Number
1057 - 26th September 2020
Congratulations
to Magical
Bones - the first magician to make it through to the BGT
Finals from the judges votes! Here's the performance that took him there:
YouTube and here's the deliberation:
YouTube. "Magical Bones leaves Britain's Got Talent judges awestruck with
incredible illusion"
www.tellymix.co.uk. "Britain’s Got Talent viewers 'chuffed' as Magical Bones goes through to
final"
www.metro.co.uk "Britain's Got Talent judges floored by the
incredibly moving routine from magician Magical Bones"
www.walesonline.co.uk.
26.9.20
Piff
Live From Las Vegas - 7pm BST, Saturday 26th September... Broadcast
live from the Piff the Magic Dragon Television Studios (formerly known
as Piff's garage), and delivered by Zoom, it's best to watch this on a
big screen via Apple TV or similar, as it contains all the grumpy
dragon, showgirl magic and chihuahua charm of the Las Vegas show. Full
details and more shows here:
www.piffthemagicdragon.com. [Enjoy Piff on your big screen TV,
together with favourites from BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Prime Video,
YouTube, ITV Hub, All 4, Disney+, Apple TV and more with a Fire TV Stick
from
Amazon.co.uk].
26.9.20
And
still they come! There are two more magic acts BGT this evening. Ant and Dec host
and Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon, David Walliams and Ashley Banjo
are on the judging desk. 8pm this evening on ITV. See
TV Magic for details.
26.9.20
The
magic of...podcast with Paul Roffman. Creative discussions with
creative people. From actors and writers to magicians, keynote speakers
and behavioural experts. "Listen to an in-depth discussion moving where
the conversation takes us. Not your average conversation." On Apple
podcasts:
www.podcasts.apple.com and Spotify
www.spotify.com and watch clips on
YouTube.
Last week: Katherine Mills, this Sunday is Ali Cook.
26.9.20
The
MagicWeek Video Archive. A new magic clip or show every week! This week
French Silent Magician Dominique Plessis on 'The Good Old Days' from
15th October 1983 with his Zombie Ball act. Unfortunately I was slow to
hit the 'record' button with this one - so missed the first minute or
two. Dominique was placed third in 'General Magic' at FISM Lausanne in
1982. See
The MagicWeek Video Archive. To catch up with more from The MagicWeek Video
Archive
Click Here.
26.9.20
Harry Lorayne - The Magic Book: The Complete Beginners Guide to Anytime, Anywhere, Sleight of Hand Magic. From the publishers: The Magic Book reveals the secrets of magicians―the simple techniques that will enable anyone to perform seemingly complicated magic tricks with relative ease. Clearly written and heavily illustrated―there are over 200 illustrations in all―this book guides you through the basic principles of magic using only common household items: a deck of cards, coins, rubber bands, and even a potato. The author then provides simple step-by-step instructions for hundreds of amazing tricks which he has perfected after forty years of painful trial and error. To help new magicians develop their techniques, Harry Lorayne provides a special “afterthought” section at the end of each magic trick where he discusses possible problems that most beginners have with the trick he has just explained. In addition to the practical instruction, Lorayne provides the philosophy of magic as it has never been taught before. For more info and to order visit www.amazon.co.uk. 26.9.20
During
the week I added more clips to The MagicWeek Video Archive starting
with this brilliant commercial from 2001 that in just 40 seconds
combines lust, disgust, magic, mime and comedy with perfect timing,
great use of sound and music. Carling Black Label's 'Blinding' TV and
cinema campaign from 2001. Featuring 'I Only Have Eyes for You' sung by
Art Garfunkel!
YouTube.
26.9.20
Also
new to the Archive, some cunning Extra Sensory Deception from Paul
Daniels from 24th January 1987:
YouTube.
26.9.20
And
finally, more Tommy Cooper!
YouTube.
26.9.20
National
Escapology Day. UKEAG write: Monday the 21st of September was
National Escapology Day. Whilst the Covid 19 restrictions prevented any
public performance or meeting, the United Kingdom Escape Artists Group
chose to mark the occasion with a number of online posts and reflections
on the history and creativity of the art, especially within the United
Kingdom. A spokesman for the Club said "2020 has been bitter sweet for
all artists, performers, and, those working in the aligned industry. Our
members have had to postpone performances, World Record attempts and
lectures as well as dealing with the tragic realities of the pandemic.
No one would blame someone for walking away or giving up, but, that is
not what we have seen. Our members have recognised the legacy and
history of the art we chose to work within. It is easy to dismiss
Escapology as just being a 'Houdini' thing but it is far greater than
that. From St Nicholas Owen, the Patron Saint of Escapologists and
Magicians, to the fantastical escapes performed by the likes of Val
Walker, David DeVal, Nick Janson and Alan Alan, through to the
engineering genius of Mick Hanzlik and Jim Collins, the United Kingdom
has produced an enviable list of World Class performers and designers
that have helped maintain the art and allowed the audience to be
enthralled. The 21st of September was an opportunity to remember that."
26.9.20
Jackpot
Cards 2.0 by Mark Lee. A Merlins Exclusive: Now back on the market
with all-new custom artwork on superior card stock. The magician tells a
story about his visits to casinos around the world and his experiences
playing the bandits. He explains his streak of bad luck and how he
searched through his pockets for a coin to feed the machine. This action
is illustrated with full colour cards with pockets printed on them. As
the magician counts through the four cards a £ appears among the
pockets, this card is shown both sides and placed onto the table. Miming
the action of dropping the coin in the bandit and pulling the arm the
magician is unlucky. He runs through his pockets again and $ appears, he
tries again but, still no luck. He now produces a euro from the pockets
and this time his luck is in. He snaps the card in his hand and reveals
the word boldly printed right across the card! The three cards resting
on the table are turned up to now reveal Lucky Sevens making a winning
line! Easy to do, custom printed cards, instant reset and very strong
reactions from the spectators!
www.merlinswakefield.co.uk.
26.9.20
The
Professional Worker Series Volume 4 marketing Yourself ebook. Mark
Leveridge Magic: The Professional Worker Series is a selection of
targeted and focused E-Books which offer professional, sound advice on a
number of key magical areas. The E-Books are written in an easy to
understand style which cuts out all the waffle and padding, and instead
gets right to the core of each subject.
Volume 4 in this series concentrates on the many different ways now
available to magicians to promote themselves in order to get paid
bookings. If you don’t know your SEO from your ROI, or if you’re not
sure whether online or offline marketing is best, this 35 page book will
provide you with many of the answers: A Marketing Overview; Identifying
Your Customer Avatar; Offline Advertising Opportunities; 4 Online
Advertising Opportunities; Other Marketing Ideas; Taking Your
Advertising Seriously; The Final Hurdle. Knowledge is power, and the
informative, easy-to-understand format of this advice book will give you
the knowledge that you can use to your best advantage. All you need to
know about everything that matters in magical performance and promotion:
www.markleveridge.co.uk.
26.9.20
Life’s a Beach by Gary Jones Volume Two - Magicseen. From the
publishers: Magicseen is delighted to present a second volume featuring
the magic of top UK professional close up magician Gary Jones. Gary is
one of those performers who is equally at home presenting magic to lay
people or to a room full of magicians, and his creative output reflects
those two requirements. Some of the magic in this collection is designed
to intrigue and fool magicians, while other effects are fast, direct and
perfect for working under almost any commercial conditions.
What all the magic has in common is that the methods have been constructed to extract the maximum effect for the minimum of fuss. Some of Gary’s handlings do require some sleight of hand – he is very fond of palming cards, for instance – but equally, there are other ideas which are basically self working! So there’s something for everyone here. The vast majority of the 40 effects included here are with cards, but within that Gary has provided a huge variety of plot and magic that always has a big surprise finish. Some of the effects will go straight into your working repertoire because they are just too good to miss! If you love close-up magic that has attack and impact, you are going to love Life’s a Beach Volume 2. For more info and to order visit www.magicseen.com. 26.9.20
The Curious Life and Death of Harry Houdini. "The magician and escape artist's sudden death at the peak of health has long remained mysterious. This programme contemplates whether it was an accident or something much darker." Tuesday 6th October on Smithsonian. See TV Magic for details. 26.9.20
Knowing Me, Knowing You - With Alan Partridge. Minnie Driver appears on the spoof chat show as Playboy magazine's agony aunt, who has a book to promote and a surprising revelation to make. Alan's other guests include a magician and hypnotist and two of Hollywood's biggest stars. Tuesday 6th October on Gold. See TV Magic for details. 26.9.20
"From
zero to TikTok hero in a year: Harold Hill teenager [magician] heads up
Europe’s biggest TikTok house"
Click Here • "Teen magician will have Burnley and Ribble Valley
viewers rooting for him as he makes bid for place in grand final of top
TV talent show"
Click Here • "Watch as Edinburgh magician stuns Britain's Got Talent
judges with nail-biting fire display"
Click Here • "Magician crippled by Covid crisis says second lockdown
would be 'curtains'"
Click Here • "Magic & Mind-Reading at Le Meridien Piccadilly Review"
Click Here • "The Top Winners of 2020: Magician Edition"
Click Here • "Magicians in 2020 Struggle to Interact with Crowds as
Virtual Shows don’t do the Trick"
Click Here • Your UK magic news is always welcome, see you next
week, Duncan.
26.9.20