Jacob Marley. The British theatre guide features an
article on him and the original illusions in the show, see
www.britishtheatreguide.info.
21.12.13
All
aboard for the ride of your death. Actress Sarah Jayne Deery and
magician Matt Grindley have made a feature length film that is going to
premiere at
The Picture House in Keighley, West Yorkshire, on 21st December.
Based on the play ‘The Ghost Train’ by Arnold Ridley of Dad’s Army fame
this new re-imagining of the 1926 classic was filmed at Oakworth Station
near Haworth in just 9 nights. The Ghost Train follows the story of six
unlucky passengers who find themselves stranded overnight in a remote
Yorkshire train station, the night before Christmas Eve. Throughout the
night the station guests experience increasingly strange happenings and
unexpected arrivals of all kinds... For more information visit
www.cannymedia.co.uk.
21.12.13
British
Ring and Magi member Peter Moran is appearing in the pantomime
Aladdin at the Gracie Fields Theatre in Rochdale, Lancashire, this
Christmas. Performance details are on
www.graciefieldstheatre.com and Peter will appear along with Janey
Lee Grace from Radio 2’s Steve Wright Show, Coronation Street’s Amy
Forrest, Sky TV’s Simon Blake and other well known artistes. Peter plays
Widow Twanky and will be bringing magic into the character part. He has
always wanted to do Panto so his wish has come true. Perhaps he rubbed
the lamp! Geoffrey Newton PRO.
21.12.13
The
Order of the Magi (Manchester) sends seasonal greetings to
magicians, their families and friends throughout the world and wishes
you all a very successful 2014. You can keep in touch with us at
www.orderofthemagi.org.uk. Geoffrey Newton PRO.
21.12.13
"GQ&A:
Derren Brown"
Click Here • "TruTV
gets in on magic act"
Click Here • "Discovery buys Troy across Europe"
Click Here • "Magician Dynamo wants to perform trick for Eminem"
Click Here • World-renowned playing card expert Tom Dawson has purchased
www.playingcardforum.com, the world's largest playing card forum, from
playing card designer, Alexander Yusupov • "Derren Brown: the Great Art Robbery
– TV review"
Click Here • "Rewind TV: Derren Brown: The Great Art Robbery – review"
Click Here • "Andrew Newman: 'There are lots of challenges with Derren
Brown'"
Click Here • "The Illusionists 2.0: Under their spell"
Click Here • "Thanet magician sells out West End show"
Click Here • "James Galea makes magic"
Click Here • "The Open-Sorcerers"
Click Here • "Magician Justin Willman Shows 52 Deck Card Trick on Jay Leno"
Click Here (the dealers are going to love that one) • "Grandparents sparked
young magician’s global journey"
Click Here • "It's a kind of hi-tech magic"
Click Here.
21.12.13
Merry
Christmas and Happy New Year to all our readers worldwide,
from the MagicWeek team, left to right, Keiko, Louis, Duncan and Amelia. It's been another
very good year for magic, which as an entertainment genre is enjoying a
real revival with TV production companies scrambling over themselves to
add magic to their rosters. Thanks to everyone who submitted magic news, reviews,
reports and photos throughout the year, it is really appreciated. Thank
you also to all our
magic dealer advertisers - the best on the web and to Chris North for
untangling some of the terrible typos he spots on Saturday mornings.
Finally, thank you for reading MagicWeek every week. Have a great Christmas.
21.2.13