Number
1330 - Saturday 20th December 2025
Stranger
Things: The First Shadow. Hawkins, 1959: a regular town with regular
worries. Young Jim Hopper’s car won’t start, Bob Newby’s sister won’t take his
radio show seriously and Joyce Maldonado just wants to graduate and get the hell
out of town. When new student Henry Creel arrives, his family finds that a fresh
start isn’t so easy... and the shadows of the past have a very long reach.
Brought to life by a multi-award-winning creative team, who take theatrical
storytelling and stagecraft to a whole new dimension, this gripping new
adventure will take you right back to the beginning of the Stranger Things
story – and may hold the key to the end. The show's magic and illusions, which
include on-stage levitation and physical transformations, were designed by Jamie
Harrison, an acclaimed illusionist also known for his work on Harry Potter and
the Cursed Child and Chris Fisher, a specialist in theatrical illusions who
collaborated with Harrison to develop the play's unique visual language.
Stranger Things: The First Shadow, to Sunday 31st May 2026 at the Phoenix Theatre, London. Book here: www.thephoenixtheatre.co.uk. 20.12.25
Andy Nyman: What's the Trick? Ben Hanlin recently launched a podcast called "What's the Trick?" (not aimed at magicians) in which he interviews some of the world's most creative people, to delve in to their creative process. Great fun and full of insights for magicians too, last week's guest was the inimitable Andy Nyman, talking about creativity and how he and Derren write the live shows. Click Here! 20.12.25
Banachek
Live at My Mind Rocks – 23rd December. My Mind Rocks will be ending the year
in style with a very special live session from Banachek, widely regarded as the
world’s number one thought reader. Banachek joins the MMR community live on
December 23rd at 8pm UK time for an exclusive end-of-year event. This rare
appearance brings one of the greatest mentalists of all time directly to MMR
members for an evening of insight, discussion, and inspiration.
New members can join now to take part in the live session and gain instant
access to 360+ pieces of exclusive content, including lectures, workshops, live
jams, and an active online community. For full details and membership
information, visit
www.mymind.rocks.
20.12.25
The
Intuitive Magician: Mastering Magic Through Improvisation by Justin Higham.
With over 40 years' experience in magic and as one of only a handful of
professional magic teachers worldwide, Justin Higham is in a unique position to
write about the challenges magicians face in learning and performing magic. This
book offers valuable insights into why magicians find it hard to perform
impromptu: why they forget their tricks and why things so often do not pan out
as expected.
"I have learned the trick, the method, the patter, the misdirection, so why is it not working for me?" Drawing from over 3,500 individual magic lessons given by Higham over the past 12 years, this guide will help the intermediate student reach their goal of becoming an authentic, spontaneous and confident magician. The real secret as revealed here is to master magic through improvisation. The Intuitive Magician: Mastering Magic Through Improvisation will be released on February 24th, 2026 and can now be pre-ordered from www.amazon.co.uk [who doesn't like treating themselves to a back-up Christmas present! DT]. 20.12.25
Sleeping
Beauty will make all your dreams come true at The London Palladium this
Christmas, celebrating ten years since panto spectacularly returned to
London’s home of variety.
Starring Catherine Tate, Palladium pantomime royalty Julian Clary and
impressionist Jon Culshaw, Sleeping Beauty also sees the return of Palladium
panto favourites Paul Zerdin, Nigel Havers and Rob Madge along with West End
stars Emily Lane and Amonik Melaco. Book Here:
www.palladiumpantomime.com. [Paul Zerdin, photo by Paul Coltas]
20.12.25
The
Magic of Christmas. Join Tony Middleton ‘Sonic’, Resident Magician at the
Sheraton Grand Park Lane, London, for an enchanting drawing room magic show
inspired by Christmas. Experience conjuring with a festive twist: sleight of
hand, mind-reading and other impossibilities – closer than ever before. Sit back
and relax in the cosy, atmospheric Oak Room for a truly merry and memorable
experience.
Tickets include: a choice of Smith & Whistle Lager, Boatman's drift Chenin
Blanc, Tunante Tempranillo, a soft drink, and a choice of Popcorn chicken, fresh
chilli, spring onion & sweet chilli sauce, fried halloumi with green chilli
mayo. The Oak Room, Sheraton Grand Park Lane, London. 5 dates only: 21st, 22nd,
28th, 29th & 30th December. "One of London’s finest magicians" The
Telegraph. "Spellbinding sleight of hand" Evening Standard. Book now:
www.magichourshow.com.
20.12.25
The
Magician's Table Christmas and New Year Deal. We’re giving you 20% off all
remaining December dates and every show in January. So whether you’re still
hunting for a perfect Christmas gift or want something special to look forward
to in the New Year, this is your moment. Just enter the discount code TMTGIFT20
in the calendar and the 20% will come straight off your reserved tickets. Then
pick your date and you’re all set.
www.magicianstablelive.com.
20.12.25
Christmas
& New Year Message from Merlins. As the year draws to a close, Phil and Mark
from Merlins would like to take this opportunity to wish all our customers,
friends, and supporters a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We would
like to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has supported Merlins
throughout 2025. Whether you’ve visited us regularly, popped in occasionally,
recommended us to friends, or supported us behind the scenes, your loyalty and
trust truly mean a great deal to us. We wouldn’t be here without you.
As we look ahead to 2026, we’re excited about what the new year will bring and
we look forward to welcoming both our long-standing customers and those new to
Merlins in the months ahead. We hope to continue providing the service, quality,
and friendly experience you’ve come to expect from us. Please be aware that we
will be operating limited opening hours over the Christmas and New Year period.
Full details can be found here:
opening hours. From all of us at Merlins, we wish you a safe, relaxing, and
enjoyable festive season, and we look forward to seeing you again soon in the
New Year.
20.12.25
Italy's
Kay La Ferrera - update! From a few weeks ago in MagicWeek: "Ten year old Italian magician, Kay
La Ferrera, made his television
debut on the hit Italian TV Show ‘Que Si Tu Valles’ just a few weeks ago. With
sheer natural talent, stage presence and charm, in an act created for him by
Magic Director Russ Stevens, Kay stormed through to the final, with 100% of the
public audience vote. The final airs live on the Italian TV channel Canal 5 on
Saturday, December 6th. Watch this performance here:
www.wittytv.it. Outstanding! DT." And now an update... he won! Once again
directed by Russ Stevens, here he is in the Final, which went out on Saturday,
December 6th. Kay appears 45 minutes 30 seconds in:
www.wittytv.it.
8.11.25
Mark
Elsdon's Desert Island Tricks.
"Join us with today’s guest, creator and curator Mark Elsdon, who champions
routines that pair ruthless clarity with stories that belong to the audience. We
start where confidence meets courage: Timon Krause’s ‘Which Hand’, a method
strong enough to fool Penn & Teller without ‘outs’. From there, we follow Mark’s
guiding idea, call them "trips", not "tricks", because the goal is to shift
someone’s state, not just their attention..."
YouTube. Brought to you by
www.alakazam.co.uk.
20.12.25
The MagicWeek Video Archive.
A new magic clip or show every week! This week,
Professor Al Carthy (Jean-Claude and Carla Haslé) on The Paul Daniels Magic Christmas Show on 26th
December 1983.
I remember seeing it on television before this appearance from 1983 (sometime in
the 70s) when I was still at school and it really got me - there was no rewind
button then! Great act. See
The MagicWeek Video Archive. To see more from The MagicWeek Video
Archive
Click Here.
20.12.25
Merry
Christmas from Mark Leveridge Magic: Mark Leveridge hopes all customers and
magic colleagues will have a very Happy Christmas and New Year. To help pass the
festive period in a magical way, Mark recommends listening to his latest podcast
which contains the following. The difficulties presented by illness when you
are a performer : the Leveridge Legacy Collection : the value of misdirection :
the evolution of magic lecturing : Now You See Me 3 returns to using ‘real’
magic : is performance video necessary on your website? : booker expectations
can affect how successful your show quotes are : E-Club Pro Select new additions
: when having tricks that need a re-set is OK at commercial close up gig.
There are two ways to listen to this free 45 minute podcast. You can catch it
either from
www.markleveridge.co.uk/podcast-archive, or from
www.markleveridge.podbean.com where you can also sign up to be a follower
and receive each new release automatically.
20.12.25
James
Merlin's 'Dissecting Methods - a lecture on using mathematics in magic', now
booking. In this lecture we will be looking at various effects (new and old)
to see how the mathematics that is used in magic really works - and at the cases
where it doesn't! But be calm. Don't be scared. If you remember how numbers were
counted in forms of hundreds-tens-units, you're good to go!
You will come away with a greater appreciation of the mechanics behind these
effects, so that you can easily adapt and expand the tricks in new and
interesting ways that would be impossible otherwise. You will also see how to
prove that the trick will work in every case through simple reasoning, without
having to test every single possibility.
Nine effects including rapid calculations, predictions, forces, the ubiquitous
Gilbreath, the quirkiness of the number 142,857, and a memory effect that
requires no memory work. Each split into effect, method, and the mathematical
workings. Also discussions on how to cast out suspicion, when you cast out 9s,
the theory of “Magic smells”, and the concept of “pairing effects”
The lecture includes some of the material in his book, "Mathematics
in Magic". Email:
hello@jamesmerlin.com for more information and to book. Also see
www.jamesmerlin.com/lectures.
20.12.25
Onwards
to Victory Podcast. Chris Dugdale: What He Learned Performing for the World’s
Elite. From the producer: Chris Dugdale has lived a life most people
wouldn’t believe. From being handed a wad of cash by the billionaire who
invented Skype at James Bond’s birthday party to performing for Beyoncé, Jay-Z,
Richard Branson, the Queen, and King Charles, while he drunkenly said “just get
on with the bloody trick,” while spilling custard all over himself. He shares
many amazing stories, some he probably shouldn’t, including the one he was never
meant to talk about because no one ever handed him that NDA...
Onwards To Victory is the show where the world’s most fascinating performers lift the velvet curtain and reveal what really happens behind the spotlight. Hosted by Magnus Danger Magnus, a multi award winning international showman with more than 25 years performing at the biggest theatres and arts festivals across the globe, this is your backstage pass into the minds of the most creative, chaotic and passion driven humans on the planet. Click Here. 20.12.25
Michael
Bregger on Craig Petty's Magic TV: 'Talk Magic'. Every week Craig Petty sits down and chats
with a well known magician; a creator, a performer, or someone who has had a
positive impact on the Magic Community. This week ""Michael Bregger -
Magic. Miracles. Mayhem."
YouTube.
20.12.25
Magic
Live! Las Vegas: August 2nd-5th, 2026. General Registration opens on January
27th at 10am Pacific Time. It is $520 per person. Each registration includes
tickets to all performances and access to all sessions, workshops, special
events, parties, and our 17,000 square foot dealer room, as well as all giveaway
items.
You can either pay the registration fee in full when signing up, or you can make
a 50% deposit, with the balance due March 25th. Please don’t delay. The last
nine Lives were sold out months in advance. By registering early, you guarantee
yourself a spot. Also, show schedules are selected at the time of purchase, so
the earlier you register, the more options you have!
www.magicconvention.com.
20.12.25
Masters of the Impossible. Psychologist and magician Professor Richard Wiseman explores the strange world of mentalism or mind magic, and meets entertainers who produce the seemingly impossible on demand. With the help of recently unearthed archive recordings, Richard explores its surreal history, its popularity and the life and legacy of David Berglas, the pioneer of mass media magic many regard as Master of the Impossible. Midday on Wednesday 31st December on BBC Radio 4. See TV Magic for details. 20.12.25
"Illusionist
Antonio Díaz Chats About Global Tour, Andrew Lloyd Webber Collaboration,
More"
Click Here • "Premier League: Magician wows Matthijs de Ligt and
Joshua Zirkzee"
Click Here • "MyLahore in Bradford praised by magician Steven
Frayne"
Click Here • "Prudhoe magician Paul Innes wins at Wedding Industry
Awards"
Click Here • "Review: The Magician’s Table. Dieter’s Warehouse"
Click Here • "Oz Pearlman stuns live audience"
YouTube • Many thanks as always for your magic news, see you next
week.
20.12.25
Merry
Christmas and Happy New Year to all our readers worldwide! From the MagicWeek team, Merry Christmas
and very best wishes for 2026, Duncan & Keiko.
20.12.25