Number 778 - 23rd May 2015
2Minds. Less than 30 tickets remain for the 2015 2Minds Mentalism
Conference in in Newcastle upon Tyne on Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th of
July. This two-day event features lectures from some of the greatest
minds in mentalism, including Marc Paul, Looch, Luca Volpe, Ken Dyne,
Marc Spelmann, Ian Rowland and Peter Clifford. For further information
and booking details visit
www.mindfx.co.uk.
23.5.15
12th
Top Secret Magic Day: Milton Keynes. Gary Young, Producer, writes:
Only two weeks to go until the much anticipated 12th Top Secret Magic
Day in Milton Keynes. If you're planning on going please email straight
away to reserve your places. You can then pay on the day if you wish,
but please advise now! This is to cut down on administration later.
Email:
gary@topsecretmagicday.co.uk. Don't miss this packed day of magic
featuring: Bill Abbott (photo) with an exclusive lecture, coming over
especially for this event; Mark James: Great lecture on comedy, cruising
and cabaret; Steve Dimmer: Exclusive 100% brand new kids lecture, with
an effect that will have every children's entertainer watering at the
mouth! And Jasper Blakely: Brilliant lecturer with 60% new material!
Also, the one and only, Paul Gordon with a commercial card workshop,
Steve Dimmer's game workshop (that has earned him more than any other
business he does!). Plus Magic Dealers galore, a Q+A with the stars, and
a star comedy gala! See full details at
www.topsecretmagicday.co.uk. Don't delay book today!"
23.5.15
The
Magic Show Story. Saturday 30th May at 6.30pm on ITV. In this
one-off special, presenter and magician Stephen Mulhern goes on a
journey through sixty years of trickery, as he celebrates the
mind-blowing, jaw-dropping story of magic on television. Stephen recalls
the moments of magic that grabbed the headlines - from Dynamo levitating
above the Shard, David Blaine being encased in a block of ice, Paul
Daniels’ faking his own death on air to David Copperfield’s Flying
illusion. Along the way Stephen meets some of his magic heroes - from
Paul Daniels to Penn and Teller - and recreates some of the popular
tricks that made TV history - including sawing Anita Harris, David
Nixon’s glamorous assistant, in half. Stephen hears how the likes of
Nixon and Tommy Cooper first brought magic to the masses in the early
days of television. He looks at the influence of ground-breaking
American stars like David Copperfield and finds out how magic went from
men in tuxedos pulling rabbits out of a hat, to a new generation of hip,
young street magicians, like Dynamo and David Blaine. The documentary
features interviews with stars of TV magic past and present including
Darcy Oake, Dynamo, Paul Daniels, Anita Harris, Penn and Teller,
Geoffrey Durham and Ben Hanlin, as Stephen reveals
how magic has continually reached new heights on our TV screens. See
TV Magic.
23.5.15
Britain's
Got Talent - Semi-finals week. Rehearsals for a week of live shows, set to
start on Monday 25th, were thrown into turmoil on Thursday when an unexploded
World War Two bomb was discovered by builders in a car park near the BGT studio,
Click Here. (Wednesday night is the one not to be missed).
23.5.15
Trix
in the Stix 2016. A convention for children's entertainers. From the
organisers: Please make a note of next year's dates: Monday 23rd and
Tuesday 24th May 2016. This year's event has only just taken place, but
tickets for next year's event are shortly going on sale. Here's the
line-up for 2016: one of the US's best-known magical exports, David Kaye
(aka Silly Billy) will be joining us as will the one and only Paul
Daniels who will be performing and lecturing. Speaking of 'one and only'
we also have John Kimmons with a brand-new, all-trick lecture. In
addition, there will be about a dozen dealers and 4 Power Presentations.
Tickets have sold out very rapidly for the past three Trix in the Stix
and we expect the same for 2016 with such an outstanding line-up.
Tickets will go on sale on Practical Magic's website at 11am sharp,
Thursday 28th May 2015. There are only 240 places available after which
we operate a Waiting List. The venue, once again, will be the beautiful
leisure resort of Lion Quays, near Oswestry in Shropshire (pictured).
For more information, please visit Practical Magic's website:
www.practical-magic.com.
23.5.15
The
Magicians' Podcast with Richard Young - Series II. Richard Young has been
out and about again, chatting with a broad cross-section of magicians about
their careers and aspirations, views on magic and simply finding out what makes
them tick. Series one was a great success and series two looks set to equal or
even better it! The Magicians' Podcast, 24 free episodes, starting on
Friday 29th May. See
magicianspodcast.podbean.com,
www.facebook.com/MagiciansPodcast and
iTunes.
23.5.15
Shane
Cobalt 2016 lecture tour - now booking. Tour organiser Steve Gore
writes: 'Chasing Dovetails' is the lecture from Canadian magician Shane
Cobalt. It's packed with magic you are capable of doing. The whole
lecture was designed with the audience in mind. It is all from his
working repertoire, and it is all within the reach of the average
person. There is only one or two things that will stretch your fingers a
bit. He is touring in April 2016. Here is also a quick link that someone
put up from the Genii Convention:
Click Here. Shane has received incredible feedback for his lecture
and workshop. Michael Fredrikson in Denmark says the Erdnase Workshop
was the best workshop he'd ever been to. It's not uncommon for people to
tell him it's the best (or second best) lecture they've ever seen (Juan
Tamariz often being the first!). He'd love to conduct his Chasing
Dovetails lecture, Erdnase or Advanced Card Workshop for your club.
Contact tours@stevegore.co.uk.
23.5.15
Diego
Minevitz 2016 lecture tour - now booking. Tour organiser Steve Gore
writes: With many years of experience, Diego Minevitz has developed a
lecture about the secrets of Harry Houdini's Escapes, Russian Roulette
and Fakirism, entitled 'Extreme Magic For Everybody'. Please see the
clips which show how anyone can learn these secrets in a fun,
informative and hands-on lecture. He is lecturing around England,
Scotland and Ireland in March 2016. He is also available to do any shows
too. Contact
tours@stevegore.co.uk. Lecture overview:
Click Here. Sky Escape:
Click Here. The Sword:
Click Here. In his lecture we see psychology in magic, staging and
mentalism. It is designed to work for magicians of any style. This
Lecture has been delivered in 22 countries, 50 cities and 60 magic
associations, for more than a thousand magicians. The themes of his
lecture are very different from normal, but not less interesting. It's a
very funny reunion where magicians learn, get amazed, laugh a lot and
take part in every subject developed in it.
23.5.15
Influence:
The Show. "Influence: The Show is an intimate fun evening full of
astonishment and intrigue. Based on the science and research of
compliance professionals and con men, Roberto demonstrates in an amazing
and fun-filled evening, methods, techniques and strategies used for
influence and persuasion. You will never believe your own choices again!
The show is now showing at Belair House in Dulwich Village before
heading to the West End." Remaining dates: Friday 19th June, Thursday
16th July, Thursday 20th August, Thursday 17th September. Bookings:
www.kweekweek.com.
23.5.15
John
Carey's 'Crafted with Carey' lecture - Medway Magical Society. Rob
Glendinning writes: Sleight of hand expert John Carey will be lecturing
some of his finest creations with a deck of cards on Tuesday, 2nd June,
at 8pm. Internationally renowned for his streamlined approach to
close-up, workable magic, John promises a lecture loaded with powerful,
practical and doable material. Having lectured throughout Europe over
the past 12 months, we are delighted to welcome John to Kent and the
Medway Magical Society. Non members welcome - £10 entry on the night.
Venue: Medway Magical Society, St George Hotel, New Road Avenue,
Chatham, Kent ME4 6BB (Map).
www.medwaymagicalsociety.org.uk.
23.5.15
MindFX
is celebrating its first year of business by launching a fresh new
website. Included on the site is Michael Murray’s latest release
'Calculated Risk'. Calculated Risk allows you to very easily unlock two
borrowed mobiles. For details visit
www.mindfx.co.uk
and enjoy a 10% discount on any purchase by using discount code
HAPPYBIRTHDAY (valid until Saturday 30th May).
23.5.15
Ken
Dyne’s ‘Practical Mentalism Tour’ Lecture - Newcastle Magic Circle,
Tuesday May 26th. "One of the UK’s busiest working mentalists, Ken
Dyne, aka Kennedy, lectures on material from his highly acclaimed book
Bairn, together with previously unreleased material, at Newcastle Magic
Circle this Tuesday. The lecture features many of Ken’s pet routines
suitable for close-up, stand-up, formal and casual performances, with a
focus on practical, entertaining mentalism." For more information
contact
Newcastle Magic Circle. To find out more about Ken’s upcoming
lectures see
www.mentalunderground.com/lectures. "He sees outside the box from
the inside, then proceeds to reach on to those elusive dreams to make
them a reality whereby his creations become the new box others look out
from." Banachek. (That's quite some quote! DT)
23.5.15
FISM
competitors 2015. The official list of FISM stage and close-up
competitors has just been released,
Click
Here.
23.5.15
Ipswich
Magical Society presents Beyond Belief. From the organisers: The
Ipswich Magical Society is putting on a one night magic spectacular in
Stowmarket on June 28th. Tickets are just £10. The evening will feature a
number of members performing close-up magic before the show and during
the interval and the show itself has a stellar line up, including: Magic
Olly, Gemma Raymond, Wayne Goodman and many more. Tickets are £10 each
from
www.regalstowmarket.co.uk.
23.5.15
Magicseen's
Bank Holiday Bonanza: "Every now and again someone goes a bit nuts
in the Magicseen office and puts together a great offer, and it's
happened again this Bank Holiday weekend. Take out a new 1 year printed
copy or download copy sub, or extend your current sub by 1 year, and you
can elect to receive free downloads of any three of our back issues
(issues 1-61). Or......take out a 2 year printed copy or download sub
(or extend your current one by 2 years), and you can elect to receive
free up to six download back issues. To claim your free download copies
you simply need to type into the Additional Comments box at the foot of
the online Checkout page which back issues you would like to receive. We
will then send you the links to download your selections. This is
already a good deal as it offers you either £12 or £24 worth of free
downloads, but there's more! Every person who takes part in the above
promotion will also be entered into a draw and two lucky winners will
each receive free copies of both the Masterclass Volume 1 and
Masterclass Volume 2 E-Books, which provide you with all 117 effects
that appeared in the first 8 volumes of Magicseen! To ensure that you
can take advantage of the free downloads and get entered into the draw,
you need to place your subscription order no later than midnight on
Monday 25th May 2015. So do it now by going to
www.magicseen.co.uk
and clicking on the 'subscribe' tab.
23.5.15
Bluelight
Comedy & Magic, Northampton: "On Friday the 5th of June Bluelight
Comedy features two fantastic acts. Comedian Alfie Moore and comedy
magician John Lenahan. Bluelight Comedy is Ashley Turner's bi-monthly
evening of cutting-edge Stand-up Comedy and World Class Magic held at
The Sun Inn, 9 High Street, Hardingstone, Northampton NN4 7BT (Map).
This event sells out every month, and tickets are £10. For more
information visit
www.facebook.com/Bluelightcomedy or contact Ashley for ticket
reservations via
www.thetrixta.com.
23.5.15
The
55th Bristol Day of Magic is reviewed by Elizabeth Warlock this
week,
Click Here.
23.5.15
The
Card Collection Whitsun Sale - Now On! "It's the Whitsun Bank
Holiday so it's time for a short sale at The Card Collection! The sale
runs from now until 10am on Tuesday 26th May. Up to 20% of all products
in our massive range. Don't miss out, visit
www.cards4magic.co.uk and save some money!"
23.5.15
It's
official: Swindon
is the new Las Vegas. "...we emailed, this has been going on
for weeks" You've got to love Young & Strange. Watch their
latest exploits,
Click Here.
23.5.15
The
Home Counties Magical Society is pleased to announce the election of
their new president, Steve Graham, pictured here receiving the
president’s chain from the former president, Robert Bone (left). The
Home Counties Magical Society regularly meets in Lower Earley, near
Reading, Berkshire, usually on the third Thursday of each month. It was
established in 1947 and remains one of the most enthusiastic and well
respected magic societies in Great Britain. New members are always
welcome and can find information on joining the society at
www.hcms.org.uk.
23.5.15
Deanna
(Steve Gore's daughter) will appear in the S.A.M.'s Stars of Tomorrow
show at their convention in Philadelphia in July. Steve says that
Deanna, who turned 10 this week, is one of seven acts chosen from around
the world and will be performing her Frozen act which has received
fantastic comments from Jeff McBride and Shawn Farquhar.
23.5.15
International
news: Daryl Easton, The Magician's Magician, Special Guest at Sorcerers
Safari Magic Camp this Summer. From the organisers: With a record
number of best selling DVDs & books, having traveled the world several
times over, winning the card category at FISM, and probably sitting on a
ton of great unpublished ideas – Daryl has lots to offer the campers.
He's famous for his decades of innovative thinking behind sleight of
hand, which has garnered him international acclaim. Now imagine what it
would be like to spend a camp session with this guy?! Are you aged 8-20
or know someone who is and would benefit from a week at Sorcerers
Safari? Learn more about attending Sorcerers Safari Magic Camp with
Daryl this year - visit:
www.sorcererssafari.ca.
23.5.15
Popular
magician and children’s entertainer Jack Stephens has sadly died at the
age of 62 after a short illness. Jack was born in South Africa but
lived in Wiltshire for the past 25 years. He was a well-respected
magician and a member of The Magic Circle and The International
Brotherhood of Magicians. Jack entertained at numerous parties, schools,
playgroups, libraries and hospitals, and also performed close-up magic
at weddings and formal functions. Jack also featured in television
programmes. He entertained a number of high profile individuals - a
highlight of his career was entertaining the Queen at a private lunch
party. Jack brought happiness and laughter to many, especially thousands
of children in hospitals in Bath, Bristol and Swindon. He will be
greatly missed, especially by his wife Rosemary and daughters Caroline
and Susie. His funeral will be held at Semington Crematorium, Devizes
Road, Trowbridge, Wiltshire at 1.45pm on Thursday 4th June where all are
welcome. Providing entertainment was so important to Jack, and Rosemary
will be continuing to run the business and provide entertainers as Jack
had done.
"Jack Stephens: 8th December, 1952 - 14th May, 2015" Remembered by Ian Keable, Click Here.
"Tributes paid to Wiltshire magician Jack Stephens" Click Here.
"Popular Wiltshire magician dies, 62" Click Here. 23.5.15
"Dynamo wants to tip the scales: Now fat's magic"
Click Here • "Cheltenham magician John Elliott gets four yeses from
Britain's Got Talent judges"
Click Here • "Cheltenham magician John Elliott talks Britain's Got Talent"
Click Here • "Newcastle magician Chris Cross tells of dream team-up with
legend Paul Daniels"
Click Here • "'Troy Street Magic': New TV Show Starring British Magician
Troy ‘Von Majik’ Scheibner Airs Tonight On SYFY"
Click Here • "‘Band Of Magicians’ tours NZ"
Click Here • "'The Magicians' Trailer Released; Plot Details Of New Syfy
Series Revealed!"
Click Here • "'Godfather of Magic' Paul Daniels heads to Gladstone Theatre"
Click Here • "Video: Teenage magician becomes overnight hit thanks to these
tricks"
Click Here • "Linking Rings review"
Click Here • "The Illusionists bring shocking tricks to the Straz stage"
Click Here • "British Illusionist DMC Takes Sofia Beyond Magic"
Click Here • "TV series gifts Houdini bust to Appleton"
Click Here • "Penn Jillette: How we freaked out Letterman"
Click Here • "Royal magician has tricks up his sleeve for
Huddersfield audience"
Click Here • And finally... "The internet is obsessing
over this real-life optical illusion that looks like an M.C. Escher drawing —
here's how it works"
Click Here • Your UK magic news is always welcome - see you next week, Duncan.
23.5.15