Blog

It seems to me that some people are really afraid of change. They sit and moan endlessly about things that they don’t like, they might ask your advice for what you think they should do, but even after you’ve made suggestions, they still don’t do anything. Except moan some more!

The fact is, in life nothing stays the same for ever, and so being open to change is a pre-requisite of modern living. A few minutes thinking about how technology has changed our lives this century is testament to that reality. Continue reading “Having The Confidence To Change”

This month I complete exactly thirty years of writing a monthly blog! So this is the 360th time that I have sat down and sought to entertain you with my musings!

Three decades is a long time to be doing anything, and I’m proud of the fact that I have never missed a month and never been late—the new edition has always been published on the last day of the month in order to be ready for the new month.

Of course, for the first few years Chatter was simply part of a monthly printed news sheet, because internet blogging didn’t really exist. But once the web became more important, I transferred Chatter to the website which is where it has resided ever since. Continue reading “30 Years And Counting”

One of the possibly unexpected consequences of COVID-19 is the way that it has changed, potentially for ever, the way people work. The pandemic forced many companies to enable at least some if not all of their employees to work from home, and it quickly became clear that in some ways and for some professions, having a home office was good for the workers and saved money for the companies.

However, WFH is not always as ideal as it might at first appear. If you have a house that has a spare room you can commandeer as a dedicated workspace, having the luxury and flexibility to organise exactly how and when you work can actually make people more productive and indeed less stressed, especially if it removes the need for the grind of a daily commute. Continue reading “Having A Magic Den At Home Is Helpful”

There’s a general view amongst magicians that the effect is always more important than the method, particularly when you are talking about entertaining lay people. And there’s a logic to that opinion, because if you are doing it right, the audience should be so engaged and entertained by the plot and presentation of the magic, that the last thing they should be bothered about is how it is all achieved. So if you follow the logic of this train of thought, then the best and most direct way, for instance, to have someone simply think of a card and for you to be able to name it, is by using a stooge. In plot terms it’s direct, there’s no sleight of hand or complicated mental gymnastics to worry about, and so in a world where plot is everything, this method cannot be beaten. Continue reading “Why The Method Can Be Just As Important As The Effect”

Most magicians are magic consumers in one way or another. We like nothing better than to buy the latest ideas from the dealers, even when we already have probably more magic than we will ever be able to use! It’s like a drug though—the more we have the more we want.

However, we all get disappointed on occasions by our purchases when they don’t live up to our, perhaps unreasonable or even misguided, expectations. The trouble is it can be all too easy to be fooled by persuasive online video dems, and if you are less experienced in magic, it’s easy to be misled. Continue reading “Magic Reviews That You Can Trust”

Lay people experience a number of different types of magic show (as opposed to mentalism), and these we can break down loosely into the following categories: close up (strolling or formal small show), stage/parlour/cabaret, TV/online video.

Irrespective of the performance quality, I wonder which of these formats leaves the strongest impression on the audience? Each has its strengths and weaknesses, but on balance is there one from the list which is more impactful than the others? Let’s think about each one in turn for a moment. Continue reading “Magic That Leaves An Impression”

If you were to ask stand up comedians whether there is any subject that is too taboo to make jokes about, I suspect that many (most?) would say that there wasn’t, and that provided the gag is actually funny, what the joke makes fun of is irrelevant.

Whether you agree with that viewpoint will probably depend on where your own personal predilections lie. But should comics always be true to their standpoint on what is suitable for comedy, or are the potential sensibilities of the audience more important? There’s a time and a place for a no-holds-barred act, but the village church summer garden party probably isn’t it! Continue reading “How PC is your act?”

John was excited! After many months of having shows postponed, cancelled or simply not booked in the first place, he was finally due to entertain at a wedding. Even this event had been rescheduled twice due to COVID, but with just two days left until the big day, it looked like that despite everything his booking was going to survive.

Naturally enough he was a little anxious about how it would all go. Would he remember how to work close up at tables? Previously it had all been second nature to him, but now…..maybe when he started to perform he would feel ‘rusty’ and ill prepared. Continue reading “All The Best Laid Plans”

A good magic friend of mine has spent the last 18 months developing a gimmick which is based on a prop which was sold over 20 years ago but which has been unavailable for some time. Through endless trial and error, and by dint of producing umpteen prototypes, each slightly different from the last, he has ended up with something that not only is perfect for the effects he wishes to use it for, but which makes a killer prop for many other effects as well. Continue reading “The Price Of Success”

Magic is one of those entertainment forms which really does require the audience to concentrate on what is being done and said for it to be appreciated and understood. You can’t dip in and out of watching a trick and hope to still have it make much sense.

Unlike music, which can pleasantly create atmosphere but does not necessarily require the full attention of the people present, magic simply doesn’t work as a background ‘noise’. If the spectators look away at a vital moment, it can negate the entire trick’s impact. Continue reading “Fighting The Distractions”