Desert Island Tricks
Each week, host Jamie Daws invites one of the biggest guests in the world of magic to maroon themselves on the Alakazam Magic 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! They even get a welcome package with a deck of card inside! 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
Michael J Fitch
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He’s performed for Queen Elizabeth II, he’s a resident magician in Gordon Ramsay restaurants and he’s Vice President of The Magic Circle, but he still geeks out over the same question every working magician wrestles with: what actually works when you’re in the trenches night after night? We sit down with Michael J. Fitch for a wide-ranging, laugh-out-loud conversation that turns into a practical guide to building a set that plays for real people, not just magicians.
Michael breaks down how a single choice, doing magic for the restaurant staff in the kitchen, sparked an 11-year run with Ramsay venues and why those behind-the-scenes moments create the biggest career leverage. We also talk Magic Circle, from conventions and tributes to what’s coming next, including the Magic Circle Awards evening, seasonal shows and a Houdini celebration at the London Hippodrome.
Then we “maroon” Michael on a magical desert island and force the hard decisions: one normal deck, eight effects, one book, one non-magic utility item, and one thing he’d happily bury forever. Expect memorised deck ambition with a modern training twist using ChatGPT, signature spoon bending with a Uri Geller story, underrated paddle magic, the tiny plunger, rope work, Doc Eason-inspired bar material, multiplying bottles, egg bag and a Cube Zag illusion tied to Wayne Dobson. We also go on a needed rant about negativity in magic and why judging a show by the audience reaction matters more than magicians expectations.
Michael’s Desert Island Tricks:
Welcome Pack: Memorised Deck
- Spoon Bending
- Howzatt
- Tiny Plunger
- Rope
- Money to Lemon / All of Doc Eason’s material
- Multiplying Bottles
- Egg Bag
- Cube-Zag
Banishment. Negativity in Magic
Book. Notes from a Fellow Traveller
Item. Mobile Phone
Find out more about the creators of this Podcast at www.alakazam.co.uk
Cold Open And Guest Arrival
SPEAKER_02Hello everyone, it's me, Michael McIntyre. I'm so excited to be on today's podcast. It's gonna be amazing. It's gonna be a big show. Join me on this desert island where we see what magician and what magic he's bringing on the island. It's gonna be amazing. So let's get on with it and spin the wheel!
SPEAKER_06We are in Magic Circle Royalty. We have the Vice President of the Magic Circle here with us now. So we had the current president, now we've got the Vice President, and hopefully he'll tell us a little bit more about that soon. Of course, he is also a member of the Inner Magic Circle with Gold Star, which we would expect nothing less, because he is an incredibly busy working magician. This was Pete's booking, and he's been trying to get this guest on for quite literally months upon months upon months. If I showed you my message log of me saying, Are you coming on now? Are you coming on now? And what's even worse for him is he can't escape the magic circle. So even when I was there at the uh Magic Circle convention, of course I asked him there as well, he cannot escape it. But we finally got him now. Now, not only does he do gigs literally everywhere, he actually performed for Queen Elizabeth II at Barkingham Palace during the Golden Jubilee celebrations in 2003. And he is a resident magician at Gordon Ramsay restaurants, which he just told me he's now doing more than ever. So it just shows you he is quite honestly one of the show busiest, busiest magicians I've ever met in my life. Whenever I see him, he's like, Yeah, I'm just darting off here, there, and everywhere. Whenever you see pictures, he's always somewhere glamorous doing something, you know. Uh he I I would love to know how many sparkly vests he's got in his uh wardrobe. We'll put it that way. Of course, today's guest is the wonderful Michael J. Fitch. Hello, Michael.
SPEAKER_04Oh hello, what a lovely introduction. Thank you very much. I was so embarrassed because it has taken so long to actually get here. Um, because yeah, it has it's gone on for over a year asking, and I'm I apologize for that. And uh it's really great to be here. And uh yeah, that what an introduction. Wow, thank you.
SPEAKER_06Well, it's kind of good. I don't mind it if a guest can't come on because they're so busy, and you are literally so busy. You are a hundred miles an hour all the time, not only just gigging, but you're consulting for other people, and you're also doing everything at the magic circle. You're trying to get that moving along, and so much stuff's happened at the circle over the past kind of year. Things have really, really ramped up. So, how on earth are you even fitting all of this in?
SPEAKER_04Uh, it's it it has it does feel like that recently, as uh it's been reminded to by my wife yesterday. We had a big conversation. She's like, you're you know, you're doing a lot, but it's like it's fun. I I love magic. Magic is what I'm all about. I've done it since I was four years old, and I'm very lucky that I've I've never had another job. It's always been. I've been a magician, you know. My first paid gig, I was six years old. Um, I got six pounds for that gig, and three quid of that I gave to my mate for just holding a tray with a finger chipper on it. So that was ridiculous. So I sacked him. Uh, but uh, but yeah, I I love I love uh being involved with the Magic Circle, and it's a real honor to be vice president of the Magic Circle. We've got an amazing council, and uh, you know, organizing things like the convention and different things and events, I love getting behind that. And uh, and yeah, so it's it does take a lot of time up. Um and I do all different types of magic as well, you know, which I'm sure we'll sort of cover. I I still do children's shows as well, sort of on a high-end all over the place, a lot of big, big uh kids' shows still, but um the close-up magic, I host events, I do illusions, I do this and that. So it's every week is different. Um, and it's just but you know, it's at the moment it's it's pretty crazy, but uh it's it's fun. I would I when it's the other way round, which we'd all experienced like the pandemic, you know, it's quite depressing. So I I I like I like it, but I still moan about it. But it's it's it's a good
Life As A Full Time Magician
SPEAKER_04good place to be.
SPEAKER_06And you do some really high profile things nowadays, and I mentioned the Gordon Ramsay restaurants. How did that even come about?
SPEAKER_04Well, it's been 11 years now working for Gordon uh in his different restaurants. Um it started, it's it's interesting actually. It's a I I started I did a show in a restaurant in Notting Hill Um called the Leadbury, which is I think it's a two Michelin style restaurant. It was a guy's 50th birthday who like collects Ferraris and he hired this whole restaurant. And I did magic, and I always try and do a bit of magic for the staff when I work in a venue because they're sort of, you know, they don't get to see it probably looking over your shoulder. And that was one of the best decisions I made at that gig because I went into the kitchen, did some stuff for those chefs, and the chef was very high up. He used to work for Heston Blumenfell, and then he went on and worked with Gordon, and when they wanted entertainment in London, uh they said, Oh, we know this amazing guy, you should get him in. So it wasn't Gordon who phoned me, it was one of his his uh his people, and I went in and and that was the so literally I I can see where that came from just by me going in the kitchen and doing magic for someone. So you never know where some of these opportunities come from. And then you know, since that I've I've so I worked at Breadstreet Kitchen, which is the original one that's near St. Paul's Cathedral. I used to do every every other Sunday or one Sunday a month, then two Sundays in a month, and at some point it was every Sunday, and then um it became sort of more seasonal, and then they moved me to other restaurants and and uh Lucky Cat in Mayfair, uh, which I love working there because I always sort of get fed as well at the gig. So it's nice, you know, from going from a steak or beef wellington to really nice sushi and cocktails, so it's lovely. Um, and then um obviously the the recently Gordon's just opened his 100th restaurant in London, which is the Bread Street Kitchen, which is in Bishopsgate, which is a really tall building um in the city, and it's the highest restaurant in Europe, it's 60 floors above London, and it's sort of on the same level as the top of Shard, but obviously the Top of Shard doesn't actually have buildings at the top, it's more just a sort of uh structure. And um, yeah, I did New Year's Eve there, and then since the documentary on Netflix, there's a documentary about being Gordon Ramsey and it shows that venue being built, they are solidly booked out, and uh I got a call from the management asking what I could do there, and I'm now there every Thursday night and every Sunday afternoon. Um, and it's amazing who you get there as well. You know, we had a Nikki Glazier, who is the host of the Golden Globes, I think, is a female comedian from Hollywood. She was in, and because she had a show at the Hammers with Apollo, Rod Stewart was in the other day. Uh he gave me 40 quid, which is nice. So um, but we get lots, yeah, lots, lots of influencers there, lots of people. But it's uh, you know, people are very excited. Every day is like a Saturday night there. I was there last night and and I work both restaurants. So work Bread Street Kitchen on the 59th floor, and I get in one lift to go up to the 60th floor and do um Lucky Cat. And uh it creates a real buzz. And um they they really make me feel special when I get there. I can have you know, have a coffee ready for me, a cappuccino, or if I want a cocktail and something to eat. They and it it's yeah, it's a great relationship with them. So I'm very, very lucky. It's I've probably got one of the best residencies ever. I'm very lucky. So, but it means I go I'm going to London all the time. I'm backwards and forwards to London all the time. But it's it's a it's a good problem to have. So that's uh yeah, very special, special gig.
SPEAKER_06Well, thank God you're not afraid of heights. That's all I can say. I know looking looking out all the time. What an amazing place to be able to work,
Gordon Ramsay Restaurant Residency Story
SPEAKER_06and it would be remiss of me not to talk about the circle and all of the amazing things that have been happening there. Uh, is there anything coming up or anything that you want to tell everyone about?
SPEAKER_04Uh yeah, I was just obviously just had the convention and there's a beautiful ride up in the Magic Circular, uh, which was nice to see. That was dedicated to Wayne Dobson uh this year because it would have been on Wayne's birthday, and we had a lot of Wayne's friends in the show. Brian Conney was in the show, we had um Joe Pasquale. Um we had it was incredible. It was the the day was amazing, um, as you know. You know, there was a real buzz. You know, the dealers we had in the in the um Magic Circle HQ, that worked better. So myself and Lee Hathaway sort of run the convention. We've learned a lot of lessons from previous conventions, and uh a lot of people are saying it's the best one we've we've ever done. So it's difficult. I've already got a notepad started for next year and some some names I would love to have there, but it's gonna be a very difficult one to beat. Um but the next next project I'm working on, as I'm now an officer of the Magic Circle as Vice President, uh, it falls upon us to organise the awards evening. And uh we have got our Magic Circle Awards coming up on the 8th of November. Um at the moment, we're just releasing tickets today for members of the Magic Circle. If they're any surplus, then we would love to invite the public as well, because we have got something very special lined up. We're obviously going to do the awards and we have a show. I'm just looking quick quickly for my poster on my phone so I can give you some of the names that I've got. We I mean we've got uh hosted by the lovely Debbie McGee. So we're you know very lucky, and she's honorary vice president of the Magic Circle. Um we have got coming over from Las Vegas, we've got Kevin James, and we've got well Marvin's got some amazing contacts, and we've got uh a lady called Gwen Dickey from Rose Royce, she is the one who sings Wishing on a Star and Um Carbosh. Looking at the carwash, you know, and so we've got we've got her opening the show, singing in Wishing on a Star at the beginning, which will be amazing. And we've even got Brian Carnelly and Joe Pasqualia coming back and going to be performing their madness on stage as well in the awards. So it's gonna be an incredible show. Um, so yeah, if uh I whenever this goes out, check out the Magic Circle website and uh if there's any tickets, then get yourself tickets. Um members have a discount. Um and for the first time in a long time, we are we're having a dinner before the awards. So there's an option for a gold ticket, which is gonna have an amazing dinner in the devant room and uh from six till eight, and then we'll go into the divant room. No, no, into the theatre and join everybody, and then there's an after party as well, and we've got entertainment for that. So I'm really looking forward to that. Uh, but I will just uh yeah, won't eat at Ramsey's that day because I'm working till five and I've got that dinner at six o'clock. So the food, the food's very good. The Wesley Hotel are catering, and we did a taste of it the other day, and the food was exceptional. So yeah, very excited about that. Um, so it's really great to bring that place to life. I mean, the magic circle is being used more than ever. You know, it used to, a few years ago, it was it was closed on a Saturday. You know, we've got a lovely little theatre there, and it was just only being used really for the close-up show um on the Friday, and you know, a few sort of school shows and bits and bobs. But now it's literally got to a stage where the circle has been opened every single day for different events. So it's incredible. And that's down to an incredible team. Lee Hathaway, big shout out to Lee. He's he's working at the HQ every day really hard and uh and helping making these things happen, and to an incredible council with a vision um and working alongside the foundation. It's that yeah, things have definitely improved um over the last couple of years.
SPEAKER_06And are we having a Christmas show this year?
SPEAKER_04Oh, yes, yeah, an amazing Christmas show uh coming up. In fact, tickets are selling very fast for that Christmas show already. I don't think the announc the the headliners have been announced yet, but it's always a really good show. Rob James has been producing the last few Christmas shows and uh he's he's got amazing acts in, they've been great. Um, so yeah, definitely one to look out for. There'll be Halloween shows as well. We usually have Halloween. Oh, actually, another thing to plug is our event at the London Hippodrome, uh celebrating the Houdini's event. So that's coming up. That is in I haven't got my dates in front of me. That is in October no, no, I think it's October, end of October. But check out the Magic Circle website. We've got a Houdini event that uh um Paul Zennon is producing and uh he's calling in lots of favours and it's gonna be an amazing show. I bought my ticket straight away. And it's in the Magic Mike Theatre, you know, where the at the bottom of the Hippodrome. And there is a link to Houdini and the Hippodrome, because obviously Houdini performed at the London Hippodrome. He's his uh Miracle's escape, I believe. Um the challenge he did there. So, and because this year, obviously, there's a lot of Houdini things happening because it would have been a hundred years since Houdini passed away this year. So uh there's a lot of Houdini events, and so really pleased that the Magic Circle have got the London Hippodrome. It's gonna be an amazing night. So, do again go to the Magic Circle uh website for more details, but that is at the London Hippodrome. Um, so tickets are selling very fast for that, so yeah, do get your tickets for that.
SPEAKER_06So let's move back to you. So earlier on, you mentioned that you're into all sorts of different kinds of magic. I've even spoken to you about bizarre magic before. So, how do you put a list together? If you mention earlier on that you're into illusions and you're into close up and you're into all of these different things, how difficult is it to just narrow that down to eight effects?
SPEAKER_04Uh very difficult, as you're about to find out. And I've got a 40-foot container now that is because my magic, I I don't get rid of any magic. That's the problem. I keep getting new magic and not get, you know. So I've got a problem. I'm a hoarder. Yeah. Uh I feel I'm on hoarders anonymous. Hi, I'm Michael J. Fitch, and I'm a hoarder. Um, but I I still love getting new magic. It's still my hobby as well as my job. So I love it, you know, and I'm the worst one. Or I think, you know, you know, Peter Nardi and all the others love me because I go over to the stand and they're like, oh, show Fitchy this, who want that? And I'll go, Oh yeah, I love that. I
Magic Circle Events And Awards Night
SPEAKER_04love that. And I end up with carrying and a lot of the stuff. I've still got a lot of stuff that's still packed from Blackpool that I'm not even open because I've got, yeah, I want that, I want that. Um, but but I guess, but then I go back to a lot of stuff that I've been doing since I was a teenager that is actually my bread and butter that has, you know, pays the mortgage and and pays the bills because it is stuff that's sort of bulletproof stuff, and you know, but uh, but yeah, so I look we'll go we'll go through different things and it, but I uh it's I'm um it's gonna be very difficult.
SPEAKER_06If this is your first time listening, we are about to maroon Michael on his very own magical island. When he's there, he's allowed to take eight tricks, banish one item, take one book, one non-magic item that he uses for magic, and of course it's season three, which means he gets a welcome package. Inside his welcome package is a normal deck of cards that he's allowed to only do one effect with. So, Mr. Fitch, what are you gonna do with your normal deck of cards?
SPEAKER_04Do I have to pick something that I do now or stuff that I can learn while on the island? Because how long am I on this island for?
SPEAKER_06Uh indefinitely. Um, sorry. You can as well. You can do things that you've you've never done, you've always wanted to do. A lot of people have said like a memorized deck because they've never had the chance to do it.
SPEAKER_04Well, there you go. You took the words out of my mouth. And this since Tamares has passed away, um I like I, you know, everyone I I've got very fond memories of meeting Juan Tamares and seeing his stuff. But I I remember a lot of like watching Michael close the work, and then I used to watch it and it do this amazing magic, and it'd go, right, this is a memorized day. Right, skip, skip, because I can't do that. No, skip. So I know there are so many miracles out there with a memdeck, and it's something that I've always wanted to do. And you know, with the sad news of uh Tamaros passing away this summer, I I thought, you know what, I'm going to learn it finally. So I was actually in Sardinia on a beautiful island, actually, which I'm very lucky to go there, sort of three times a year working at this beautiful resort. Um I thought I'm gonna learn the memorized deck. So I did, and this is this is interesting, actually. It might be interesting for magicians. I'll tell you who who was very helpful because when you're learning the memorized deck with any trick, if your partner is often the one who suffers because you're like, name a card, name a number, name a card, name a number. Well, uh Helen got fed up with doing that. So ChatGPT came to the rescue, and actually we've been getting on really well, me and chat. It's got the voice on there. Do you do the have you ever done the voice thing? You talk to ChatGPT. Oh, it's insane, and you can change the voice as well. It's very strange. And it's it sounds very humanized, very strange. Anyway, ChatGPT has been testing me on the card, the position, and we're doing we're pretty much doing routine every single day. Um, so I've now learnt all 52 cards and 52 positions, some are sharper than others. Okay, if you're gonna throw a number at me or something in a minute, I can tell by the twinkle in your eye. Um but uh and now I'm linking them all. But yeah, so I'm on this island, I've got a deck of cards, I am going to stay committed to my project of learning the memorise deck uh because I and the equations that you need with it, let's just say that, to be able to perform miracles. Um, because there may be muggles listening, and I'm now vice president of the Magic Circle and I don't want to get kicked out for a bloody podcast.
SPEAKER_06Um, so if I said to you, is is there like a particular routine that you've always wanted to do with a mem deck?
SPEAKER_04I mean, obviously the holy grail is always card at any number, or that type of effect where um I think that would probably be it with that. Jazzing with a pack of cards and knowing having the order of the cards, knowing the number, the position, to be able to cut to their card. You can just you can do more jazz magic, which which I love the sort of jazz magic feel. You know, you you learn so many different card tricks throughout your career that it's nice when someone you could borrow a pack of cards, you got a pack of cards, and you you don't know where it's going sometimes. And that often happens sometimes when I'm working. I think that's sometimes the best stuff rather than yeah, I've got structured stuff I do all the time. But I love that jazz element to it, you know. When you're first learning like the classic force, you're like, I'll pick a card, pick a card, and someone keeps picking the same card. It they love that, they find that so funny. And then you're like, You get, I'll get rid of that card, stop picking the five of hearts. Oh, it's the five of hearts again. And it's it's the best way to practice that move is and then you've created you end up creating your own little routine that goes with that trick. Um, you know, by then keep and then you're using different methods. Oh, I'll riffle the card, say stop. Fine, we'll do this. You I'll deal the cards down, stop when you want. And they keep picking that same card, that becomes such a fun routine. Um, and the part to the public, they absolutely love it. So um I think with a memorized deck, I would sort of go down that sort of jazz magic route of you know, they name a card and the card they name could be in exactly the right position for you to spell their name without without touching the cards or something like that. Or, but that then, you know, to do that sort of mathematical equation in your head, that's another skill in its own right. So there's you know, there's so much involved um that you know it's it's you need time on a desert island to actually do it. So I think that I can see why other people would have picked that because it's probably something on a lot of people's lists, and it's having the time to do it because you know, we we're all we all lead busy lives. Um, I mean, even if you're not busy, you're busy with stuff on Netflix and stuff like that. You go, I've got to watch this whole season before I do anything else, which uh, you know. So it's like this this opportunity of being on a on a desert island is a great chance to to do this stuff you've always been putting off. And I I can see why it's been picked by other magicians. So I'm sorry if it's a a lazy answer that other people have picked, but I can see why they've picked it. So I'm gonna I'm gonna nail that stack, every position, and be a mathematical genius with a pack of cards, resulting in creating some of the best card magic you've ever seen.
SPEAKER_06Okay, well, you know, I I think that using this podcast for good is always a great way to go. So anyone that sees Michael J. Fitch out and about, shout out shout a number at him, um, and then or or a playing card and see what response you get, especially if you know um the moniker, and then and then he can yeah, we we can help him out a little bit. But yeah, that's a great, great choice in your welcome package. Let's go to your main list then. So, what's in your first position?
SPEAKER_04Okay, I'm gonna start with something that I'm sort of known for now, and that's I'll bring some spoons out with me. Just regular spoons. It's how I close my show with the spoon bending, and I um yeah, so I'll take some spoons out because that sort of seems to be like my sort of signature piece that I I close the show with. I've got an amazing story about meeting Urigella uh that I I talk about in the show, and it's it's there's no word of the lie, it's true. So I it was at a magic convention in London, uh, it was the international convention where um Uri Geller was there, and uh I remember, you know, I always try and get an opportunity in something, as you all know. So I'm sitting for dinner, and there's a few magicians around the table, and I said, I would love to get a quote on my spoon bending from Urigella that I could use. Because if you're gonna get a quote on spoon bending, that's the man to get it from, yeah. He's so I was and then I was told another magician said, There is no way that you will get a quote from Urigella on spoon bending. And that Spurred me on even more. It's like, right, well, what have I got to lose? Right. If I ask him, show him what I do with a spoon, ask him for a quote, um, great, and he says, no, fine, at least I asked. So I and I'm sort of seems going into my script now that I I say on stage because it it sets it up beautifully. The conditioning for doing the spoon bend, it's it is perfect. So I sort of say when he when you see spoons, you think of spoon bending, you think of um I've been bending spoons since I was about five, six years old. And uh I had the pleasure of meeting Uri Geller about 11 years ago in London, and I said to him, No matter where I'm in the world, whenever I bend a spoon, people mention your name. And he looked at me and said, Show me what you do with a spoon. I don't do impressions, I think it sounds like it might be Welsh, I don't know. Anyway, so I bent a spoon for Geller, and he kind of freaked and said it was the best he'd seen. That's true. And then I being a cheeky Essex boy, so can I have that in writing, please? And two days later, a letter turned up in the post. It was Ben. Uh-huh. Pause for laugh. And it said, and this is the quote Michael spoon bends an act amazing. It looks just like the metal melts out of his gaze, he does it better than me. Now, if you're gonna get a quote on the spoon bending, that's the man to get it from. And that quote was unbelievable. So I'm so glad that I spoke to him that day. And I closed my show with a spoon bend, and at the end, when the spoon is all twisted in a child's hand or a lady's hand, I'll have Urigella's voiceover come on over the sound system. And because and he's and he says, as Michael says, nothing is impossible. This is Urigella, and it's all it all ties it in beautifully. So it's become a really set piece in my show that's that's quite sort of inspirational because there is a whole message that goes off with it, and and I love performing it. You know, it's got a really strong bed of music behind it. And you know, I used to do it at tables, but I don't now I do it once at the show. It's a closer. And uh, and with the message that goes with it, and with the quote from Geller, it's it has become something, you know. I David Copperfield invited me back, in fact, it was actually David Copperfield's apartment at the MGM Grand after a tour of uh his museum, which was very lucky to have myself, my wife, and Matthew, Matthew Dowden. We were in Vegas and David Copperfield, we in we saw the show, it was loved it, invited us to his museum. That was incredible. It felt like it felt I felt like Charlie and the chocolate factory, a kid and it was unbelievable. Like if I told the story of going to Copperfield's museum, it sounds made up because it's so ridiculous. The way I went into the museum, there was a fake shop front. Um, and he's changed that recently to a different, but it used to be like a lingerie shop. And you go in, and it's no secret because it's on the edge of a warehouse where you got lorries with Copperfield's eyes on. So it's not that secret, because you know, you know it's in his plot. But you go in this little shop, and to get in there, this was at midnight, we had to meet on a Wednesday in Vegas, and we're in this shop, and there was another couple of people on the tour. Peter Gruber, I think he was a man, the director or something behind Batman, and there was another couple of people on the tour who are far more important than us, which is why we're very lucky that I think we got the really good tour. And uh Copperfield, now this sounds made up, but it's not. He opened there's a there's a little dressing room with a curtain, like you would get in shot. This sounds so weird. He opened, he he was inside this dressing room and he opens the curtain like David Copperfield, like a cabinet, and he beckons us in. And we get into a changing room with David Copperfield, me, my wife, Matthew, and David, and he shuts the curtain. I'm now in a small dressing room with David Copperfield, like a bit like Willie Wonker and Charlie Chocolate Facina in the glass elevator sort of thing. We're in a small space, push this button, and that opened a secret door from the dressing room into his warehouse, and it was just insane. It was the most and probably one of the I I'll remember that forever. It was I I couldn't sleep for after that. It was incredible. But anyway, sorry. After this tour, we then went to his apartment, the MGM Grand, uh, myself, Helen and Matthew, uh, because he wanted me to bend a spoon for him. So then I said, Have you got some spoons? He said, I'll get you some, help yourself to a drink. So we're in his apartment. And he's staying the MGM Grand. They don't do cheap spoons in the MGM Grand, they are very thick. So he comes back with this massive spoon. And I was like, Oh, couldn't you have stayed in a cheaper hotel? Right? And so then I bent a spoon for him and talked about what I did with the thing. And so I've I've got an amazing photograph of me bending a spoon for Copperfield in his apartment. And I gave him one of my magic coins as well, a Michael J. Fitch coin, which I I did the uh muscle pass, showed it that normal coins fall down, these coins fall up. And when he said goodnight to us, he went upstairs and I heard the coin falling on the floor. So I was trying to do the muscle pass, maybe. That's what I like to think anyway, or he just dropped it. But but yeah, so there you go. The spoons, I'm taking spoons with me, but not just to eat, to uh to close my show with if I get a gig on there.
SPEAKER_06What I think's really interesting is we've only had a couple of guests who have mentioned either spoon or fork bending that mentioned doing it on stage. And I think that's what's really unique about what you're doing. You're taking this, you know, famously close-up effect or something that's done on TV with close-up cameras, and you're making it play to a massive audience, and also with that lovely story uh and that lovely full circle moment, it just goes to show that's almost, you know, that's a lesson in taking something intimate into a larger arena, but actually still making it feel intimate.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, absolutely. I mean, a lot of the times I'm doing that. I mean, often, you know, if I'm doing it in like parlor shows or rooms, you know, private dining experiences, it's perfect because the room, everyone can see that close up. And it's very dramatic. It's very dramatic with the music and stuff. It's it's really, really uh intense. But when I do it on stage, like in Italy, there's I've got a camera, they have a camera man, and there's big LED screens
Building A Desert Island Magic List
SPEAKER_04behind me, and it fills the whole screen. Um, and it's all televised and goes around the whole resort on every screen as well. So I'm aware of that. So I'm very much looking down the barrel of the lens and and and selling this. Um, but it's one that people talk about, you know. Um, you know, I'm staying in this resort as well, so people stop me by the pool saying, Oh my god, the spoon was unbelievable. My kids are all grabbing springs at breakfast trying to bend it and this and that. So I know it's something that works, and it's mainly the message that goes over with it as well that nothing is impossible. Um, after the child or the lady has bent this twisted it in her hand and stuff, it's that's what I love. That's you know, there's certain tricks that stand out, and that that would only be right at the end of my set and not the beginning, um, because you know there's other comedy effects and stuff you do, but to have a bit of a serious message that goes over, um, yeah, that's that's pretty special.
SPEAKER_06Well, those spoons are going with you, as well as a recording of Yurigella's voice, uh, just for that end.
SPEAKER_04Yes, and uh and the music.
SPEAKER_06And the music as well.
SPEAKER_04Sound system, yeah, yeah. I presume that I presume there's a sound system there, is there? Because otherwise I've got to pack all that.
SPEAKER_06Uh we'll we'll dump it on your island. It'll be there waiting for you. It'll be there if you want to.
SPEAKER_04Is there electricity? There's electricity, obviously.
SPEAKER_06We're not we're not we'll give you solar panels. There you go. Then then we're being economical. Let's go to number two then. So what's in your second spot?
SPEAKER_04I'm gonna put in a pretty much everyday carry that I have with me, something that a lot of magicians will think doesn't get a very good reaction because it's a lot often as magicians we see tricks and we're like, oh, I know that. I know that. Oh, that's I did that years ago, I'm not doing it now. And they forget the response. So that is my how's that um, you know, my uh cricket bat, mini cricket bat, which is the paddle, a paddle stick. Um, I've got a cricket routine with it, produces a cricket ball. Um and uh I it's it goes down so well. It's such eye-popping stuff, like you know, this. I mean, you get paddles sticks in a in a magic set, you start with, but with when you it gets such there's so many points of magic to it, and it's such a fun, entertaining routine that I it's something that I made the mistake of thinking, oh no, that's no good. I I did it for one cricket event, I made it for that and did it for that, and it went down so well, kept it in my pocket for the next gig and did it at dinner, and then and now it's in my pocket all the time, and at the right time to do it, it's it's a great eye-popping bit of visual magic that just uses uh the very basic stuff, doesn't take up much stage place in your pocket, but it plays big. Pack small plays big. It's a um a mini cricket bat, uh, and I draw a cricket ball on there, and we draw multiple balls on there, and then it's sort of like a memory test, and it's it's very much like the original sort of um, you know, we'll start again. Um, there's three on each side, you rub one away, and then there's there should be five, and now there's but there's still six, and you keep doing it. So sort of fun, confusing routine that people are like, what's going on? And I've had people pick up the paddle and say, Is this like an LED screen? Is this electronic? Because it looks so visual, the the ball popping up the top, and then I produce a real cricket ball from it. Um, so it's yeah, it's it's very basic, but it it absolutely does the job. Um, and I I've had it's weird because I um we used to put them through Alakazama as well, and they we you know, we sold we sold loads when I initially started doing it. Um, and there must be like certain conversations start on chat rooms because I'll be all of a sudden commenting, getting loads of people messaging me, going, Oh, have you got any uh how's that available? I really want one, but I'm like, right, so I need to get some because I've got these beautiful little leather cricket balls that go with it and stuff. So in fact, I've got I've got a little list here of people that want one that I
Memorized Deck Goals And ChatGPT Practice
SPEAKER_04need to uh to get some more put together. So I will be doing some more soon. But it's it is a it's just a real fun close-up routine that's that it's visual, very visual, eye-popping, and it's got the perfect ending. And it looks like a cricket bat. Because the thing is with a paddle stick, you get it out, you go, What's that? Well, it it looks it's a cricket bat because it's what it looks like. It's a mini cricket bat that you know a small cricketer or a guinea pig would use.
SPEAKER_06Um, so we've actually had this on the podcast before. It was Wayne McEwen had this in his list, it was his number one spot on his list. So if you haven't listened to this, go check it out. Um, but yeah, paddle routines. I think paddle routines are very underrated now. Uh, I think that they are still really good fun. Uh, I actually found uh one of the old diamond uh hot rods a few weeks ago and took it into working around. And it still gets great reactions from people that have never seen a paddle trick before because you know it just it is such a simple prop, such a simple idea that people can latch onto, but it just looks so impossible. And using your cricket bat uh is just a great, great way of doing it.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, exactly. And there's some great stuff out there with lighters as well, and you know, labels coming off lighters and stretching the lighter or different things happening, but it's it's a great thing. And even like when I've done some trade shows and you've got a trade show with their logo on on, for example, I've got a pen here, that when you when you make their logo appear on the pen, just by doing that simple paddle move, it's another little trick that you're and it goes down really well. So I've been at trade shows where their logo is just in the right place, and you can show, oh, this is a blank, blank pen, but if I do this, it's got a logo on, you'll never forget it. And then they're like, Oh wow, how'd you do that? And it's just you know, it's the basics that that uh you know we should all learn when we're younger, and but don't underestimate the power of some of these simple tricks that you learn because uh there's there's the lesson there, everybody. Don't underestimate the power.
SPEAKER_06There you go. So that's going with you. You've got a little cricket bat, and maybe we'll have to give you a little gerbil or something uh to play with.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I'll give the guinea pig to play cricket with, yeah.
SPEAKER_06Let's go to number three then.
SPEAKER_05What's in your third spot?
SPEAKER_04One of my favourite ones, tricks, uh, which I think you sell Alakazam. So you're probably gonna sell loads of these now. Maybe I won't. Oh, actually, I'm not gonna say it then, because they want to do it. It's a really good trick, moving on. Ah, oh, conflicted. No, is the plunger, the tiny plunger. I love it. I love the tiny plunger. I don't do it enough. It's one of those tricks that you need to be the right scenario, the right setting with the right audience. But it's killer. It's absolute tiny plunger is I love it. It's incredible. So the the trick is um you've got a little tiny plunger, and you've got a pack of cards, and you get you say this plunger can pick up as many cards as you like, and you um read the cut rev the plunger up, and they name a number from one to ten, they and you whack the plunger on top of the pack, and it cuts that many cards off. They count them, then you get a bigger number between 10 and 20, and it cuts that amount off. Then it finds a thought-of card, and it all builds up to people think it's you as a magician doing it. You get you get the spectator to hold the plunger, and they cut the pack and they cut to a card that they picked. It's it's just genius. It's genius, and the the work that's gone into it. Uh, I I love that trick. So I've got a little plunger in my bag.
SPEAKER_06Now I remember when this came out, and it really took the magic world by storm because no one had seen anything quite like it before, and it was so fooling. I remember the the the weird methods that people were thinking up at the time, and you know, for something so strange for it to absolutely capture the imaginations of magicians, and so many people perform it now, is a testament to just how interesting and quirky of a routine it is. It's totally different to anything that anyone does before it.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I did well. Didn't he do it on Flawless as well? Did he fall them with the plunger? I thought I think he did it on Flawless as well. There's a great performance of him doing it on Flawless. Um it's it's it's great. I I love it, and it it's it's different as well, you know. I've I I really enjoy performing it. I've got some great little lines that go with it saying that I speak fluent Plungese and all this stuff, and it's ridiculous. And but it it's it's entertaining. That's important, you know. You want to freak people out, but I want to pick magic that's got that's entertaining, that you can really have fun with. And the cricket bat, the plunger, all these sort of things, you get the right scenario with people around a table. You're showing them, you're not just going, I'll pick a card, there's your card, this is that. You're showing them something ridiculous and a story about when the plunger comes out and what it is, and I can communicate with this plunger, and it's just ridiculous, and it's fun, and it and you take them on a little journey, and uh so yeah, that's why I like sort of quirky little bits like that, you know. As magicians, we you you pull out this random stuff out of your pockets. It's I'm a grown man, I'm over 40, and I'm carrying a little plunger in my pocket and a baby cricket bat. What am I doing? You know.
SPEAKER_06Well, I'm excited that you speak fluent plunge, so you can continue the rest of the podcast uh in that language if you want.
SPEAKER_04Okay, it's very similar to English. You ready? Okay, here we go. Let's carry on the podcast.
SPEAKER_06I wonder if anyone that has well has done that effect, but with a full-size plunger, but a giant desk. Oh, I've tried.
SPEAKER_04I've tried it. I've tried it. Does it work? There's a company, yeah. It's not not not easy. It's I'm I'm not talking methods now, but it's yeah, it's not not easy. But I have got a giant plunger and tried it, but we didn't, we stuck with a little one because I thought let's just sit around there. But there's a company, and this was literally where it came to its own. There's a company who sell plungers, and they were like, Oh, can you do a special show for us? And I'm like, What do you do? We sell this, we sell plungers, brooms. Well, okay, I might create a special trick for you, it might cost you a few quid. No, I didn't. Uh and yeah, so I'm in fact, next week I'm working for this company in the NEC for two two days, and I've got to sell they they sell all different industrial stuff to garden centres and things. I've got to do magic with um ant killer, so some special antiller spray and uh brooms. So I've got to do magic with brooms and antkiller, which uh yeah, which obviously I've got some beautiful playing cards printed by yourselves for the trade show, um, uh, which I always do. So I recommend that service enough, is uh, you know, there's so many great custom tricks you can do. You get a trade show and uh you can contact your company and then we can get the uh custom playing cards done within a few days on bicycle cards, do it as an upsell for a company, and you're doing branded branded magic with their stuff. So so yeah, I'll be doing the little plunger next week at the NEC. So if you come and see us in Hall 9 Monday or no Tuesday or Wednesday, I'll be there with Tiny Plunger.
SPEAKER_06Amazing. Well, your little cricket bat and your little plunger are going with you. Let's go to number four then. What's in your fourth spot?
SPEAKER_04Rope. I'm gonna have a lot of rope with me. Um so yeah, rope. I do there's I mean, I I opened my show with a standard bit of rope and a pair of scissors, and I I was taught a routine from a great magician from the Ipswich Magic Society, um, who not everyone would know this magician. His name was Ted Ted Lumby, and he was uh a lovely guy. I say was it? He's still still with us, he's not not dead. Um I hope he's not dead. Um it depends when you're listening to this. Let's move on. So okay, so I just see Jamie cracking up in the background. I'm digging myself a hole. Ted, if you're out there, up there, wherever you are, Ted, thank you for teaching me this incredible magic with rope. I learned so much, and then I got really into it and I I got Tabori, Tabore's video VHS from Tabore. I think he's alive still. Anyway, let's not go down the anyway. So I studied a lot of rope magic, so you could jazz around with rope and uh yeah, there's that's so I need some rope out there. Oh, and scissors, put that in as one thing, rope and scissors, because you need scissors with rope and rope with scissors, otherwise, you know. But yeah, so there's a there's there's so many different rope tricks that I do, but uh to Bore, I'd learn a lot from Ted Lumby. Uh I learned a lot from um and yeah, and even recently I've started doing some different stuff. I've started doing uh the rope tie, getting my hands tied together, and did that on stage in Italy, and that's a new thing that I'm going to do a lot more with as well. So an escape with the rope. So rope can be used for so much. Um, so yeah.
SPEAKER_06I think that's the the interesting thing as well, is whenever we think of rope, we generally think of one or two. Well, okay, maybe three things. So cut and restored rope, ring and rope, and obviously Professor's Nightmare. But you're right, you can actually do an awful lot with rope. Uh, and you just mentioned like the um the tie, they used to obviously have spirit ties back in the day as well. You can do a scopology with it, you can even just use it to get you out of trouble. You know, you could be somewhere, something breaks, and just having that bit of rope, I've used it a couple of times to tie
Signature Spoon Bending And Big Names
SPEAKER_06uh pieces of wood together that have um come unglued uh just to get me through a performance. So it's a great just tool to have in general.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, absolutely. No, I I get for a lot of rope. I uh um because I when I finish I throw the rope into the orange, the person goes back with a bit of rope. And uh uh yeah, it's it's it's great. And it with all the lines and bits of business that go with it, I do so something which I I I'm very, very lucky to have um from Wayne Dobson, who uh we'll absolutely mention, who was my mentor and friend. Uh and he chose me to pass his voices routine on to, you know, which he became very famous for um on the raw variety performance with uh Harry Frank Bruno and Harry Carpenter, you know. Um, and he wanted me to do it. I I did a show at his old manager's house, Leon Fisk, who is a a a legend, a manager, used to be his manager, used to be Freddie Starr's manager as well. And uh I did a little stand-up spot at his house, and uh as Wayne was there, we did a little bit of the voices, threw it in. And Wayne phoned me the next day and he said, You I want you to do the voices. And he sold the rights to that routine to different people in different parts, different parts of the world. But in the UK, he hadn't, and he's like, I want you to do it. And it was such an honour. And I spent I spent time at Wayne's house, like with a mic stand set up in his house, and he's going, right, boom, here's do this. And he teaches me all the bits of business, you know, and how to do the voices and stuff. And uh I use it for different routines, but the rope routine, when I get a guy up helping me, and you know, scissors not working or this and that, and you his voice suddenly goes, I can't do it, it's not working. You know, it's like what's the rock? I can't do it. And I it people it just takes it to a different level, and it's stuff that I'm extremely lucky. And Wayne printed that in his book as well. He he put a he called it the successor and put a whole thing about me doing the rope routine, about doing the voices. And that is was an incredible thing to to be given. Um, and you know, I've used it for cards across and different bits, and it's just there, but I can do it, you know. I haven't nicked it, it's something that Wayne wanted me to do, and he's actually coached me on and taught me. So I I'm very, very lucky to to be uh to have the rights to do that. And uh and with a bit of rope, a bit of rope, a microphone, a pair of scissors, I can do, you know, ten, twelve minutes of of comedy magic that people talk about. So yeah.
SPEAKER_06Amazing. Well, I think that's a great one in at number four. Let's go to number five then. What would you put in your fifth spot?
SPEAKER_04Let's talk about another mentor of mine who I'm very lucky that a lot of these mentors are friends of mine. I'm extremely lucky that in the magic world I pretty much get on with everybody, but your heroes become your friends. Uh, we mentioned Wayne Dobson earlier on, and there's so much material with Wayne's that I I do um that you know he's personally coached me on. His five-card repeat, actually, his five-card repeat is just you know, there's no gimmicks needed there. You know, Wayne's act used to turn up with a with a carrier bag with his stuff in, and he would go on and absolutely smash it. I'm gonna go to another mentor of mine, and that would be Doc Eason. Doc Eason, um he is uh an amazing bar magician from America. Uh, if you don't know who he is, look him up. I'm sure you will know who he is. I idolized this man. I his VHS set that he put out, Bar Magic. Uh, he did three volume one, two, and three, which I think is now a DVD set right now. Um that stuff I learned probably when I was 15, 14, 15 years old. Uh and that stuff I still do now. It's paid my mortgage stuff. Like when I saw him, I'm like, I owe you a beer because the material I learned on your VHS set and tips, he doesn't just teach material, he did tips and tricks as well. Like he'll say, if you're in a bar, do this, don't focus on that. And he was give you an amazing tips. And I used to do um uh a hotel I used to do every Saturday, I did Friday nights and I used to do Friday nights there at a 14 post-house hotel. It shows how old this is that they don't exist anymore. But they I used to do Sunday afternoon magic and and some evenings. And and at the time when I was younger, I used to have a pack of cards that did this trick in that pocket, a pack of cards that did that trick in that pocket. I had a lock that you couldn't undo with these keys, and I was very much sort of amateur sort of style. One pack did this, one pack did that. But and then it was it was only then really that I learned all these things you can do with a normal pack of cards that Doc was doing, and um that's when I learned uh the real about doing it professionally, and so yeah, a big shout out to Doc Eason, who has got a lovely book out now as well. Actually, he's got his uh autobiography, which is which is well worth a read. He's got an amazing story, he's the most respected bar magician. He's you know, Mark Bennett um actually built created his magic bar because of Doc Eason watching those videos. He's inspired so many magicians, um, and he's a real sort of unsung hero. I'd love to get him over again uh for the magic circle. He came over and did a lecture uh with with his son Ryan um years ago, and and he uh it was amazing. He did a special workshop on card under the glass as well. Any of Doc's material, it's a worker. He doesn't put it out unless he's worked it. And so I 100% recommend anything from him. So uh so yes, sorry, I want a bit of diversion there just to give Doc that shout out. But I were going to take with me money, uh it's weird because it's not really taking I can do this with borrowed objects, but money to lemon. So I'm gonna borrow someone's money, set fire to it, and that's gonna take a lemon. And I learned that from Doc. It's it it's genius. So that is in my show, and um along with all the other stuff that Doc's taught me, I I do so much of his stuff every single day. And uh, I still go back and watch them now. And you know, when you watch like an old movie that you used to watch when you was a kid, it makes you just it's like a comfort blanket. You know, when you watch like that old Star Wars film or Back to the Future or something like that, it takes you back to sitting on the sofa, you know, you know, beans on toast when you're a kid, like just feeling safe and watching this thing. That's how I feel watching Doc's DVDs because it's got this lovely bit of funky jazz music between each bit and all the links, and it's got Michael Lamar interviewing Doc going, yeah, Doc, another great set. What you got for us now? And then they discuss the trick. And and it I I love watching them. And Doc Klein, he sent me his D the DVDs of it now because the VHS, I don't really got a video player anymore, so that's made me want to watch it again. So yeah, I want to watch them again. Doc's and I and I still learn little bits from it as well. There's a Max Maven trick on there with um where you tear two cards in half and they they switch places, it's mind-blowing. There's such incredible stuff on there. So yeah. Uh Doc Eason's material. Let's put that down as it covers me a lot. I can do loads of gigs now on this island.
SPEAKER_06Well, we we often get people trying to uh skirt the rules, but I actually quite like it. I like it when people try and hack the system. Um, so it I mean, you mentioned a specific routine there, but then you've gone back to just his material in general. So I will give
Paddle Cricket Bat And Simple Props
SPEAKER_06you this material in general, but I like that you've done Money to Lemon. Um, what is it about that particular version of Money to Lemon, though? Because obviously there are lots of different versions, lots of different methods. What about that particular version? Just had you hooked.
SPEAKER_04I like, I mean, his whole presentation with it on handing everything out before to the audience, you know, you you you hand the lemon out in a bag to someone in the audience, and he hands a knife out and stuff, I wouldn't do that. But he he hands everything out in advance and it just looks so impossible. Um and it's it's it's one of the tricks that I you know sometimes I get scenarios where I'll be working in quite a rowdy situation surrounded, and I love like I do I do nut egg lemon, I do uh where an object appears inside a walnut, inside an egg, inside a lemon. And that's you know, I can see why Daniels used to always close his show with that, you know, and and Paul Daniels, his material, I mean we'll talk about him in a moment, but his material, there's this there's a lot of his stuff that that um has rubbed off on me big time, and that I love doing that, but that needs to be done in the right scenario. Some of the environments I'm working in, it wouldn't be right. So money to lemon for me is I call it bulletproof, bomb-proof. Like I can do it with people surrounded, with lots of drunk people around me, students everywhere, this or that. It's one of those scenarios that is safe to do, surrounded, um, whatever the environment is. So that is that is very much a go-to um routine for me. I and the bits of business again that go with it as well, you know, handing the lemon out before and getting the guy to shout and doing this and that, borrowing the money. I love that whole sort of setup, this classic magician plot where it looks like it's gone wrong, but then this happens here. So that that's a real go-to for me.
SPEAKER_06Well, your comfort blanket is going with you as well. So we're packing all of Doc Eason's uh material, and that's going away with you. Let's go to number six then. So, what's in your sixth spot?
SPEAKER_00The news is out. The 1914 has found a new home. We are proud to announce that Alakazam Magic are now the proud custodians of the 1914. What does this mean for you? Simply put, everything you love stays exactly where it belongs. The aesthetic, the quality, the philosophy. The website remains unchanged. Your instructional content is safe. The classics that defined the 1914 will be restocked and made available once again. And with our industry-leading infrastructure and customer service behind the scenes, the future is stronger than ever. But this isn't just about preservation. Work has already begun on a series of new 1914 releases. Projects that have been quietly evolving for years and are finally ready to see the light of day. This is the next chapter. Built on respect for the past, driven by belief in the future. Thank you for your continued support. Thank you for coming along with us on this journey. We are the new 1914.
SPEAKER_04And I'm saying this because I do it recently. I've been doing it recently, and it's I enjoy doing it as well. And it gets again gets good feedback from the audience after. And that's my beautiful set of multiplying bottles that was made in Japan, that's very, very expensive. There are there are cheaper versions available now, but they are not quite the same as this set. This is a this is like I think it's £1200, £1,400, something like that. This set, which I didn't pay for. I got a wine merchant to pay for them for me. So I was like, oh look, if you want me for your event, they wanted me for their event. I said, I could do this one here. I showed them. I said, but you know, I don't have these, but if you want to sponsor the trick, they're like, oh yeah, we want you to do that. So brilliant. So they paid for it for me. So that's cool. So I just had to call them Mr. Wheeler's wine bottles for the first year, and now they're they're not. But that so that was uh that was perfect to to get them paid for for me because I really wanted them. Um and I uh I and it's very much done as a tribute to Tommy Cooper because as soon as you know certain uh ages in the audience when they see a bottle and a glass on the table, I think bottle glass, glass bottle, and it's there. So it'd be it it's I mentioned it all the time, so you might recognise this, and they and they love the fact that it's sort of going back and doing it as a tribute to Tommy Cooper. And you know, I have one for the road music playing on the piano, and uh, it's just a joy to perform the whole confusion of it, of the routine. And it's interesting because you know, I know that other magicians who are like, oh, I can't stand multiplying bottles. Uh the audience don't really know it, they know how it's done. You're like, well, actually, some cheaper sets you do because like the bottles look very dodgy. But these ones I've got, they look beautiful wine bottles, and they that it does confuse people, it really does. Magicians become very jaded because we know we've seen it, oh yeah. Audience, you've got the the public see things differently than we do, which is again going back to the paddle, you know, you know, you you do it for a magician, and oh I know what that is, but you do it for a member of the public, they're like, that's amazing. Is that an L C D screen? Or um same with the bottles, you know, the the butt, they come up to me and go, where the hell did all those bottles come from? You know, and and they it's it's fun, and it it's it's got it's a lovely visual, it's lovely to sort of close the show with and do a little toast to the audience at the end, and it's a classy trick. I like it, despite what some other magicians say who've got it wrong. I like it, and I'm taking them on the island with me, so there.
SPEAKER_06They're going with you, but you know, I think you're absolutely right. It's something that we've been talking about a lot recently. Uh, the idea that, you know, magicians we think differently. That that's the crux of it. And you know, we use the analogy of like a plumber can walk into a house and hear what's going on in your house straight away and and you know, suspect what's going on. A doctor can do the same, they can just have a prod about and go, actually, I think it's probably this, you know, and magicians do the same. We think that way because we see the world in a different, different way. So then a lot of the time you get like hypercritical magicians who pick things apart and they don't understand that they're they're seeing things differently, and not that it's not valid, uh their their perspective is 100% valid, of course, but they're thinking of it from a magician's perspective, not from the audience who don't know these things. Uh why would someone have a set of those bottles that do that thing without giving anything away? They don't exist in in the consciousness of an audience or or the general public.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, very true. And I think that that thinking of how magicians sometimes think on certain stuff. We they become very sort of jaded on on certain stuff. Like I saw a show uh in London that I enjoyed. Um it's gonna be so obvious while I'm talking about that. I saw a great magic show in London that that that I enjoyed, it's it's on at the moment, um, and the public loved it. But then I talked to some other magicians and they're totally putting it down, saying, Oh, it was awful. Oh, it was all it was terrible, and I'm like, I didn't see I I see what they're talking about, certain bits, you're like, oh, that didn't work because of this and that. But you know what?
Tiny Plunger Routine And Trade Shows
SPEAKER_04Overall, I watch the audience, and when I see a theatre full of thousands of people loving magic and enjoying it, you know what? They've done the job. It's good for magic. It's good for magic. And rather than me come away telling people how terrible this show was, I was telling people, if you've got kids and you love magic, go and see this show because you're seeing it in a massive theatre in London, and it's the look, the lighting and the sound was unbelievable. And and they're like, Oh, yeah, well, the lighting sound was good, but blah, blah, blah. No, they it was a big production, it was an amazing production, and I I I thoroughly enjoyed it. And yeah, there's certain elements of it, but we're spoiled. We watch, we get a gala show at Blackpool every February where they're trying to top the last Gala show, and they've got bigger and bigger, and they've got the best magicians from around the world showing this cutting-edge magic we've never seen before. And then, oh, because I've seen that before, or oh, I'd do that trick. Well, okay, just because you do that trick doesn't mean that that, you know, there's there's a reason that you do that trick and they do that trick, is because that trick works to an audience, and there is an element of that that oh, it's lazy, it's lazy that they're doing this and that. Well, look, I I thought I I thought it was a very, very. I'm just saying, the reason I mention this is because this whole attitude that a lot uh magicians always have, and you know, and I'm probably guilty of it as well. I think all magicians have it, is just to to it's so easy just to put everything down like that. It's much better if you could just skip tell see if it was something positive about it. Oh, well done, that's good. All that you know, the bigger picture. Um see, it's just it's just too easy to criticize everything. Uh, and I I'm I'm I love magic, and I I watch look when in this show I I saw they had you know big illusions, they had so and so, but then they have like just basic sort of a bit of card magic on camera, ambitious card, card keeps coming to the top. The people around me were gasping, it got the bigger reactions than helicopters appearing and stuff. You got people around me going, oh my god, that's amazing. And it would be so easy to come around going, oh, that whole thing. You say that's brilliant. That's brilliant, it's good for magic. So sorry, I went on a bit of a tangent there, but that's it's just I'm I'm seeing it a lot, and and to a lot of magicians as well, it's just everyone putting everyone else down, and it's it's uh yeah, it's not it's not nice to see. But I I why did why are we talking about this again? Oh, yeah, we're talking about the uh about about magic, about that attitude on on certain tricks on on the multiplying bottles, on certain tricks and stuff. If the public love it, they're the ones who your paying audience, okay? And uh and a paying audience who sees stuff just because it's seen in other places as well doesn't make it bad. Um so yeah.
SPEAKER_06Well, that exactly what you were just on about. Literally this morning, uh, I read a post putting that particular show down, uh, and I had to I never normally talk up, but I did have to put a comment on there. Exactly what you just said. Yeah. Uh I got the chance to go and see it last Saturday. Absolutely loved it. I thought it was brilliant, and you know, for me it was just how often do you get the chance to see high budget, big profile magic in the middle of London in a gorgeous theatre with some incredible talent? And sure, we could all pick it apart and do it differently, and maybe there were things that should have been done differently. Who cares? The audience, the day that I went in particular, the audience absolutely loved it, and exactly like you said, there were gasps around me. And magicians also are unaware of the bigger picture, they are not backstage, they're not part of production, they don't understand necessarily why choices and decisions have been made the way that they have been made. Um, so you know, it's easy to criticize, but if you don't know what's going on behind the scenes and you don't know the circumstance, you know, and the limitations, etc., just take it for what it is, enjoy it for what it is, be grateful that we have big budget, high-profile magic on in the West End. And even more than that, it's the the you know, Rafferty, uh a brilliant member of the Young Magician's Club, um an opportunity for him that he would likely not get if it wasn't in that thing. So, you know, it's about the careers and the things that this is gonna launch for other people that are in the show as well. So, yeah, I I know we've both gone off on a tangent now, which I never do on this podcast, but I agree.
SPEAKER_04So the show we're talking about, you've given a clue now. Well, it's it's now you see me live, okay? That is the show, so that's the end of that little quiz section. Um, have I frozen? No, we're still here. Yeah, you go, we're back. Yeah, now you see me live, and uh and I loved it, I loved it, and yeah, and so we had Rafferty. Yeah, I watched him win the uh stage magician competition at the young YMC. Um, and then whoever wins that competition, uh, me and Lee usually invite them to be part of the Magic Circle convention. So last year Rafferty was in the convention, and then obviously he went on and did BGT, and now he's on at the London Coliseum. And I look forward to watching his career. He's he's got he's got he's got a lovely smile, he's got a lovely energy about him. Um, but the whole cast, I loved it. I think, you know, the way that Matthew uh Pomeroy held it all together, he's an incredible presenter, he presented it really well, and uh and and I love the way it was produced by you know different magicians appearing on the balcony or this side, you didn't know where to look. And you know, some people are saying, oh, well, it should have been leaked to the film, there was no storyline. Look, it was a magic show. It's the characters from the film putting on a commercial magic show, and it did that very, very well. You know, everyone there enjoyed it, apart from magicians. Some magicians are like, oh, I've seen them do that trick. You tear the cars, they all match. Why are they doing that? Why are they doing this or that? Look, it works. It was a great thing to do before the interval because look at the energy it took created in the room. So um, yeah, I I'm I I didn't know you'd that's weird. I didn't know you that there'd been a post and you commented on that today. But um, yeah, congratulations to everyone involved in that show. I recommend it to lots of families who uh love magic. And um, yeah, I thought it was really good.
SPEAKER_06Yep, absolutely. Well, let's go let's go back to the concept of the podcast. Uh that's one of the biggest uh leaps that we've ever had. Uh let's go to number seven then. So, what's in your seventh spot?
SPEAKER_04Oh, there's there's so many other magicians that I should be making. I want I'm trying to find a reason to mention Terry Herbert so I can do my Terry Herbert impression. Let me think. Um, what would Terry Herbert pick? Um shout out to Terry Herbert because uh he's a legend, he's such a lovely guy, Terry. Um he did him at Magic Circle. He was our first legend. We created this thing called Legends, where I interviewed these proper legends of the Magic Circle, and Terry was the first one. And there's so many who aren't gonna say anymore that uh we should have been to give them their own special like evening. But Terry was the first, and he performed at Magic Circle Convention, did his uh card to sausage. Is that your sausage? It's it's brilliant, Terry. And you know, such again, you know, you know, coming from the world of doing a lot of children's shows, Terry Terry's with so much material out there, and uh he's yeah, he's brilliant.
SPEAKER_03So um Terry Herbert that made me very angry because I was looking forward to my Terry Herbert impression on the podcast. And you know the thing is you know, yeah, it's uh I was uh I wish Terry Herbert was like really, really famous because I could use it in my act, but I realize that if I people don't know who Terry Herbert
Rope Magic And Wayne Dobson Legacy
SPEAKER_03is, it doesn't really land.
SPEAKER_04So I can do there's two impressions I can do. The two.
SPEAKER_03One is Terry Herbert's uh hello everyone, this is me, Terry Herbert here. You know, it's great to be here, you know, talking on the pump off even though I wasn't really advantageous. But I would love to, you know, go on this island, you know, but you know, it's uh you know it's not easy anymore. Right, so there's Terry, right?
SPEAKER_04But do then shows the other one, brace yourself, is Michael McIntyre.
SPEAKER_02Hello, it's Amazing to be here, so exciting. Absolutely wonderful to be here on this podcast, on this desert. It's so exciting. I can't believe I'm actually going on the ugly amazing. It's magic on there, watch the show. I can't believe it. It's so exciting, absolutely amazing. So good. Spin the wheel. So there you go.
SPEAKER_06Do you know what? Right? At the very beginning of the podcast, we always put like a sound bite, right? I can can you just for now, I want you to give us in in just in the voice, because obviously there's no there's no picture, just the beginning of the podcast. Whatever you want to say, just get people hooked. But as Michael McIntyre.
SPEAKER_04Okay, hold on, hold on. Let's say this. Okay.
SPEAKER_02Hello everyone. It's me, Michael McIntyre. I'm so excited to be on today's podcast. It's gonna be amazing. It's gonna be a big show. Join me on this desert island where we see what magician and what magic he is bringing on the island. It's gonna be amazing. So let's get on with it and spin the wheel.
SPEAKER_06Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. Now, that's gonna really confuse our UK audience, but confuse our American audience even more, probably. Ah, brilliant. There you go. But that's great. I will say though, we've still not got a seventh trick from you.
SPEAKER_04Um what's gonna be impressions? Um, I'm gonna chuck an egg bag in because you know what? It's always good to have an egg bag.
SPEAKER_03As Terry Herbert would say, Do you know what, Michael? I always pack an egg bag because I'm always ready to go. So there you go.
SPEAKER_05There you go. You got him in there somewhere.
SPEAKER_04Eggbag. I come in there. It's great. Eggbag's great. Jobson, what he did with the egg bag was just beautiful and incredible. And um, yeah, the a proper egg bag routine. Uh I've and that works for different. I mean, I do usually do it in family shows. I've not took the uh plunge to do it for adults. I used to in my golf show, is you do it with a golf ball. Um, but yeah, egg bag is is a good solid thing to have in your bag. And I was advised that by the magicians, always have this and you'll never starve. Which is great, you know. You do a good egg bag routine. So there you go. I'm gonna put Terry Herbert doing the egg bag in there.
SPEAKER_03Here we go. Watch closely, egg bag, bag egg.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, this for me. So when I started doing restaurants uh years ago now, I didn't have any tricks for kids. And you know, there there's always a kid at the at tables whenever I'm doing my residency. So um I packed uh just a small Malini egg bag in my case, and it very much is that trick that makes the kid the the star. So there you have that lovely moment at the end where you know uh they stand up at the end of the table, you take their seat at the restaurant table. Uh so it's all about the kids. They look inside, they reach up, they reach in and pull out the the egg or the golf ball, and there's there's a lovely moment where no one really understands where it's going, and you see the kids' face absolutely light up when they reach inside the bag and they feel it for the first time. So it's just a wonderful, wonderful moment if you've got younger people uh that you're performing for.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, so that's why I'm putting egg bag in.
SPEAKER_06Okay, well, let's go to your eighth one then. So your final trick, what are you taking with you?
SPEAKER_04I'm gonna put in my CubeZag allusion, which used to belong to Wayne Dobson. So uh I and that means my wife's got to go with me as well, though, because there's no point in just me going, look, here's a box that usually someone gets in. So, yeah, so Helen can come along as well. Um, and who is my brain, she like literally runs my business. So I I need Helen there anyway, otherwise it would be ridiculous. So let's uh let's put Helen in the CubeZag. She can she can travel in the Cube Zag as well if you want. She can, you know, she could be in there. So uh but yeah, cubesag illusion uh is uh an incredible illusion. I first saw it performed by Russ Stevens on Tricks and Tracks, and I remember watching it and thinking, how the hell is that done? It's the most impossible illusion I'd ever seen. You know, lady in the box, we put a blade through the middle first, then a tube goes underneath, then a tube goes in the top, and then splits the box in half and blew my mind. And then, you know, later on to to be able to get that illusion and perform it was it was a dream. And I love putting it in shows, so I don't do it all the time. It's done as a sort of upsell for big corporates and ones with the right budget and stuff, but it's uh it's it's great, it's a puzzle, it's a puzzle on stage, and uh I I present it, I patter through it while doing it, um, rather than just putting on music and waving my hands around. You know, I talk I talk it through like a puzzle, and it goes down so well with the audience as well. Um, so and yeah, the fact that this one used to belong to to Wayne Dobson as well means means a lot. Um so yeah, Cube Zag Illusion, I'm putting that in. So I've got a good little running order here now. I could do a good good little little show.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, I mean it's a great way to close out your list. And like you say, you've got an eclectic mix of things here. You know, you had your memorized deck, then you went into that spoon bending on stage with that Yuri Geller moment, then you had how's that with your mini uh bat, I guess, baseball bat. Then you've got your tiny plunger, then you've got your rope routines, and now you've got money to lemon slash all of Doc Eastern's material that you snuck in there. Yes, um, you've got multiplying bottles, uh, which is amazing. Then you've got an egg bag, and now you're ending with your big cubes. I think you know, we started at the head of the podcast about you saying that you're into all different types of magic, and I think that's that's pretty evident there. Uh you know, we always talk about those photo opportunities at a gig, uh, about making them diverse. And imagine this as a set of photos. All of them are completely different, completely interesting, and a little bit balmy.
SPEAKER_04Thanks. Uh that is me. A little bit balmy. Uh yeah. I mean, my the OCD side of me was listening to that running order, going, no, I'm not in that order though. But I'm you know, I'm looking at it like proper running order going, no, I wouldn't open with that, I'd close with that, I'd do that there and there. But I'm taking it far too seriously.
SPEAKER_06What would your opener and your closer be then?
SPEAKER_04The opener would be um the rope. I'd start with the rope. The closer would be the spoon bend as the encore piece, and the uh oh, and then you've either got bottles or the cubes add cubes egg probably in the middle, put a nice big hit in the middle there, and sort of, you know, up and down, up and down. But it's all they're all all good, uh uh good stuff. But yeah, it's interesting. It's been interesting because I I didn't know like I last couple of days I was like, oh, what am I gonna do? I made a couple of notes, but I this natural conversation has helped me pack, so I appreciate that. There's still stuff I've left out, you know, dancing, hanky, I've left out a big bit of my kids' show, my my drawing board routine, or this and that. But I'm I'm overthinking it. I I don't know how long I'm on this island for, but I've got enough there to uh to do and have a nice show with, and I've got me me uh I'm still memorizing that deck and learning that as well. Uh one four clubs. Uh and two too hot. I but I can yeah, really, I've got enough time to to to learn the other bits as well with that memorized deck. It's it's fun. It's I'm looking forward to this trip. Three, three is seven of diamonds. Do you know how I remember that? Go on. James Bond, James Bond shooting a tree with seven diamonds coming out of the gun.
SPEAKER_05I really there you go.
SPEAKER_04So double seven, 007 diamonds, gun. Some of them I've got the most bizarre images I cannot repeat on here, but it's it's it's amazing. The the brain is incredible actually. When when memorizing something, um and and again, using chat GPT to create some images
Money To Lemon And Worker Material
SPEAKER_04that you can only think of happens in like one minute. You get like a picture. I've got like 48, right, is the Queen of Spades. Now I've think of 48 hours in police custody, right? The tape for with 48 hours of police custody, with the Queen digging, right? 48 hours of police custody out of the ground. And I bet you everyone else here now will remember 48. And that's that's the beauty of uh learning it properly. Is I'm just trying to find it so I can show you. I know everyone else should be able to see, but I will it's so random. How good is that image?
SPEAKER_06I'm I'm sure that's nearly treason.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, probably is, especially some of the others. I want to show you them. Look, that's a good one, right? 30. Do you know you know you know the stat. What's number 30?
SPEAKER_06That's gonna be the five of clubs, yeah.
SPEAKER_04And explain what you're looking at there.
SPEAKER_06Uh the Jackson 5 beating a something of 30 miles an hour with big clubs, and that's it.
SPEAKER_04And it's it's amazing. So, but now I've created a story linking them all together. I've got the most random story in my head, so I've got to do that. But it's it's been really fun. It and it it's you know, a nice sort of tribute to Tanres for me to finally sit down and nail it and and I've got his book there so I can finally learn all the stuff in it. But yeah, it's fun, but I've got such random image. It's uh it's it and it and it takes over as well. Like when I go to sleep, I'm going, I'm going, I can't go to sleep until I've gone for all 52 cards. And I'm sitting there like mumbling, going, four o'clock, soon it's like my wife's like, what are you? Are you on medication? Four diamonds, three subs, six of hearts.
SPEAKER_06Do you do it in the voice of uh Michael McIntyre though? That's the question.
SPEAKER_02No, you know what? I shouldn't do that. Absolutely. One, four of clubs, two, two of hearts, three, seven of diamonds, four is the three of clubs, and five is the four of hearts.
SPEAKER_03Well, I could clap this as Terry. That's very good, Michael. Yeah. But what's number six? Six is the six of diamonds, seven is the ace of spades.
SPEAKER_02I'm mixing Terry and Biggie there. That's weird.
SPEAKER_06Now, we've given you eight tricks, but we're only gonna give you one each of these. So, Michael and Michael and Terry. I want you to yes.
SPEAKER_03Well, go on, what'd he say? He said he's gonna give us some other options. Okay, I got it. Yeah, you got it right, just wait there, you two. Okay, sorry.
SPEAKER_05So I want you to imagine that you're about to dig a big sandy hole on your island, throw something inside never to be seen again.
SPEAKER_06What are you gonna banish on your island?
SPEAKER_04I think we mentioned it earlier on, but if we could the that that side of the I'm the nastiness of some that that you see in magic sometimes of of the bickering side of it. Because I like to try, I literally try and get on with everybody. And unfortunately, you see these things happening about uh between magicians, and it it's it leaves a horrible sour taste. And I just wish everyone would get on and support each other. That's what I would love to put in that hole along with uh the bandana.
SPEAKER_05We've we've had that before, we've had that before.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I'm not surprised you hear that bit of music.
SPEAKER_06Um yeah, you know, so so yeah, I think I think that that trait that trait Well normally uh we would we would carry on with this, but we spent about five minutes earlier on talking about it, so I'm not gonna go any more on that.
SPEAKER_04Listen, and you agree it's a good thing to put in there as well.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, a hundred percent. I think it should go in there. I think you know, hyper-critical magicians is not good. I think be uh uh do you know what I think it is, is I think it's magicians aren't self-aware enough. I think magicians aren't aware that we think the way that we do, and that maybe we do overthink things and that we do take things a bit too seriously sometimes. Um, you know, and w we should just remember that this is about making others happy and allowing other people to enjoy these moments. It shouldn't really be about us at any point. So that particular show we were on about earlier, it's about the audience, it's not about us as performers.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, right, yeah, absolutely. And like, you know, if if a magician's doing well with something, just be pleased for them rather than try and knock them down. You know, you've everyone's on their own journey. Um, there's enough there's enough room for everybody.
SPEAKER_06Well, like I say, go back and listen to earlier's chat about that. Let's go to your book then. What book are you gonna take with you?
SPEAKER_04It's a bit of a toss-up between two. There's one uh David Berglass' uh Magic and Mentalism, that his his uh book is like I love that book. I I didn't have that book for ages. I'd sit, you know, I borrowed it off Graham Jolly, and then uh, you know, I used to look at it in the library, and then finally I managed to get my own copy. And I spent a lot of time with David Berglass because I used to go to his house and help build his website actually, which uh I recommend davidberglass.com. Uh he has got some amazing uh video scrapbooks on there where it's him telling the stories in his own words and uh all this uh photographs to accompany these stories, and he's got some amazing stories. He really was incredible, and uh he was a sort of a bit of a myth, David Burglass, when I was younger like you sort of you'd see these bits and hear about the burglas effect and this and that. And when I remember meeting him for the first time and then seeing me lecture at the Magic Circle, and he was everything that you wanted that sort of magician to be. He always sounded, he's got that amazing voice. Now listen, you do this and this and that. And it was incredible. And to become friends with him, and obviously, you know, Marvin, his son, is now president and he's one of my closest friends in magic. Um, you know, uh I'm very very, very lucky. Um, so his book is great, and even his latest book as well, actually, that was very good. There was a system in there about a roulette system in there I found fascinating about how to win at roulette all the time. There's a mathematical system, and it's quite funny. I went, I um it was one bank holiday and I'd studied this system. It's a mathematical formula that you do on red or black, and what you would do, and you'd double another bit more, and apparently it worked all the time. Well, one bank holiday Monday, it was raining, and uh on the TV, you know, they have the uh live roulette on there where you can place bets. Well, after a few beers, I'd uh I've been doing it on the roulette wheel at home, like oh no, it's working, it's working right. So my friend's over, I'm like, look at this system, blah, blah, blah. I did it. And oh my days, I went off the system because you I didn't stick to it. I was like, put money down, it'd be coming. Oh, it's got to be red now. No, it's black. Oh, damn. We've got to add another £100 plus another £50 or whatever. You've got to keep doubling and a bit more to get back what you'd originally lost. And it got to a stage where I was putting like a bet down for £500. And my mate's just going against the system, going, mate, it's got to be black now. It's got to be. It was red, red, red. I go, yeah, but the system's like, no, it's gotta be. All right, black, boom, no, it's red. Oh, you idiot. So we I I I think I chose to forget this, but I think I lost quite a lot of money uh that day on that bank holiday Monday. Uh, so I need to go back and finish that book. But I told David, and he went, You obviously didn't stick to the system. Oh, damn, you know, but it was uh there is there's some fascinating stories in there. So but that but I have read that book back to front, so I'm not gonna take that book, but I did want to give that little shout out. I'm gonna take this book here. Because, and this is notes from a fellow traveller, Darren Brown, which my wife got signed for me because I couldn't go to the book launch. Now, the problem is I've only read about that much of the book because I literally am travelling with this book. I took this book to Italy with me three times. I've flown to Italy with this heavy book and put it on the side of my bed and not opened it. So I think the book itself is the traveller. The ironic thing is that this is the book that's travelling. It's done so many miles, this book. So I need to find time to sit down and absorb this book, pour a large whiskey, sit down and read it. But I've got too many distractions going on. So I know it's an amazing book because I know Darren's incredible. I, you know, I know the sort of content that is in a book, and what I've read already was inspiring. So this is the book that I'm finally going to take time, sit down and read and absorb.
SPEAKER_06Well, without knowing that you've done this, you've just named our two most selected books throughout the entire podcast since we've been going.
SPEAKER_04That's incredible. I should win a prize. I should definitely get some kind of Alakazan vouchers
Multiplying Bottles And Audience Perspective
SPEAKER_04or something.
SPEAKER_03Uh what do you think, Terry? I think that's a great idea. I think I should get some too. All right, you get some.
SPEAKER_04Michael, do you want some? Yes, I want some too. Right, send us some Alakazan vouchers for me, Terry, and Michael McIntyre.
SPEAKER_06Well, here's the deal. If you can do Pete, then technically we can get you saying on here.
SPEAKER_04You know what? That's not a bad idea. I might have to have a think about that. I can't do it. That was my that was meant to be Pete and Auddy. Do you know what? That's not a bad idea. I'll have to have a little think. Michael, you alright? No, sorry. I I can't. That was more than I'm working on my Andy Nyman. Look, I've got the glasses ready.
SPEAKER_05We've gone off the rails with this episode. Right, let's go to your final thing.
SPEAKER_04So this isn't a video.
SPEAKER_05A non-magic item that you use for magic.
SPEAKER_04My mobile phone. Because there's some certain things on there that I can do that I won't reveal on here. But you know, I can do all sorts of magic with my mobile phone. Thank you very much. I can uh there's so many, so many cool things I can do on there. Let me think. Um it used to be uh am I allowed to I don't I the one with the calculator where I would take the numbers off and put it on another phone and do them there. It's not as good as it used to be, that one now. And the annoying thing is that that is something that you I do gigs for people and they're oh do that one with the numbers on the calculator. I'm like it's a different one. Uh because Apple messed it up and changed to something. There was still a way of doing it, but it's a bit of a bit of a bit faff. That was my that I used to love that. But obviously, there is I can't say there's too much stuff to give away. I can perform some of the best mind reading in the world. Okay. You know, we can go to Wikipedia. You can go to Wikipedia, you can get any article on Wikipedia, it's good. You could think of a song. Now now I feel like I'm just putting money in Mark Kirsten's pocket, so I'm gonna stop.
SPEAKER_06Well, I think that's a great one. We're gonna send you with your phone uh and a cruise ship full of stuff. So we're gonna go over it one more time. We had your memorized deck, spoon bending, how's that? Tiny plunger, you had your rope, money to lemon, as well as all of Doc Eason's material. We've got multiplying bottles, the egg bag, the cubesag, your banishment is negativity and magic, your book is notes from a fellow traveller, and your item is a mobile phone. That's a pretty chaotic episode.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I'm very pleased with that list. What about Tom Wright? Can I put him in just to annoy him?
SPEAKER_06I mean, you've taken everything else at this point. If you if you want to take if you want to take Tom Wright, you can take him as well.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, he's he's my drinking buddy. You know, at Blackpool, me and him just go crazy. Uh and it's and he yeah, I'll put Tom Wright in because I thought he put me in his just so he could wind me up. So I'm gonna put him in just to wind him up even more. Tom is the most gullible person ever, he's so easy to wind up. Like I go down, I'll say something ridiculous, like, oh, I've just seen you know your face on Sky News. And he'll go, What? He's like, Oh, it's he's got it straight away. He's yeah, he's very gullible. It's great. So let's put Tom right in because every day will be very entertaining. Um, in fact, I've while I've been doing the podcast, I've got a text from him saying, I've got to tell you a funny story that's happened. So he's always there's always stuff happening in Tom's life. Uh, Tom is a great magician. If you haven't seen him, check out his material. I know he did your convention and absolutely smashed it out of the park. Um, he's he's he is like a sort of Freddy Starr, does magic type character. Expect the unexpected, and he's he's brilliant. He's he's a good mate of mine. Uh I love him to bits, and uh I like to take the piss out of him.
SPEAKER_06He is phenomenal. Uh at the convention, we recorded the show just for us um to watch, and the Alkazam team watched the show again the day after, and we were in fits of laughter, all of us in uh Pete's living room watching it again. You know, he is an absolute treasure. I think we should absolutely be so lucky that we have him in our industry. He's absolutely brilliant and super lovely, uh, a great thinker as well. And yeah, he's absolutely brilliant. But he's going with you. I do find it interesting though. Uh, you have kids, don't you? Oh, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_06So you've decided to take your wife.
SPEAKER_04Should I bought them?
SPEAKER_06And Tom Wright, but not your kids, which I think's I think that's interesting. Oh, yeah. They can.
SPEAKER_04Oh man, I hope they don't listen to this now. Yes, I've got two lovely daughters, Savannah and Scarlett. Um Savannah's now 22. Scarlett's 18. So they're yeah, they they depends how long I'm going for, you know. They they're fed up with me going on holidays where it's magic lady holiday. Although they soon like to come with me when it's in places like Sardinia stuff. Oh, yeah, we'll come to work with you. But they want to come to Birmingham to trade show. No, they don't. Funny that. But yeah, so they yeah, they they can come, they can come as well. But yeah, it depends. If there's I've I'm seeing this is going to be more like the Blackpool sort of vibe. So, you know, I've got loads of magician friends I'd like to bring. You know, myself and Tom started this thing called bus trip, which there is no bus by the way, we just call it the bus trip. There's never been a bus. Um, and it was very much a parody of a retreat that another famous magic company was doing, um, and charging an obscene amount of money for to do. So Tom wrote a copy for an alternative version rather than going somewhere exotic. You know, he wrote, Come and join us and Skegness. We'll be going to CernSo, we'll have fish and chips, we'll do this or that. And he put it on Facebook. I said, You can post it, it's really funny. And he put it on Facebook, and loads of magicians went, Oh, I'd go to this, I'd go. So we actually got a load of us and we did it, and we're on our fifth year now. We all go to a we go to a locked cabin and we do we do magic, so it is touch-deductible. Um, just saying, uh, we do we have a little magic lecture. We talk, you know what? In all seriousness, it's so good for like our mental health. We're all we're all mental, but like just that bond of magicians. When you've got a magician friends can be the best in the world. We spoke about the opposite side of of how it can be in the magic world, but when you've got a group of friends who share the same passion as you, that's why I love Blackpool so much. The highlight for me for Blackpool isn't the shows or the dealers, it's that friendship, the time in the bar in the restaurant where you're talking, and you are in fits of laughter that you can't even breathe. You'll only get that with the closest people to you. And uh in magic, we're very lucky that there are some incredible friendships there. And I've I'm I'm very, very lucky. Having been in magic for so long, I I've got so many incredible friends in Magic, and uh um and we've got this thing in common that we love creating that wonder and uh and having fun. And how lucky are we we get to do what we do for living? Um amazing people, making them laugh. I mean, that's the best job in the world. So, you know, that's that's why I'm taking time. I'll take all my other mates in as well. Everyone on the bus trip can come.
SPEAKER_06There you go. Well, I think that's a great, a great way to end your episode. Now, if people want to find out more about you and everything that you're doing, uh, where can they go?
SPEAKER_04Uh well, I mean, uh my uh I guess we're probably friends on Facebook already, but if not, you can message me on Facebook on my website is michaeljfitch.com. That's about me. That's not the dates that I'm in Gordon Ramsey's uh up there. So if you're in London and and what's come to the table and do some magic for you, lovely to see you. Um, but uh yeah, you'll see me around obviously at the magic circle at conventions. Come and say hello if you listen to the podcast. I'd love to love to say hello to you. And uh if you're interested in how's that, I'm gonna get some more of them done um uh very soon. So you can you can hit me up a direct message as well via my website.
SPEAKER_06Well, thank you very much again for your time. It's nice to finally have you on here.
SPEAKER_04It was fun. I'm sorry it's been so long, but it was it was the right time now to do it, and I appreciate it. Thank you for asking me.
SPEAKER_06And thank uh the other Michael as well. One second.
SPEAKER_02Uh Michael, yes, yes, oh hello, thank you so much for having us. It was amazing. I'm gonna go for the big show.
SPEAKER_03Well, oh yeah, thanks, Nobe. Nice to see you. Bye-bye. Wibbly wobbly.
SPEAKER_05Like I say, this is gonna be so fun to edit, this one. Uh thank you guys for listening as well. We'll be back next week with another episode. But until then, have a great week. Goodbye.
SPEAKER_01Hi, Peter Nardi here, and I really hope you enjoyed that podcast. I just wanted to make you know that Alakazam have their own app. You can download it from the App Store or the Google Play Store. By downloading the app, it will make your shopping experience even slicker at Alakazam. You'll also get exclusive in app offers and in app live streams. So go download it now and we'll see you on the next podcast.
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