Friday, January 16, 2015

What happened at the Meeting on Friday 16th January

Tom Blunden led off the magic with a colour changing die trick - one shake of the box and the die changed before our eyes.

Three spectators were asked by Joel Howlett (JD Magic) to choose cards.  The first card was revealed when Joel gave a sheet of newspaper (shown whole) to the spectator who opened it out and two diamond shaped holes had appeared in the paper for the "two of diamonds" chosen card.  The next card was placed in the hat with the pack, and when the hat was emptied, all the cards were shredded to nothing except the chosen card. The last card was revealed by Joel taking a sheet from his pocket showing in miniature all 52 cards - and we thought he had not really found the card until he turned the sheet over - and the chosen card was printed on the back in large size.

David Whitson did a circus themed item with a picture of a trapeze artist - but she had disappeared. Despite various manipulations she didn't come back until the very last, when the miniature trapeze appeared hanging from the circus picture ! A smooth visual effect.

A spectator was asked by John Ferguson to choose one of the four aces ("this is a one ace trick, 'cos I'm not good enough to do a four ace trick yet")  and then John tried to pick the ace out of the pack, but got a joker instead - and another joker, then handfuls of jokers - until the table was covered in jokers....  One card remained in his hand - the chosen ace.

With a very clever item, Al Hirschel did a mentalism effect in which he asked a spectator to wrap one of two coins (gold or silver) in a handkerchief so it could not be seen, then he shook the bundle near his ear to try to work out whether it was the gold coin or the silver coin.  He was 100% accurate each time.  Later, he very kindly showed us how this baffling item was done - and you should have been there to find out!

Noel Clair pulled a $20 note right through a $50 note - yes, that's right, one note penetrated the other note.  He then pushed a pen through a $20 note and paper, and the paper was torn with a hole, but the note wasn't.  In another penetration item, a coin shaken near the bottom of a glass penetrated into the glass.   Just so we on the other side of the room didn't miss out, he repeated it for us, and it happened while we were carefully looking at it !

Warden the Magician (Andrew Pickard) loves magic with paper money.  This time, he borrowed a $5 bill, had the serial number written down by a spectator, then folded it up and unfolded a $10 bill.  The $5 had vanished.   He called John Ferguson out, and asked him to take off his shoe, and there in his shoe was the missing $5 bill, and, yes, the serial number matched that of the missing $5 !