Number 216 - 14th August 2004
The
33rd Annual International Magic Convention will run from Friday
November 26th to Sunday 28th 2004. The whole event will now take place at
the Shaw Theatre, which is part of the
Novotel Euston, London, and is also the convention's HQ hotel; so it
should be the ideal venue. On the Saturday they'll be staging the Close-up
Competition with a £1,000 cash first prize, and every evening the same
gala show will play in the theatre allowing magicians to pick an
individual day or attend the entire convention. Booked so far: Vito Lupo
(photo - USA), David Williamson (USA), Ray Grismer (USA), Piet Forton
(Switzerland), Paul Zerdin (UK) and Noel Britten (UK) with more names to
be announced. Plus magic lectures and dealers from all around the world.
It's great news that the gala show is back this year. For more
information, and to book,
Click Here. 14.8.04
J-Day
2004... the countdown begins! On Monday 16th August tickets go on sale
for the fourth annual day of magic devoted entirely to young magicians.
J-Day 2004 takes place on Sunday 24th October at The Magic Circle's HQ in
London and includes lectures, stage and close-up magic competitions and a
gala show starring Pat Fallon, Duncan Trillo, Graham P Jolley (photo) and
Terry Herbert. Throughout the day three of the UK's top magic dealers will
be demonstrating the latest magic props and displaying books and DVD's and
accessories. Doors open at 10am and the event finishes at approximately
7.30pm. Registration in advance only. YMC members £8.00, Non-members
(10-18) £10.00, Over 18 (very restricted numbers) £15.00. Cheques and
postal orders should be made payable to "The Young Magicians Club" and
sent, together with an SAE, to: J-Day 2004 Tickets, The Young Magicians
Club, 12 Stephenson Way, London NW1 2HD.
www.youngmagiciansclub.co.uk. 14.8.04
Monkey
Magic is back! The second series of this popular offbeat magic show
can be seen from August 24th on Channel Five on Tuesday nights at 8.30pm.
Starring Jonathan Goodwin, Alistair Cook, Peter McCahon and Pete Firman
the new series continues in the same vein as the first with the team
promising "bigger, better and definitely weirder magic in bizarre
locations." See: www.five.tv
and www.monkeymagic.tv
(In the photo Jonathan Goodwin and Pete McCahon with, presumably, the
shows creator in the middle!) 14.8.04
allmagic/wap
went live on Thursday providing cell phone users with updates on new magic
products, upcoming events and other news. allmagic/wap can be accessed
with a phone or handheld device that has a wap browser. This includes the
Blackberry and various phones from all the major cell phone providers
worldwide. For information visit
http://allmagic3.com/wap/ To access allmagic/wap from your cell phone,
enter:
http://allmagic3.com/wap.wml on your phone's address or bookmark
screen. From the makers of the excellent
allmagic.com. 14.8.04
Magicians:
Channel 4 would like to take you on holiday... If you fancy travelling
around Europe courtesy of Channel 4 with a friend or partner then they are
waiting to hear from couples or pairs of friends or colleagues who fancy a
free holiday. "Travel with us on our holiday bus all over Europe this
September and October." The show will feature some of Europe's most
exciting attractions whilst following the lives of those aboard the coach
as they travel together. For more information email:
coachtrip@12yard.com or telephone 0207 432 2863.
www.12yard.com. 14.8.04
International
Magician Andrew Green was recently approached by the widow of the late
Rock & Roll star Lonnie Donegan to take on the comedy role in the new
musical tribute to his life. The musical is due to preview in October but
due to other commitments Andrew is in negotiations to join the show for
its UK tour in March 2005. Andrew is currently enjoying a regular cabaret
spot at the Norbreck Castle in Blackpool, every Saturday until September
4th. 14.8.04
Magic!
Richie breaks record for charity. "A Liverpool magician made history
by performing the world's longest magic act. Richie Smith staged a
30-hour, non-stop magic marathon in the city - shattering the previous
record by six hours." To read the full report in the Liverpool Echo
Click Here. 14.8.04
Children's
Entertainers will no doubt be snapping up these giant Dragon puppets
from
www.puppetsbypost.com. In fact the company offer an amazing range of
puppets from Ants to a Great White Shark! 14.8.04
crowdstop.com®
have just completed work on a large roadshow presentation, featuring
magic, for Start Rite. The company created the whole presentation
from scratch and it can now be seen on tour. Account director Keelan
Leyser will be delivering the presentations using an interactive Plasma
screen and Andre Kole's legs up illusion, another crowdstop.com UK
exclusive effect, built by Bill Smith's Magic Ventures. The road show can
be seen at: the Eldon Square shopping centre Newcastle from the 19th to
21st August, Bluewater from 24th to 26th, and Brent Cross from 28th to
30th. www.crowdstop.com. 14.8.04
Carnesky's
Ghost Train - a hybrid of fairground ride, magic show and live
performance devised by Marisa Carnesky featuring many illusions supervised
by Paul Kieve, has opened to rave reviews in the heart of London's East
End. The Guardian referred to it as "likely the most talked about piece of
theatre this year - The spookiest most magical fairground ride you'll ever
experience" and gave it a four star review and event 'Pick of the Week'
for London. The Observer wrote "Burlesque and aerialists, fairground
sideshows and Victorian illusions ... Totally distinctive." One of the
illusions in the show is "Amphitrite" a Victorian optical variation of
Pepper's Ghost that has not been seen for many decades. Opening night
riders included Derren Brown. The show is set to run for the next two
weeks by The Old Truman's Brewery, Brick Lane - nearest tube Aldgate East.
Shows last ten minutes and tickets are available on site for £6.00 (there
is no pre-booking). Continual shows are presented on weekdays at 6.30pm to
9.45pm, on Saturday from 2.30pm to 5.30pm and 6.30pm to 10.00pm and Sunday
from 1.30pm to 4.30pm and 6.30pm to 10.00pm. For more information visit
www.carneskysghosttrain.net. 14.8.04
Peter
Lamont will be speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival
on 30th August. Dr Lamont will be speaking about his most recent book,
The Rise of the Indian Rope Trick: The Biography of a Legend, which
has received widespread critical acclaim since its publication earlier
this year. However, though Lamont himself denies it, rumours have once
again emerged that he will be performing the Indian rope trick. "When I
last spoke at a book festival, the organiser's claimed I'd be performing
the rope trick. When I found this out, I had them make a rather
embarrassing disclaimer. Mind you, I thought it was hilarious, and very
much in keeping with the tradition of misinformation surrounding the
legend." For more information
Click Here and to order the book from Amazon.co.uk
Click Here. 14.8.04
Jerome Flynn makes a
welcome return starring as Tommy Cooper in John Fisher's Jus' Like That! at the
New Victoria Theatre, Woking from Monday 23rd August to Saturday 28th
August at 8pm nightly (matinees Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm) "Jerome Flynn is
a wonderful Tommy Cooper" The Times. One of the nation’s most
beloved natural clowns, Tommy Cooper truly deserved the title "comic
genius". As well as recreating his comedy, the play also takes us behind
the scenes to meet the man beneath the fez. Tickets from £9.00 + booking
fee telephone: 01483 545900 or visit
www.theambassadors.com. The New Victoria Theatre, The Ambassadors,
Peacocks Centre, Woking, Surrey GU21 6GQ (Map). 14.8.04
Dead Men's Secrets
is showing on the History Channel at
4pm today (Saturday 14th). "Secrets of the Desert War - Documentary
recalling the battle against Rommel in North Africa in WWII. Magician
Jasper Maskelyne used various tricks to help Britain fool the enemy,
including making the Suez Canal appear to vanish." 14.8.04
Mentorn are currently producing a new entertainment programme for Channel Five and are looking for candidates for "Britain's Worst Parent." They originally contacted us to see if we could recommend any magicians and tempting though it was we've decided to post the request as news instead! "It is a fun entertainment show looking at family relationships and, of course our parents aren't really Britain's worst, but they are in the eyes of their nominator... they're embarrassing, they're just completely out of touch! We are looking for very outgoing characters who aren't at all apologetic for being extreme... much to their teenager's dismay. The parents will be asked to complete a series of fun tasks, designed to find out if they really are as bad as their children say." If you are interested in taking part call Suki at Mentorn on 0207 258 6809. 14.8.04
Nigel Mead is looking for close-up magicians who would like to work every Saturday night countrywide. With contracts starting this week, for the next year, email Nigel for more information: info@nigelmead.com. 14.8.04
Marc
Parker (see last week's news) produces a newsletter for illusionists.
Email
markparker1@mac.com
to receive the latest copy • Magician Roy Horn Being Treated In
Colorado,
Click Here • Magician George Johnstone dies at 85,
Click Here • Paul Gordon has some special
offers at the moment,
Click Here • Street magician misses the
Downtown of old,
Click Here • Living TV has just bought the
rights to screen Close Encounters with Keith Barry - dates when we
have them • Ian Kendall takes over from Steven
Dick in Magic@Cafe Royal on Wednesday 18th
Click
Here for details • Your UK magic news is
always welcomed, see you next week, Duncan. 14.8.04