Desert Island Tricks
Each week we invite one of the biggest guests in the world of magic to maroon themselves on a desert island. They are allowed to take with them 8 tricks, 1 book, 1 banishment and 1 non magic item that they use for magic! We discuss their 'can't live without' lists and why those items were chosen.
Episodes are uploaded every Friday and are available via all Podcast service providers!
To find out more about the team behind Desert Island Tricks, please visit: www.alakazam.co.uk
Desert Island Tricks
Wayne McEwan
Step into the magical world of Wayne McEwan, New Zealand's premier children's entertainer and versatile performer who has earned both the Lifetime Achievement Award from Magic New Zealand and Children's Entertainer of the Year honours from the Variety Artist Club of New Zealand.
Wayne takes us on a captivating journey through his desert island magic selections, beginning with "Howzatt" by Michael J. Fitch, a cricket-themed paddle trick that culminates in the production of a mini cricket ball. This culturally relevant choice perfectly illustrates Wayne's thoughtful approach to connecting with his New Zealand audiences through their passion for sports.
His customised Copper-Silver-Brass coin routine reveals the depth of his performance philosophy. Rather than using standard coins, Wayne employs an authentic Chinese coin, an old New Zealand penny, and a contemporary 50-cent piece to weave a fascinating narrative about New Zealand's gold mining history, demonstrating how magic can become more meaningful when anchored in local heritage.
The conversation takes a thrilling turn when Wayne describes his children's show favourite, "Snakeless" by Mike Bent, a multilayered routine featuring creepy crawlies, an animated spider that climbs up his trousers, and a spring snake finale that creates absolute "pandemonium" among young audiences. His detailed explanation showcases the brilliant psychology behind effective children's entertainment.
What makes this episode particularly valuable is Wayne's insights into performing across different venues, from restaurants to large festivals, from intimate birthday parties to corporate events. Each selection in his list serves a specific purpose in his professional repertoire, from the beautifully crafted Babu Wallet for close-up performances to "Slice of Magic" that gets him significant media coverage when he cuts a child in half during family shows.
Wayne's passion for quality magic is evident in his reverence for Tommy Wonder's Nest of Boxes and his recommendation of "The Secret Ways of Al Baker" as his desert island book. His selection of his two performing parrots as his non-magic item offers a glimpse into the personal connection he has with his animal performers.
Wayne’s Desert Island Tricks:
- Howzatt
- Copper, Silver, Brass
- Snakeless
- Slashed
- Babu Wallet
- Bill in Lemon
- Slice of Magic
- Nest of Boxes
Banishment. Zombie Ball
Book. The Secret Ways of Al Baker
Item. Parrots
Find out more about the creators of this Podcast at www.alakazam.co.uk
Now, if you're fortunate enough, or next time you've got a few spare dollars, I think you can still get it as a download. The old L&L DVDs of Tommy Wonder. There's nothing better than the Tommy Wonder DVD set from L&L. And of course, another great magic friend of our magic community, the wonderful Max Maven, was on the DVD set with him doing the interview and of course Max just lost his mind when Tommy started explaining this version. And Max turns to Tommy and says you're mad, you're absolutely mad.
Speaker 2:Hello and welcome to another episode of Desert Island Tricks. We're on a very interesting island this week because we have the wonderful Wayne McEwan. Now, if you haven't heard of Wayne, he is a phenomenal children's entertainer primarily, but he does a bit of everything. So he does fairs, parties, restaurants, all of that good stuff. And he's got a couple of awards to his name as well. He's got the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Magic of New Zealand and also the Children's Entertainer of the Year by the Variety Artist Club of New Zealand. So I think this is going to be a really interesting list. I always think, when we do these podcasts, what is magic like in different countries. So I think it's going to be really interesting to see if the tricks that ewan chooses are typical or untypical. So we're going to find out. I'm really excited for this. So, ladies and gentlemen, this is the wonderful wayne mckeown. Hello, wayne. Good morning jerry. How are you? I'm very well. What time time is it in New Zealand at the moment?
Speaker 1:It's 20 past nine on a Thursday evening.
Speaker 2:Okay, so it is at the time of recording it's 20 past 10 in the morning of a Thursday morning, so thank you for taking your time to come and do this. So you are our first New Zealand guest. So what do you think when it comes to the list that you've chosen? Do you think it's going to be typical of what people are expecting, or non-typical?
Speaker 1:Well, I think you've said it best, Jamie. I'm a bit of a jack of all trades and when I come up with my list it certainly wasn't what I was expecting in the beginning. But hopefully I've got a few pieces of gold for people and I'll shed a little bit of light on perhaps a few things they haven't heard of and perhaps they haven't thought about using, so that could be interesting for folks.
Speaker 2:How did you go about putting your list together, is it just? These are the things that you do in your shows. These are the things that you've just admired for years. Well like everybody.
Speaker 1:I've got that wife at home that tells me I'm taking up far too much space and I've got far too many props, etc. So my list started a lot larger than eight. So I had to negotiate with myself to get down to eight and we'll see how we go.
Speaker 2:Well, I'm really looking forward to it Now. We did say at the head of the podcast that you are primarily a children's performer, but you just said that you are an all-round performer as well. So, without giving anything away, just so that we can almost play, uh way, mcewen bingo. Are we anticipating more children's effects? Is this more close-up things, more parlor?
Speaker 1:it's a really good mix, jamie. Jamie, yeah, like I said, we do the summer, the big shows and festivals over our summer season. I do my restaurant stuff all year round and then I have time for children's birthdays and a few different bits and library shows in the winter months.
Speaker 2:So it's a really good mix, okay, so I think that's going to be a really interesting list. So if this is your first time joining us, the idea is that we're about to maroon wayne on his very own island. When he's there, he's allowed to take eight tricks banish one item, take one book and one non-magic item that he uses for magic particulars like who's there, what's there, other animals there? All that good stuff we do not. It's essentially the list of things that he could not live without. So we're going to head over to New Zealand now, on Wayne's Magical Island and find out what he put in position number one.
Speaker 1:Number one, jamie, goes to How's that? By the wonderful Michael J Fitch. Now, for those who don't know what How's that is, it's a version of the turbo stick by richard sanders, but it's got a cricket theme. So it's the normal turbo stick routine with the crosses or whatever you like to draw on your, on your, on your bat, because it's in the shape of a cricket bat. But as the final kicker you produce a mini cricket ball, which I think is fantastic for walk around. And that brought me back to years ago, jamie.
Speaker 1:I had a fantastic trick called Top Drop by the wonderful Ton Onosaka, and it was a packet card trick that used spelling as a theme and in the end you spell the word top and you produce a spinning top out of the cards. And when the top landed in the spectator's lap, boy oh boy, did that get a response. So I've found that how's that is just as good and with a cricket theme it works really well in New Zealand, because we're certainly a sports-mad country over here. It's fantastic, it's a good routine. It hasn't just got the one magic moment, so magic's happening all the way through like any good paddle trick, but with that extra kicker that really gets a great response. You can perform it as a cricket score, as you're scoring runs on the bat, or you can do crosses. You can do whatever you like on the bat with any paddle routine, and you can theme it a little bit to how you like. As long as New Zealand beats England, it's always a good win at trucking, isn't it?
Speaker 2:We don't get into politics even sport politics on this podcast. Yeah, that's great. What a great trick. Paddle tricks are always a winner anyway, and what I really like about that is the idea of creating a scoreboard on the paddle to give it some legitimacy. That's great. Yeah, that's great. So we're going straight in with quite a visual trick at the moment. So let's see where you go with your second one. What did you put in your second position?
Speaker 1:I've gone for a very traditional trick with my second one, a copper, silver, brass coin routine, but hopefully I've got a new zealand twist on it. Now for those who don't know copper, silver, brass, you've got three coins, obviously the three different colored coins that's how it gets the name copper, silver and. And those three coins change places, change hands, disappear, reappear. But mine's slightly different. So I contacted, when he was around, mr Todd Lassen used to make beautiful coins in America and I said to Todd look, I'm looking for something different.
Speaker 1:So my idea I'm very close to Queenstown in New Zealand and of course Queenstown's got the famous Shotover River which was very, very rich in gold back in the 1860s when all the Chinese came over for the gold mining. So I've got a gold mining theme around mine because he found me a really old Chinese coin that looks like it got stolen out of a museum. And of course I've got an old New Zealand penny for my copper coin and a New Zealand 50 cent piece for my silver coin. So I've got three coins and I've got a fantastic story about the Chinese would use their Chinese coin as their currency when they were over in New Zealand gold mining because we didn't have our own currency back then, and the story goes really well with the theming around where I live, and I've found that it really resonates with people when you can develop a story with physical props that they can touch, and I found your reaction a lot better too.
Speaker 1:So what I've also done, because in the routine, out of that routine, you have to put a coin in your pocket and it jumps back to your hand, but what I come up with is an old coin purse and I was brave enough to have it sitting on the table and you don't have to fish into your pocket. And other magicians have said to me gee, you're brave doing that, leaving that purse out for people to grab. But when coins are disappearing and reappearing if they're reappearing, people stop looking. So it's surprising what you can get away with if you're brave enough.
Speaker 2:Copper, silver, brass is a classic anyway, like you said at the beginning, but it's just a phenomenal trick and I love how you spoke about the purse and how you've routined this into something I would say is almost like a mini performance piece, but done close up.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, it is yes, and if it's themed around the area you live, it really resonates with people. So we're used to Chinese coins, with all due respect, being these spray-painted black things or red things and they don't really look anything like a coin. But Taj has made me this thing that looks like I said it looks like it's come out of a museum, so that gets people's interest up for a start.
Speaker 2:Yeah well, I've noticed a bit of a theme already. We've spoken about cricket in the very beginning, with How's that, and now we're talking about the New Zealand money in copper, silver, brass. So it seems like you put a bit of New Zealand history into your performances. I sure do.
Speaker 1:For those two but I might surprise you in a few minutes.
Speaker 2:Okay. Well then, let's go into number three. What did you put in your thirds Zubar?
Speaker 1:Number three is one of my favourite kids' show routines. So we're leaving New Zealand for this part of it and we're going to America and it's called Snakeless by Mike Bent. Now, snakeless, you've got a group of kids and you ask to the bravest kids because on a whole lot of cards you've got all these creepy crawlies. So you put the cards to the side for a moment and you bring out a or we call it a snake can. But at this stage it's just a can, and you've got this brave kid up with you. It's just a can and you've got this brave kid up with you and you explain that one of these creepy crawlies is in this. Can you explain that you've got some holes in the top of the can, so whatever's in there is just fine, but he's sleeping at the moment. You put this can on the table and the can's got a little bit of motion to it, but we'll come back to that later and you show a series of creepy crawlies. The child chooses a creepy crawly without looking and he hides it. So he faces it towards himself and you show that you've got your own choice of creepy crawly. And wouldn't it be good if the child's creepy crawly could match yours. So I show the audience my creepy crawly, I place it on my table on an easel. The child looks at his creepy crawly and he turns it around and he happens to have a spider. And the audience has already seen my choice. And it wasn't a spider, unfortunately. But lo and behold, when I turn around mine now they actually do match. So a little bit of magic has happened. So we've got a spider. So now we know what the creepy cool is.
Speaker 1:So now we get to that can that's had a little bit of motion sitting on my table. So now I carefully take the can off the table and I have turned about with this brave kid he's not, it's normally a boy for this trick because now we have turned about trying to take this lid off this can very quietly and boy oh boy, does this kid jump when I jump. So it's quite exciting getting this lid off, this can and in the end we finally get this lid off and this spider comes out of this can. But oh, I know it's only a plastic spider, that's ok, don't panic about it, it's only plastic. So I put the spider back in the can and I go to turn around and I put it on the table and the whole audience sees this big spider crawling up my trousers, on the back of me, and it's a huge spider and the audience is going crazy and this kid beside me is not very happy because this spider is also animated and I get this spider off my back, oh goodness me, everybody's jumping. So I finally put the spider away and I get this can off the table that had the spider in it and I say, oh, thank goodness, it was only the fake, pretend spider in the can. So I reach into the can and I close it to the audience, take the lid off and all of a sudden an eight-foot spring snake jumps out over the whole audience in this pandemonium. So I put my own twist on this as well. The spiders that come with it.
Speaker 1:With all due respect to the American performers, they like to perform in shorts and t-shirts. I've normally got dressed black trousers on and I'm fairly popular over here with my coloured shirts, but I've found the black spider and the black pants didn't really show up as well if you've got a few hundred kids in like a library show. So I've spray painted slightly the big spider that comes on up the leg so it looks like he's just come out of cobwebs and boy oh boy, he looks really really good and of course I've given it the English touch for the big snake at the end. I managed to find a really nice Cavari snake that comes out at the end, and the Cavari spring snakes look absolutely brilliant.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think that's great. I think that's a superb trick. I bet that just gets such a great reaction and some nice little moments of magic there as well and the first kids trick that we've got in your list as well. So let's see where you're going to go with number four. What did you put in your fourth spot?
Speaker 1:Number four I've gone for a cut and restored rope routine called Slashed, by the late great Scott Alexander and Bob Collar. So we've all heard of a cut and restored rope, obviously, but this is a three-phase routine that builds as it goes based on the sensational ropes, the tabaret ropes, and in the middle of the routine it's got a really, really nice magician fool a moment. So back in the day, Jamie, when Scott Alexander and Bob Kolhar come together, they made a name for themselves with producing really, really high-quality routines and really really high-quality training DVDs with it. So you paid a little bit more of a premium price for the product, but they certainly repaid you, and not only with the prop that you got but the excellent training that come with it so why did you go for this particular rote routine?
Speaker 2:because obviously there's so many of them and there's some really amazing visual ones. So what was it about this one that you went for?
Speaker 1:I was lucky enough to meet Scott a couple of times at Magic Lives and when you go to a big convention, especially from New Zealand, you get quite overwhelmed. When you go into a room and you've got 1,500 like-minded people in the same room Granted, it's not as big as Blackpool From New Zealand it's quite exciting. And there's a little cafe there at the Orleans and if you're lucky enough to meet people and get on with some really renaised people, if you can have a cup of coffee with that person, you feel like the luckiest person on earth. And I was certainly lucky enough to have a few chats with Scott Alexander and we certainly had a chat about this routine and what makes it different and that's why I like it. There's nothing to replace, there's no more things to buy, it's totally self-contained. It's going to last me for years and he's made this thing from scratch and it's just beautiful.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Now, do you use this just for kid shows? Do you use this for restaurants as well? Because this seems like a trick that can be used in several different performance environments as well because this seems like a trick that can be used in several different performance environments.
Speaker 1:It's primarily for what it is. It's primarily a stage trick. It's a fairly thick rope, so on stage is good, and instead of a pair of scissors I use a knife or a, a box cutter if you like. And mental note to self, if it's good enough enough for Max King and David Copperfield to chop their fingers, it's okay for people to look at the rope when you cut it rather than engage with the audience at that particular point.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Well, that is a great choice. In at number four and leads us to a number five. So what's in your fifth spot?
Speaker 1:Number five. I'm going to take you all the way back to New Zealand because he's come home, the wonderful Ari Phillips and the Babau wallet or Babushka as he likes to call it, which is a borrowed ring and a nest of wallets. Now, for those who don't know Ari, he owns Grum Leather and even though he's from the other end of New Zealand, he's got hands of gold, so he's made all my bits and pieces that I keep all my coins in. He makes fantastic wallets and this Nestle Wallet was my favourite trick at last year's Magic Live and a few big names over there bought it, so they must think it's quite good. So this ring and nester wallets are slightly different.
Speaker 1:It comes with a special handkerchief. If you like to use that handkerchief for the vanish that we all know and love, he's made a couple of really nice improvements to that handkerchief to make it operate really smoothly. Or if you've got your favourite ring and string routine, you can use that and use his nester wallets as the finish. The thing that makes his nester wallet special is that it's a nester three but each wallet has got a hasp on the outside, so each wallet is locked and in the end you can hand the nest of three wallets to the spectator and they can unlock and go through the wallets and if you're doing restaurant work it's resettable between tables. If you're doing a stand-up show and you've got a little bit more time between performances, you can have an envelope in the final wallet, so it's a sealed envelope as well.
Speaker 2:Amazing. So this is not one that I've seen, just as you were talking there. I've just had a look at it. It looks like a really really lovely piece of apparatus. It looks like a really really lovely piece of apparatus. It looks really really nice and the idea that each item looks a little bit different. That's coming out of the wallet. I think it's really really cool as well, and it looks like he can make it out of different leathers as well.
Speaker 1:Yep, and I'm still wearing mine in before I can wear it out. So it's beautiful that it's proper leather and, like I said, the guy's got hands of gold and the stitching and it's just fantastic. It really is. It's a work of art.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it looks great, it looks like such a nice prop, but, like I say, it's not one that I've seen before, and the fact that it works with bond slopes and stuff like that is excellent. Now, do you only use this with rings or do you use it with other objects?
Speaker 1:I've only used it with rings, but I see no issue in using it with a signed coin. If you're the type of person that doesn't feel comfortable borrowing a ring, or some people can't get a ring off, if you go to a table and the lady or gent can't get the ring off, which is quite common nowadays you can certainly do this with a signed coin.
Speaker 3:Hey guys, harry here from Alakazam Magic, I hope you're enjoying the podcast. I'm just here to interrupt and tell you a little bit about the Alakazam Magic Convention. It has taken us 35 years to get to this date. However, may the 9th 2026 will be the very first Alakazam Magic Convention. Now I know you guys are super excited, maybe just as excited as we are. First of all, the venue is a 37-minute direct train from central London. The venue is then literally a 10-minute walk from the train station. There's hotels within a stone's throw, there's restaurants nearby and there's incredible food and drink on site. That's all without even getting into the magic side of things. We are going to have four incredible lecturers performing throughout the day, including one person who's going to be flying over to the very first UK lecture. We are buzzing to announce who those four are. Not only that, there'll be dealers on site and a place for you guys to jam and session and meet new friends.
Speaker 3:Where are the lectures going to be held? This is my personal favourite bit about the Alakazam Convention. They're going to be happening in one of the cinema screens. That means fully tiered seating, comfy seats, a drinks holder and there will be a close-up camera on the Jumbo Cinema screen that will be giving you close-ups of all the little nuances that you're going to need to see when the lecturers are performing. There will, of course, be a full gala show to end the evening off. You guys are not going to want to miss it. The great thing is as well on the Sunday, the day after, alakazam Magic Shop, which is a two-minute drive, will be open. So if you're heading down to the convention, why not stay overnight and come and visit our magic shop? Remember May the 9th 2026.
Speaker 2:Tickets on sale now at alakazamcouk. See you guys soon. Great, well, I think that's another great choice. So we've gone from how's that? To copper, silver, brass, snakeless slashed, to the babu wallet. So that takes us to number six. What's in your sixth spot?
Speaker 1:number six. I'm sorry everybody, but I've got to put in a classic because, like I said, I've got illusions and all sorts of bits, but this thing gets amazing responses and of course it's the bill and lemon. Now, the bill and lemon, you can go in any direction. You borrow a banknote and I play a bit of a game show routine in my routine. If you remember, a few years ago there was a a bill and lemon called the Lemon Game, bought out by Doug Malloy, and it had a whole lot of game cards and you could borrow the money off the gent, get him to choose a card. That card would remain unseen until the end of the routine.
Speaker 1:So you put it up on an easel on your table and then you explain to the gent of all these prizes that he could have won. And you've got a sports car and you've got $10,000 and all sorts of goodies. In the end, of course, he's holding his money still. So you put the money into a little bag and you ask him to hold the bag in one hand, hold the card close to his chest without looking at it yet, so he can still feel his money in the little bag. Then you say to him well, do you feel brave tonight? Would you like to take the money or the prize? And of course you'd involve the audience as you're going through all your prizes, and no matter what he says, that's what we'll do. If he says he wants to take his money home, he opens up the little bag and of course in the little bag it's got a little piece of paper Congratulations, you're a winner.
Speaker 1:Well, he might not be, of course, but he turns around cards and of course the card's got a lemon on it, so he's won himself a lemon. So I said oh, that's fantastic. I've been waiting years for this to happen. Nobody's ever won a prize that good. But I reach behind my table and I pull out a whole bag of lemons and the guy can choose his own lemon at this point. So he chooses his own lemon, I cut it right in front of him, break it in half and, sure enough, his signed banknote is in that lemon. He gets to take his banknote home. He gets to take the two halves of the lemon with him. And it's quite interesting at a corporate event, those two halves of the lemon you'll see going around the tables and you'll see people trying to fit the thing together and I've never, never had a response like you get for the Bill Lemon.
Speaker 2:That sounds great. Now, once again, why did you go for this particular version? Because I know that there's been several gimmicks and different ways to do the Bill and Lemon, so why did you go for your particular version?
Speaker 1:My particular version, Jamie, is a mashup of that four or five different routines. We've all been told off by certain people in our lives for having too many card in their wallets and I think I counted eight or nine chop cups in my collection. But I think the bill of lemon might be up there for how many different versions or how many different routines that I've read. So mine's a real mashup and even my lemon preparation is like a little bit of surgery, without giving too much away because, like I said, I hand it out at the end. Preparation is like a little bit of surgery without giving too much away Because, like I said, I hand it out at the end and they can take it home with them.
Speaker 1:Again, I'll reference back to Scott Alexander. He's got a manuscript on it and I'm sure somebody at some stage will buy the rights through his estate etc. But he's also got. It's not my book that I'm going to recommend at the end, but he put out a book called 52. There was only 500 copies of the book and if you can find one I would highly recommend it, and his version of the bill, or one of his versions, is certainly in his book.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Well, there's a good reference. If anyone can get hold of one of those books, then, well, everyone's going to be looking frantically for it now. So do grab one of those, because it sounds really, really cool. Now that leads us to the tail end of your eight, with number seven. So what's in your seventh spot?
Speaker 1:Oh, look to the seventh spot. I thought I'd take a little trip to Australia. New Zealand and Australia like to niggle each other. Sometimes we're called the eighth state of Australia. So I'm going to Australia for number seven.
Speaker 1:I find in my bigger family shows to get that really, really good photo opportunity and to really capture the media's attention. Good photo opportunity and to really capture the media's attention there's nothing better than getting a kid up on stage if it's a big, big event and chopping that kid in half. So number seven slice of magic by chris murphy at oz illusions and, I think, his website sliceofmagiccom. So Chris is another fantastic friend that's got hands of gold and the prop looks amazing. So I have my partner that chooses the kid.
Speaker 1:All you've got to do pre-show is have the right size boy or girl, so the person can be sort of 10 or 11. You just need the right height to make the illusion look really good and you chop the child with two blades and then the middle of the boxes comes completely away and it's a brilliant photo opportunity. And I even stop and take a photo of that in front of the stage just in case the boy or girl's parents can't get close enough and get a really good photo op. But the amount of media coverage I've got out of that illusion is just worth the price of ambition alone.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I can imagine us ambition alone. Yeah, I can imagine. I know I've seen a couple of people use levitations at kids parties where they levitate a kid and the reaction's phenomenal. But I can imagine that sawing a kid in half. I bet when you take that middle box off the reaction must be absolutely phenomenal and I bet the parents must absolutely love that moment as well and being able to take a photo of their kid in in that severed state oh, absolutely.
Speaker 1:And the kids, the kids love it too. And look, think about it.
Speaker 2:If I'm on a desert island, if, if I'm unlucky enough to get disturbed by a kid and I can cut the kid in half and make it easier for the sharks, it's got to be a win-win hasn't it well so far, when, when we're looking at your list, we started off with um snakeless a little bit earlier on, and now we've got a slice of magic which tells me that maybe you like to be a just a little bit mean to the kids to keep them on their feet.
Speaker 1:Oh mate, they're not my kids, are they mate?
Speaker 2:Excellent. Well, that's a great choice and, you know, for a kids' show having that big statement piece, that big illusion. I mean, I've not ever done kids' shows, but I seem to see a theme when it comes to children's entertainers. They seem to have this sort of big standout piece, this big statement piece in their shows, which I'm guessing draws the quality of the show up a little bit.
Speaker 1:Well, that's right. We only travel around the country in a sizable van, but it's certainly well packed with the animals and all sorts of bits, and we travel with our own sound system as well. But this thing packs flat into its own flight case so it's going to look a million dollars every time it's on stage. Packs small, plays huge can't be better that's great.
Speaker 2:Well, that leads us very nicely into number eight. So what's in your final position?
Speaker 1:Well, I worked out that Peter Nardi is obviously paying for all these things if he's going to put us on the line. So, number eight I'm going to spoil myself. Number eight is the Nest of Boxes by the late great Tommy Wonder. Now, if you're fortunate enough, or next time you've got a few spare dollars, I think you can still get it as a download the old L&L DVDs of Tommy Wonder. And if you're ever looking for some inspiration or you're feeling a little bit down about magic or you just need to give yourself a bit of a kick in the pants and get a few ideas, there's nothing better than the Tommymmy wonder dbd set from l and l, and I think on the dbd set he done three versions of the nest of boxes, but the one that I like is the one that makes the watch appear in the alarm clock in the at the end. And, of course, another another great magic friend of our magic community, the wonderful Max Maven, was on the DVD set with him doing the interview and, of course, max just lost his mind when Tommy started explaining this version. And Max turns to Tommy and says You're mad, you're absolutely mad, just with the workings. And, of course, at Magic Live in 2019, we were lucky enough to have Ray Lum got the rights. Now Ray Lum is an illusion builder from Las Vegas. Ray makes beautiful stuff and he actually made a few sets of the nested boxes and they are absolutely gorgeous.
Speaker 1:And, of course, a few years ago I was lucky enough to have relativity by collector's workshop and I know peter's got one, and they're quite rare nowadays too. So I used to do relativity, which was was the borrowed watch in a sealed can. And, of course, watches over the years have changed somewhat Men's watches. All of a sudden they become these big, awful band things that you couldn't steal, you couldn't do anything with. But nowadays, leather watches have started to come back and a few magic manufacturers have produced some wonderful leather watches that really, really fit the magic scene beautifully.
Speaker 1:So all of a sudden, on stage, if I'm wearing a nice leather watch, I take my leather watch off and I say, look, is there any man in the audience that likes a leather watch? I take my leather watch off and I say, look, is there any man in the audience that likes a leather watch like mine and is wearing a leather watch like mine? So all of a sudden, I've got the right person up on stage that has a watch like mine. We can swap watches, we can pair times. My watch goes into his top pocket and then I can get up to shenanigans with his watch, make it disappear and it appears back in the Tommy Wonder nest of boxes inside the alarm clock and I say to somebody in the audience what's your favorite time of the day? I'm just about due for a coffee. What time do you like your favorite cup of coffee? He or she states that time my watch comes out of that gent's pocket and all of a sudden that's the time on my watch.
Speaker 2:So it all makes sense. Great, that sounds superb. Now I know that, uh, we've had nest of boxes before and I think it was matthew right which has a a new version, but I think they're becoming harder and harder to come across a good set of nest of boxes now. So where would you suggest people get a version of this?
Speaker 1:Ray Lum makes the business nest of boxes around, and I'm sure you can find Ray Lum on social media Amazing.
Speaker 2:Well, that is a superb list. We've gone from Howzat to Copper, silver Brass, snakeless, slashed Babu Wallet, the Bill and Lemon, slice of Magic and the Nest of Boxes. I'm really surprised with that list as well, because you know, we've got some close-up things with Howzat, copper, silver Brass, then we've got some sort of kids' performances like Snakeless and the slice of magic, and then we've got sort of these big stage pieces like the the nest of boxes as well. So I think it's really nice that you've got such a nice diverse, eclectic mix of tricks here well, that's it.
Speaker 1:I tried. I tried to do a really nice mix and hopefully give a few people some ideas, because my favourite part of this is the island tricks and the same thing. When I go to a convention, I might see a trick that I've known for years and I think to myself gee, that's a nice way of doing that. I never thought of doing that.
Speaker 2:Yep, absolutely. Well, it's a great list.
Speaker 1:Now, wayne, we've given you eight tricks but you're only allowed one each of these. So let's go to your banishment. What would you banish from our industry and why? Out of a little bit of a hole here, I'll say that the late great Norm Nelson gets a free pass. He can keep the violin, because being in the live audience to watch him do that was purely magical. And of course Charlie Fry does a routine with a 10-pin bowling ball. And if you know Charlie Fry, anything that he does, he's just fantastic. So charlie got us through covid, but with his, with his daily videos, that guy has got more skill in and his little little pinky than most of us will have in a lifetime. But those two guys make it special. So the ball on the stick. I'm sorry, guys, it's gone. So is it?
Speaker 2:exclusively the ball, or is it all things that use that method? If we look at the floating table, we've also got floating masks now as well that utilise essentially the same method. Maybe a slight twist on it.
Speaker 1:Oh, you're trying to get me in trouble. No, the bad looking balls on the stick is the is the first thing to go, unfortunately okay, all right, so everyone else you can.
Speaker 2:There's there's a a big sigh of relief from people with levitating tables and masks and the like, but zombie balls are gone. Those have been banished onto your island. So let's find out what you put in your book. I know that earlier on you alluded to a couple of books and it's clear that you are a book reader. So what did you put in your book?
Speaker 1:position this was the hardest. G-o-g-o-g. It's the hard one actually. I used to go to magic conventions and I used to laugh at all the older people buying books and the last few years I've sort of built up quite a nice library. So maybe I'm one of those older people now it's fine.
Speaker 1:But there's a couple of honourable mentions. I'm lucky enough to have a copy of Magic by Robin Harbin. I was lucky enough to get the last hardback copy of the Magic by Pat Page. Now, for those who don't know Pat Page, he's the your version of Di Vernon. He was just as clever, knew everything, a really, really good tower of knowledge.
Speaker 1:But I've gone for the Secret Ways of Al Baker. It's my book. It's a massive term. If you drop it on your foot you're going to break your foot. But why did I go for the Secret Ways of Al Baker? He's a bit of a jack of all trades and I found, if I'm looking for something that I'm working on, he had a method. It might not be the method that necessarily I'll use today, but it's certainly a very good starting point and I think we don't really realise how lucky we are in the magic world with those older books and those older performers. They had some fantastic ideas and if we can use those ideas as building blocks, I think you're onto something special.
Speaker 1:Somebody told me once if you want to keep a secret, you always put it in a book. It's got a crazy amount. I'm not sure how easy it would be to get nowadays, but I'm sure you could find one. And if you're lucky enough to find one, I'm sure you could find one. And if you're lucky enough to find one, I'm sure it's something you're going to reference back to time and time again. I know I have. I've got full of bookmarks and pieces of paper and, yeah, it's something you'll use. It won't just sit on your shelf. It'll become a. It'll become a working book for you.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Well, there's one for us all to seek out. Now. That leads us to the final thing on your list, which is your non-magic item. So what would you take with you, wayne?
Speaker 1:I'm going to give a special mention before I give you my item. Nowadays we all use the backdrops with all the and I do it too with all the printed bits and pieces, like I do the ag shows over here. Yes, I do a bit of a farming theme, so I've got a farmyard and for my library shows I've got a library theme backdrop. But it all started with a spider flex back, if you remember, sort of 20 years ago in all the magazines and that spider flex, you can sort of bend it into all sorts of shapes because it comes in two or three parts. So I've used it in the corner of a room for a changing room and all sorts of bits. So it's got me out of a lot of trouble. And if you go to a theatre that hasn't got really good side tabs, I'll still use it in two sections for side tabs. But I have to take my two parrots. If I'm going to an island I'd better take my two parrots with me.
Speaker 2:So are your parrots a part of your show? I'm guessing.
Speaker 1:They are. We're lucky enough to have a big macaw and an African grey parrot, so I'll take the two boys with me. Macaw is in quite a big production, so I'll take the two boys with me. The four's in quite a big production. And I've got a really, really nice routine with the African Grey, which I haven't put on the list because it's just a little bit close to my heart at this point for giving away. But if I ever get rescues by Peter for another episode sometime, I might talk a little bit about what I do with the African Grey, because it's a great routine amazing.
Speaker 2:Well, what a great way to close out your list. So we went from how's that? Copper, silver, brass, snakeless slash, babby wallet bill and lemon slice of magic nest of boxes. Your banishment was the zombie ball, but not zombie tables or masks. Your book was the secret ways of al baker and your item was your parents. What a great list, wayne. Well, it's cool.
Speaker 1:I hope everybody enjoyed the podcast and I hope you got something out of it and don't be frightened to try something different in your own show.
Speaker 2:Yep, absolutely agree. Now, Wayne, if people want to find out more about you, about what you're doing, your shows, all of that good stuff, where can they go to?
Speaker 1:Yep, you can find me on social media, just Wayne McEwan. Send me a friend request if I'm not already your friend, or wwwmagicguyconz.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Well, thank you so much for your time, Wayne.
Speaker 1:That's all right. So we hope to see everybody over in New Zealand for our New Zealand Magic Convention next.
Speaker 2:October. When exactly, and where is it? Yep, it's.
Speaker 1:October 23 to 26 in 2026. So magic's going to happen in Middle Earth and just of course, the Magic Convention itself is going to be in the beautiful Queenstown and that's the adventure capital of the world. So it's all happening.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Well, there you go, guys. Get your tickets now. Of course, we're going to be back next week with another episode, so for now, have a great week. Bye-bye.
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