50 greatest magic tricks

As part of their New Years Eve programming, Channel Five gave us a countdown of their 50 greatest magic tricks. This was completely different from the countdown Channel 4 did almost 10 years ago, There were 22 tricks from the previous countdown, but they were accompanied by new and amazing tricks from the likes of Dynamo and Pete Firman. The lineup was slick and contemporary, featuring magic tricks from Americas Got Talent (Britain's got Talent hasn't had enough good magicians), Penn and Teller: Fool us and Dynamo:Magician Impossible. Unlike Channel 4's version, which featured too much emphasis on annoying comedians talking about the clips, this time (Joe Pasquale notwithstanding) it was mostly the magicians themselves talking about what made the tricks so great. The longer length ( 2 hours 40 to the 2 hours of the Channel 4 special) also meant more time and greater focus on each clip.

The top 50 were (a * denotes a trick that wasn't on Channel 4's 2002 countdown)

50. Dynamo- Floating Guitar * (Beats my impossible straw trick any day!)
49. Penn and Teller- Misers Dream *
48. Franz Harary - Vanishing Tower Bridge *
47: Tommy Cooper- Multiplying Bottles
46. James Galea - 673 King Street * (An inventive piece of storytelling with sleights)
45. Paul Daniels- Million Pound Vanish*  (An excellent and original trick)
44. Marc Paul- Any Card, Any Number*
43. David Copperfield- Portal* (A spectacular trick with a family reunion theme)
42. David Blaine- Card in window
41. Uri Geller- Spoon Bending
40. Piff the Magic Dragon- Card changing by quarters *
39. Ali Cook- Card caught by Toe *
38. Harry Blackstone Jr.- Floating Lightbulb
37. Siegfried and Roy- Interlude
36. Lance Burton- Doves
35. Paul Zenon- Tax Disc trick (If only he'd done this at the palladium)
34. Barry and Stuart- Hommunculus * (A medley of tricks involving a self-solving Rubix cube and a person vanishing from a chair)
33. Simon Drake- Silhouette * (A set of scary sleights done in Silhouette)
32. Criss Angel- Goldfish into Lady *
31. Kevin James - Sawing a man in half * (With no boxes, the man upright, and both halves having a life of their own)
30. David Copperfield- Flying
29. Dynamo- Ring into Snowball *
28. Doug Henning- Motorbike Vanish *
27. David Berglas- Pulse Stopping
26. An Ha Lin- Card Manipulation * (Amazing magic from a virtual unknown)
25. David Blaine- Balducci Levitation
24. Penn and Teller- Truck Trick
23. Ali Cook- Water Torture Escape *
22. Criss Angel- Coin into Arm * (Sick but memorable- Didn't Homer Simpson once do that by squeezing too hard?)
21. Mathieu Bich- Spreadwave *
20. Franz Harary- Hummer * (Franz Harary stands in front of a speeding car, and vanishes at the last physical moment. He is then revealed to be inside! I saw this trick on Youtube in March and I'm really pleased it's on the countdown)
19. Paul Daniels- Iron Maiden* (The trick that shocked all of Britain)
18. Derren Brown- Tube Hypnosis ( Derren induces amnesia in a passenger and restores his memory with a snap of his fingers)
17. Paul Zenon- Billiard Ball on Chosen Card
16. Simon Drake- Guillotine
15. Geoffrey Durham- Torn and Restored Newspaper
14. Siegfried and Roy- Dream* (Tiger Teleportation)
13. John Lenahan - Vanishing shoe in Random Train* (This trick was aired and exposed in 2003's failed TV pilot "Secrets of Magic". However, enough people have remembered the trick and forgotten the secret for it to make the countdown)
12. The Pendragons- Metamorphosis
11. Pete Firman- Blended Mouse* (Don't worry, no mice were actually harmed)
10. David And Dania- Quick Change* (A performance that went viral)
9.  Tom Mullica- Cigarette Eating
8.  Robert Gallup- Death Dive
7.  Pete Firman- Goldfish regurgitaion* (Pete can be seen on The Magicians when it returns next week)
6.  Dynamo- Walk on Water*
5.  Shadid Malik- Cardboard Box
4.  Paul Daniels- Chop Cup
3.  Derren Brown- Russian Roulette *
2. David Copperfield- Death Saw (Number 1 in Channel 4's countdown)
1. Penn and Teller- Double bullet catch 

7 tricks of christmas-the impossible straw.

Here is a sixth magic trick to try at home, (Although i'm not revealing the secret, it is an easy enough trick to perform when you know how. The method for a similar trick can be found in some magic magic books.). This trick is a small-scale version of a classic of victorian magic, where a straw levitates at an impossible angle.

Enjoy!

7 tricks of Christmas - Card on Ruler

Sorry about how late these tricks are. I promise I will have the final two tricks up before the new year, but in the meantime, here is the 5th- A version of the chosen-card-on-sword trick with a safer central prop that can be found in the home. Enjoy!

the seven tricks of christmas-muppet card trick

For the 4th trick of Christmas, a trick inspired by those puppet icons, the Muppets. Again, i'm not giving instructions on how to do them, but you can figure out for yourselves. with a couple of views.

Enjoy!

(Whilst some might frown upon the revelation of secrets, most of the tricks I've filmed are either original or commonly seen in magic books available in ordinary shops. I'm not going to reveal tricks which use specialist equipment, or tricks that have been made by other magicians, where the secret is less well-known)

seven tricks of christmas - coin in the crate

For our third trick of Christmas, we have an illusion where a coin ends up inside four sealed boxes. I won't reveal how it's done, but it's fairly easy to do when you know how and the props can be found in some magic kits.

Enjoy!

7 tricks of Christmas- Santa's Hat

I'm sorry about the 3 day delay, but here are 3 new tricks to try at home! First of these is Santa's hat, a seasonal version of the change bag where a santa hat conceals a magical surprise.

Enjoy!

The Magicans is about to return!

The Magicians, Britain's most successful magic show (Versions of it have been commissioned in Sweden and Russia) returns on the 7th of January. Several changes have been made to make the show bigger and better.

• A new host, Minute to Win It's Darren Macmullen
• Two new magicians: Pete Firman and Jason Latimer will be replacing Chris Korn and Luis De Matos (Who presumably have other engagements)
• The episodes will be transmitted live
• The episodes will be longer- Each magician gets an extra trick (A pre-recorded outdoor Grand illusion), as well as the Street magic, Grand illusion and Celebrities choice tricks they all got in each episode last year. This means that, with a total of six episodes this series, we will see a staggering 72 tricks, compared to the 45 we saw last year.
• Some rather extravagant illusions and famous guests are promised. Not much change there, then

We will have more articles nearer the time, and, of couse, we will be following the show in detail when it does return. The television event of 2012 starts here!

The seven tricks of Christmas

As a Christmas treat, we will upload a trick a day in the week leading up to Christmas day for your viewing pleasure. We won't reveal how to do the tricks, but the methods are simple and can be found in repeat viewings. Today's trick is the "Magic present delivery" In which a destroyed Christmas Card and predicted Harry Potter book end up as a pre-wrapped present. for the volunteer

Enjoy!

Frances Got Talent- How did Xavier and Syl et Son fare?

In the final of Incroyable Talent, Syl et Son and Xavier Mortimer performed one last time with the aim of winning the 100,000 euro prize.This time, I was able to get videos of both performances quickly and easily (You can see them on the Incroyable Talent website, which now works in Britain. Hooray!), so I can tell you how they fared.

Syl et Son upped their game considerably when they performed, doing a novel version of one of the most popular (and dangerous) mentalism tricks, as Son predicted which of four cups had a spike under it. The trick was executed with panache and enthusiasm, and all three judges noticed this.

Xavie Mortimer again showed how charming and original he was with a routine themed around sticky tape, which he turned into a tie, a silk, a rose and stripes for his suit. Head judge Gilbert Rozon called him "the Fred Astaire of magic". However, the routine took a while to get going and was a bit too small-scale for the final of a national talent show. Furthermore, the number of unused cardboard boxes in the background were frustrating, as Xavier could have done some impressive tricks with those-maybe making a woman or two appear (I had the same problem with Laurent Beretta, who left a mini and Telephone box on stage without using them in his live performance). Therefore, he was a bit disappointing.

So, who won?

Eventually, Incroyable talent's winner for 2011 was revealed as teenage singer Marina, who edged out young ventriloquist Nans and another singer, Lois. Syl and Son came in at 6th, exceeding my expectations, but Xavier Mortimer came in at a diappointing 10th. Hopefully, next year will see some truly spectacular magicians, as the British, Australian and American Got Talents are about to start filming soon. Look out for more coverage of them on this blog soon.

France's Got Talent FInallists

I'm sorry that I didn't provide any news on the Incroyable talent finallists-I couldn't find any videos (This is when I hate being British). However, I can reveal that, Whilst Amile and Sylvie were amateurish and Laurent Beretta was bland, Xavier Mortimer and Syl et Son have made the final. But can they beat competitiors including two ventriloquists, two singers, two acrobats, a dance crew, a biking crew, an impressionist and model plane fliers on wednesday's final and win the prize? We will reveal all on thursday.

Xavier Mortimer

Audition: Did a trick with a disembodied hand, which drunk milk at one point
Semifinal: Did a tick with multiplying shadows and span 360 degrees in midair
Pros: Very original and inventive
Cons: not especially spectacular
Aim For Final: to do another original routine, and add spectacle
Where might he finish?: 6th


Syl et son

Audition:  Son Predicted a chosen card, a dice on a board, and an assortment of shapes
Semifinal: Son Predicted a chosen planet, state of Canada and number
Pros: Original and cute
Cons: Not winner material. A bit repetitive
Aim For final: Add some more excitement
Where might they finish?: 10th

France's Got (Plenty of) Magicians

(Before I start, I'd like to apologize for all the mistakes I made in my badly-received review of the Palladium Magic show in September. I'd also like to apologize for most of my outspoken comments on some of the acts (though I still dislike Jeff Hobson). Sometimes, it's better to look at the positives instead of the negatives.)

Of of all the versions of Got Talent in 39 different countries, the French version, Incroyable Talent, is one of the best for magicians. In the past, it has seen amazing Magicians such as Enzo Weyne, Florain, and Mohamed Chedaddi, and this year looks to be no different. In fact, we've seen more magicians then ever before! There have been four episodes of auditions so far, and there is only one to go before the top 30 is picked. 38 acts have been passed so far, and 6 of them are magicians. Although last year, just two magicians got to represent the art in the live shows, this year could be far better.

The six magicians are...

• Syl and Son - Father and son mentalists.Their act is impressively unconventional, but I wonder how far it could go.
•  Xavier Mortimer- Did an inventive spin on the disembodied hand trick. A part involving it drinking milk was particularly effective
• Aldo Nicoloni- A finalist in Italy's got Talent, Aldo's signature routine involves making his head drop off. It's very funny and clever, but I wonder if he will be able to do anything else
• Laurent Beretta - Did an effective spin on the levitation trick, but does he have the talent or ability to innovative he needs to go all the way?
• Drago- Did a version of the Aquarian illusion, which most magicians do on these shows (e.g David and Karen in Britain, Landon Swank in America,Phoenix in Australia).However, compared to those magicians, it was pretty weak.
• Amile and Sylvie- An all-female quick-change act. Unique for this show, but the changes have been seen before, and quick-change acts are notorious for lacking range (American quick-changers David and Dania did the same routine each time they were on the show)

I'm sorry I couldn't find any videos of the acts (you can watch the full episodes on YouTube, though) but I can assure you, it was worth the struggle to find these clips online.

With one episode left before the live shows, there is still a chance of new magicians before the ones who go into the liveshows are picked, however, it is very likely that at least two of those through already will make the next round. I predict that Syl and Son and Xavier Mortimer will go through, and Laurent Beretta will if there's room for three in the liveshows  (Provided a new and better magician doesn't emerge in this week's episode.

Continue coming to this blog for more coverage on Incroyable Talent in the coming weeks.

The Magicians is Back!

With ratings consistantly over 5 million when it aired in Janurary, it's no surprise that "The Magicians" will return for a second series next year. This time it will be better then ever!

The format will be the same as last year (3 magicians and their celebrity guests compete to avoid a sideshow-style forfeit) but with some major changes.

First of all, the show will be aired to a live audience, and we viewers will get to vote on who does the forfeit

Secondly, two new magicians, comedy magician Pete firman and inventive US magician Jason Latimer will join Barry and Stuart in the battle to avoid a the forfeit.

There will also be a new presenter. Darren macmullen is a risky but wise choice to replace Lenny Henry. He can currently be seen hosting ITV2's Minute to win it and has proven himself an excellent host in that and all sorts of American and Australian shows.

Finally, and most important of all, the tricks will be bigger and better then before. According to Mcmullen, they are "Vegas Style" and will include making the London Eye disappear. I cannot wait!

The magicians will return soon. Be sure to check out our facebook and Twitter accounts(both called Rtotal magic) nearer the time for more information.

Palladium Magic- Exclusive Review

Last night, I went to the Palladium theatre to see one of the hottest events in magic history for years. I was really excited about it, but, as can be expected from a variety show, it was a mixed bag. Some performers were great, and others were abysmal. The magic was good, but the comedy was excruciating.

100 magicians were billed as appearing. However, only 15 acts performed on stage, 5 of whom weren't magicians. The other 85, including Penn and Teller:Fool Us star Chris Dugdale, did close-up magic to people in the aisles during the build-up and interval. I didn't see any of them in detail, though, which was a bit of a shame. The ones I did see were mostly ring and rope affairs and wholly meh.

As well as these 100, there were several iconic variety performers in the audience, including the magicians Wayne Dobson, David Berglas and Roy Heard, and the ventriloquists Roger De Courcey and Paul Zerdin.

However, the show was about the main 15 performers. Were they worth the centre billing?

FIRST HALF

The show started with a performance from the "Palladium Magic Dancers" . Like the acts that tend to open a Britain's Got Talent live show, they were technically proficient but meh and forgettable.

Following, and beginning the actual magic, was Erix Logan (Above). Logan performed several loud and exciting illusions, including making a singer appear from 5 small boxes stacked together and impaling an assistant on a giant pair of scissors.

Then came Yelena Larkina, a hula-hoop performer. Her performance was beautiful, amazing, faultless, and one of the best of the night.

She was followed by the first (And Best) of three American performers, Michael Finney (Below). He did some hackneyed but amusing card magic, and finished by making his head "vanish".

The next performer came from another distant land- France. Mikael Szanyiel did musical magic involving bow tie manipulations, sponge microphones and lots and lots of paper.

Whilst the stage hands were cleaning up, legendary magician Silvan did some of his signature card manipulations.

Following was Mac King, who did some very strange card magic, including the cards across effect and a signed card in several places trick.

Baton Twirler  Nathalie Enterline (Below) followed with a very good performance, then the first half finished with a Finnish magician. Marko Karvo did some excellent bird magic with flair and skill to allow the audience to go to the intermission impressed

SECOND HALF

On paper, this seemed like a better half then the first, but, untill the very end, was far, far worse. The dancers danced again (yawn), then came one of the worst acts of the night. John Calvert is 100 years old, and I honour him for both his past magic and his coming onto stage at that age, but his performance was still awful. After struggling to find his seat for half the performance, Calvert did a simplistic Scarves-on-rope trick.

The next act, top british magician Paul Zenon, should have been a blast. He begun excellently with his cut-and-restored microphone lead trick, but the performance petered out, as he spent nearly all the remainder swinging a glass of beer over his head. The patter meanwhile, was at times too edgy for the large family audience, but not edgy enough for the late-night club Zenon usually performs to.  In short, he was a bit dissappointing.

However, no one was more dissappointing then Kris Kremo. I was really looking forward to this legendary juggler's performance, but it was a mess. His ping-pong and scarve juggling was very good, but he made mistakes juggling hats and cigar boxes, and, in attempting to redo the failed moves, caused the show to drag on. It was a bit sad to see, and I think that he's beginning to lose his magic

Thankfully, the following performance was short, but also unessecary. Ben Stone was introduced as a singing magician, but just sang a meh number. He should audition for the X Factor, but not perform on this sort of show.

However, none of the above three performers, dissappointing as they were, were the worst of the night. That dubious honour goes to Jeff Hobson. The magic-some card stuff and an Egg Bag routine - was OK, but the presentation was horrific, with Hobson's presentational approach basically amounting to "Look at me, I'm soooo gay!" I don't understand how Vegas theatregoers put up with him for over an hour.

Thankfully, the final performer made the evening worthwhile. Hans Klok mixed card manipulations and sleights with lavish illsuions, including the "Eclipse"(one of my all-time favourite tricks) and his versions of the "Suspended Animation" and "Spiker" illusions. His act gave everyone something to talk about (For the right reasons) as they headed out of the theatre.

HOW WOULD I RATE THE EVENING?

The performers make a show like this. Some, such as Hans Klok and Yelena Larkina, justified the length of the show (3 and a half hours!) and the price of the tickets. Others, such as Jeff Hobson and John Calvert, were disasterous, and it saddens me that they were even on the bill at all. Meanwhile, some performers, such as Marko Karvo and Erix Logan, were better then I expected, but Kris Kremo and Paul Zenon were real letdowns. Due to this inconsistency, the show as a whole was niether great nor terrible, so I would give it a 3 star rating.

HOW WOULD I RANK THE PERFORMERS (From worst to best)

15. Jeff Hobson

14. John Calvert

13. Ben Stone

12. The Palladium Dancers

11. Mack King

10. Kris Kremo

9. Paul Zenon

8. Silvan

7. Michael Finney

6.Mikeal Szanyiel

5. Nathalie Enterline

4.Erix Logan

3. Marko Karvo

2. Yelena Larkina

1. Hans Klok

Americas Got Talent top 10- Landon Swank

FOR BRITISH VIEWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.

WHAT TRICK DID LANDON DO?

Landon Slowed down the tempo, but still delivered an impressive trick.After a simple but clever beginning of turning a goldfish cracker into a real goldfish, Swank took the fish in his hands. He passed it through the tank, making the fish vanish as he did so. He then removed the hand. The trick was a little similar to the mirror trick that failed to get him through the quarterfinals, but the water was an impressive addition. There were a couple of minor faults (Some water came out as Landon was withdrawing his hand, and many people are arguing about whether the fish was supposed to vanish). But it was still a neat trick.

WHAT DID THE JUDGES SAY?

Howie did an annoying spiel about how amazing the trick was, in which he tried to get the word "Conjuring" in as often as possible. Piers was uncertain about the spilt water, but said the trick looked good on the television. At this point, Landon noted that this was the first time the trick went to plan. Sharon, meanwhile, praised the relaxed presentation and the contemporary nature of the trick.

WHAT IS THE COMPETITION LIKE?

History often repeats itself on this show. Just like last year, there is an opera singer, a bike act, a talented kid, a conventional dance act and a magician in the top 10. Just like last year, the magician made it through as a wildcard and beat a rival conjurer into the top 10. Just like last year, the magician is one of five acts mentioned frequently as potential finalists. But just like last year, there are only four spots. Whilst West Springfield Dance and Miami All-Stars fared badly, and the Smage Brothers, Lys Agnes, and Anna Gracemen failed to reach their full potential and can be ruled out, Four acts could ensure that Landon's hopes of winning end the same way Michael Grasso's did last year. TEAM ILuminate and Landau Murphy Jr. Were on excellent form and will probably make the top 10. Meanwhile, POPLYFE and the Silhouettes weren't as good, and aren't cited as potential winners as often, but have strong fanbases and spoiler appeal. Let's cross our fingers and pray that Landon beats either of the last two acts (Hopefully the Silhouettes because I like POPLYFE) to the final spot. His chances are moderate

AMERICAS GOT TALENT- Can Landon Swank make the grand final?

FOR BRITISH VIEWERS,THIS ARTICLE MIGHT CONTAIN SPOILERS

For the second straight year, Americas Got Talent has a magician in the top 10.

Landon Swank will compete in the top 10 on Tuesday night, and will compete for a place in next week's grand finale. Last year, Michael Grasso reached this stage, but failed to make the final round, despite recieving praise for his top 10 performance

Landon has been through a strangely similar journey to Grasso (Getting into the top 10 via the wildcard round, Knocking out another magician on the way), so he will be hoping that history doesn't repeat itself. . Landon has the ability to make it to the final. His tricks have been excellent, and the presentation amazing. Furthermore, Landon has upped his game tremendously, changing his approach from simple but clever magic to exciting and dangerous tricks that appear to be taking a leaf out of Australia's got Talent runner-up Paul Cosentino's book.

However, Swank has three things to do if he wants to better Michael Grasso and make the final round.

1. GIVE A FLAWLESS PERFORMANCE- Landon's last trick was excellent, but there was one problem with it. Many online commentators felt it was a little easy to figure out, due to some minor flaws in the execution of the trick (1. Why is the box shaking? and 2.Why does he have goggles when he gets out but not in the video?). It was still a good performance, but minor mistakes like that can make a big difference in the top 10. Therefore, Landon will need to be on his guard to avoid this, and give a trick that is exciting, original, and hard to figure out
2. CONVINCE THE SKEPTICS- This is the stage where large fanbases or sob stories alone are no longer enough to help acts. They have to put on the best performances they physically can to appeal to the largest and most important group of voters-The neutrals who vote solely on the quality of the latest performance. Therefore, avoiding mistakes will be more important then ever. Furthermore, there are some people who are unconvinced that someone other then a singer or dancer will win. Can Landon change their minds?
3. BEAT THE COMPETITON-Landon has some excellent competition. The Sinatra-voiced Landau Murphy Jr., The inventive TEAM ILuminate and opera singer Lys Agnes are the ones to beat. Young acts Anna Graceman, POPLYFE and the Shilouettes are very impressive for their age (Especially POPLYFE), but some viewers may be uncomfortable about the idea of kids performing in Vegas. Meanwhile, The horror-influenced West Springfield Dance, The classic-Hollywood dance act Miami All-Stars and the Stunt motorcyclists The Smage Brothers seem like filler, but are still very strong acts.

As usual, Landon's chances depend on his next performance, but judging by his showmanship, his illusions, and the way he has upped his game throughout the contest (Something Sharon Osbourne brought up in the semifinal round), he should hopefully give an excellent performance.

Americas Got Talent Semifinals- Landon Swank

FOR BRITISH VEIWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

WHAT DID LANDON DO?

Upping the danger level even further, Landon performed a high-stakes mentalism routine. In it, there were four boxes with explosives attached, each rigged to a controller. From inside one of the boxes, he told the judges to choose a controller each and use it to blow up the corresponding box.  The did, leaving one box untouched. Landon jumped out of that one, safe and sound. To prove that there was no rigging, and that the whole thing was genuine, Landon used the remaining controller to blow up the box he had been in.Again, while the concept was familiar, the presentation was excellent, and, just like last time, the suspense was really milked. Earlier in the competition, Frank Miles performed a trick with a similar theme, but Landon's was much better

WHAT DID THE JUDGES SAY?

All three judges gave Landon a standing ovation. Howie said that he was concerned because "We came close to killing you", but felt that the performance was "amazing". Piers said that Landon was a "dark horse" and said that the trick was "Dangerous" and "Exciting". Sharon, who had accidently buzzed Landon during the buildup, admitted her mistake had been due to nerves, but praised Landon's "A+" presentation. She also added that she felt Landon was "Pacing himself" excellently (Compare this trick with the mirror one he did in his quarterfinal round), as opposed to doing the big ones early (A pitfall that has cost magicians like Kevin James and Shimshi before).

WHAT WAS THE COMPETITION LIKE?

It's hard to predict, as, just like with the wildcard round, no one was perfect. Apart from Landon, only Anna Graceman, who sang "Home sweet home", and the Smage brothers, who got their whole family to help them, got praise from all three judges. The Shilouettes, Landau Eugene Murphy Jr., Snap Boogie and Fatally Unique all got mixed reviews, with one judge or another stating that they had been better in previous rounds. The Knetic King and Professor Splash did well, but I doubt that they can hold an hour-long show. Meanwhile, three acts each recieved an X (From Piers, natch): Steven Retchless, who was a bit boring compared to other acts, Summerwind Skippers, who made mistakes and were not as exciting as last time, and Gymkana, who had one member doing chair balancing which was weaker than Zuma Zuma's last week, and the rest doing repetitive flips, cumilating in a performer botching a jump through a flaming hoop and only narrowly avoiding injury. Their problems sum up the judges complaints about the bulk of the acts

WHAT ARE LANDON'S CHANCES LIKE?

Landon has a moderate to high chance of advancing, given the judges praise of him, and the weak quality of most of the competition.

Penn and Teller: fool us-episode 8

After two months and 31 magicians, Penn and Teller: Fool us has finished airing. Hopefully (Although  I can't say for certain due to the meh ratings) It will return for a christmas special. In today's episode, we had some gory magic, Some modern magic,some youthful magic, some slick magic, and even a "Death". But did anyone fool Penn and Teller?

Lee Hathaway-Close-up Magician

In a trick that certainly can't be packaged in a magic set, Hathaway had a volunteer choose a card from a randomly-chosen deck and place the whole deck in a box in his back. He then appeared to cut himelf open (WIth the resulting entrails looking less convincing as the trick wore on) and pulled the chosen card out of his stomach. The trick fooled Penn and Teller.

Jack Trapnell- 14 year old card trickster.

Trapnell's trick was far better than the last teenage trickster we saw on the show, Daniel Kraemer. In it, he had Penn choose a card at random, and Teller deal down in a different pack to a random card. He then predicted Penn's card, and revealed it matched the one chosen by Teller. The trick didn't quite fool Penn and Teller, but they noted that most viewers at home would be fooled. I think I was.

Laura London- Magicienne

After Romany, Laura London was the second female performer during the whole series. She did a "bill-in-lemon" trick that was more like a "Bill-in-walnut-in-egg-in-randomly-chosen-lemon" trick.  Many viewers, including me and Penn and Teller themselves, hoped that she could win the trip to vegas, but she diidn't manage to fool Penn and Teller. The two noted that they'd done the trick themselves, but praised Laura's spin on it.

Martin Daniels-illusionist and son of Paul Daniels

This trick ranks up with Chris Dugdale's video trick in the last show as one of the most memorable, if least impregnable, tricks seen on the series. In it, Martin performed the "asrah levitation" in phantom of the opera garb. It appeared to be performed totally straight, as a traditional "Levitation and Vanish" trick. However, when the assistant vanished, both Her and Martin appeared in the audience. The man in the mask was revealed as Paul Daniels himself! They adnmitted themselves that they weren't out to fool Penn and Teller, and they didn't, but it was still a trick that everyone will be talking about.

Penn and Teller finished the show with the world's first underwater card trick. In it, Teller was locked in a water tank, and had to hold his breath for a whole, long-drawn-out card trick. After several failed attempts from Penn at finding a chosen, signed, card, Teller appeared to drown underwater (he didn't really. Watch closely and you'll see he's using breathing apparatus). Penn turned teller's body around to reveal the signed card on Teller's gogggles.

The Magicians-Top 5 tricks

In January, BBC brought magic back onto our saturday night screens with the magicians. The show, in which three top magicians (Luis de Matos, Chris Korn and Barry and Stuart) taught various celebrities to perform their tricks with them, received mixed reviews for it's celebrity gimmick and lack of prize for the winners, But earned deservedly solid ratings thanks to the appeal of the (admittedly mostly B-list) celebrity guests themselves (N-Dubz! Diversity!), but above all, due to the amazing magic. He are my personal top 5 tricks during the whole series

5. Floating Butterflies (Luis De Matos + Tulisa from N-Dubz)

Some of the best magic tricks in the world are those that are simple to describe, but beautiful to watch. The floating butterflies effect is one of those, and was perfectly done by Luis and Tulisa

4. X ray interlude (Barry and Stuart + Ade Edmonson)

This was, to put it simply, a wonderful piece of shock magic made hilarious by the young, handsome and scottish version of Penn and Teller.

3. Smash and Stab (Chris Korn + Samantha Womack)

Chris Korn was the weakest of the 3 magicians, but he still did some good tricks. Notable among these was his version of the Smash and Stab trick, which utilized excellent showmanship and a real sense of suspense.

2. Red Carpet Trick (Barry and Stuart + Angela Griffin)

 Barry and Stuart added infrared cameras and hilarious jokes to a simple shadowbox trck. It's not difficult to figure out, but the showmanship is wonderful

1. Divesity from a cardboard box (Luis de Matos + Diversity)

The trick is great. The showmanship is wonderful. And Diversity are amazing dancers. This was a great performance to see and talk about, and a wonderful way of kicking the series off.

Penn and Teller: Fool Us

Three weeks after the previous episode aired, Penn and Teller: fool us is back on Sunday with a special episode. This means that, for the first time ever, I will cover the episode live as it happens.4 magicians will compete to fool the magic duo. Who are they?

Lee Hathaway

An award winning British professional who has created the Magic Masters and Wow! Street magic sets.

Laura London

Similar to burlesque magician Romany from warier this series, but can she do what Romany didn't?

Jack trapnell

A 15 year old magician. Like David Kraemer, expect him to be great for his age

Martin

I'm not revealling his surname, because you should watch on sunday to find out which famous magician is Martin's father. You'll like him, though. Not a lot, but you'll like him

To find out which, if any of these, fool Penn and Teller, tune in on Sunday at 9:00 to find out

AMERICAS GOT TALENT-Landon Swank

FOR BRITISH VIEWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

Americas Got  Talent's Semifinals start tonight, and one of the top 24 is magician Landon Swank. As the only magician left out of 4 who made the liveshows (Having beaten one of them, Seth Grabel, in the wildcard round) Landon is under great pressure to deliver and follow in Michael Grasso's footsteps and make the top 10 against several talented and/or inventive acts. Landon won't perform until next week, so he has plenty of
things to consider when preparing his performance

1. The trick itself- Landon's tricks have been very traditional so far. It is often the case on Americas got Talent that traditional tricks, no matter how impressive, fail to win over the voters (Despite making a whole choir disappear and reappear, Scott Alexander didn't even make the judges choice in his heat). Therefore, Landon needs to create illusions which stand out for more than just presentation
2. The Presentation- it is Landon's presentation of these traditional tricks though, that makes him stand out. Whether levitating a box with balloons or folding a woman's shadow, Landon has added new and innovative twists to his old tricks. Furthermore, his version of the Aquarian Illusion in the wildcard round was probably one of the best I have seen- He milked the escape aspect of the trick skillfully, and the nature of the switch was different from most versions. That performance also showcased major improvements from Landon's previous ones in terms of excitement levels. The performance (and music) was faster-paced and the water added some real risk. Landon needs to keep up the good work
3. The judges (Well, two of them) -  Landon was picked as a wildcard by Piers. However, this means that Howie and Sharon, who've spent the whole year insulting or annoying Piers, may be inclined to criticize him for this association with the mean brit. In fact, when Landon was put through, Howie told him "I hate that you're [Piers'] choice". Furthermore, the two's critisim of Landon's Quarterfinal performance contributed to his inital failiure to make it through. Having said that, they praised Landon's wildcard performance, despite the fact Howie himself chose Seth Grabel to compete against him. If Landon keeps up the form he showed in the Wild Card round, then the two won't have any critism of Landon's performances themselves, which matters far more then the juvenile feuds between the judges.
4. The competition- Many of the favourites (such as POPLYFE, Team ILuminate, Zuma Zuma and Lys Agnes) will compete this week, but Landon still has plenty of competition in his quest to make the top 10. There's the talented young fellow Alaskan Anna Graceman, and Americas own equivalent to Susan Boyle, Landau Eugene Murphy jr. There are also two great dance acts, Snap Boogie and Fatally Unique, as well as the amazing Gymkana and the beautiful Shilouettes. Then ther's the inventive Knetic King, The dangerous Professor Splash, The excitng Summerwind Skippers, the Pole-tastic Steven Retchless and the exciting Smage Brothers. With the exception of Daniel Joseph Baker, all the acts that beat Landon in his heat will be there, so Landon will need to give 110% to prove that he is as good, or better then them, as well as other rivals far tougher than those Landon faced in his quarter Final
5. Magic's history- Magicians have a history of flopping on this show, so, to avoid continuing this tradition, Landon needs to avoid playing it safe (Which cost Kevin James in Series 2), Being sentimental (Which cost Drew thomas in Series 4 and Murray Sawchuck last year) or leaving sections where nothing happens (Which cost Brett Daniels this year). Hopefully, due to his initial elimination, Landon will be out to avoid these pitfalls. He has shown several times that he is the sort of performer not to make mistakes or get complacent.

All in all, Landon's chances depend on his next performance. If it's a hit, Then Landon has a great chance of doing as well, or better than, the great Michael Grasso. Hopefully, he will deliver on the high expectations we all have of him.

Americas Got Talent Wild Cards- Landon Swank Vs. Seth Grabel

What Did Seth And Landon Do?

For his performance, Seth did some Cyr wheel tricks, then made a Deorlean with three mini-judges appear. It was a very simple trick, and while well-presented, was not as origional as we have come to expect from Seth. The Cyr wheel tricks were also obvious as misdirection, making this another imperfect trick from Seth. Landon, meanwhile, stuck to what he was best at- Doing an often seen trick (The Aquarian illusion, Which David and Karen did on Britains got Talent, and Anthony Reed did on the American stage a few years back), but the presentation was excellent, making his the better trick. Going last will help Landon's chances too.


What did the judges say?

Howie, who chose Seth as a wildcard, said he had all the facets a headline act needs. Piers praised the showmanship, but felt that the content was lacking. Sharon just liked the mini-version of her. For Landon, Piers, who chose him, said he was a natural magician. Sharon praised the sexiness of the performance. Howie also said he liked it, but felt both Landon and Seth could go through.

What was the competition like?

the competition was Imperfect. Yellow Design Stunts, Summerwind Skippers and Charles peachock made mistakes, but only the latter was critiszed for them. Knetic Kings Performance went to plan, but can he sustain an hour long show? The singers (Avery and the Calico hearts, The fiddleheads and Shevvone) were forgettable , but Shevonne did the best out of them. WSDC were scary but boring. And Funny Little People and J chris Newberg were simply there to annoy Piers

What are Landon and Seth's chances?

Landon's chances are high, Seth's are moderate

AMERICAS GOT TALENT-The Magic-Off

FOR BRITISH VIEWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

On Wednesday night, after Brett Daniels became the latest magician to be eliminated in Americas Got Talent, the wildcards for next week's wildcard round were announced. I expected at least one magician to be there, and two have been announced as performing- Landon Swank and Seth Grabel, both of whom ended up on the losing end of judges decisions in their heats. They will be competing for some of the last places in the top 24 in what promises to be the biggest magic battle since Michael Grasso and Murray Sawchuck's magical duel in last years semi-final. But how do they compare against each other?

WHICH ONE IS BETTER?

Landon and Seth are complete opposites. Landon's tricks are tried-and-tested classics with a scaled-back presentation. They also have twists that make them harder to figure out (For example, his folding up an assistant's shadow in the audition). Seth, however, produces big, loud, spectacular and original tricks, but they are too easy to figure out, often due to small mistakes or oversights (For example, the dummy which was loaded into the cannon in his live performance). Due to these differences, it's impossible for me to choose which one I prefer. Therefore, my opinions of them will hinge on their wildcard performances.

WHAT DO THE VIEWERS THINK?

This is also hard to judge, as both finished in the same place in their respective heats. Landon has had more coverage then Seth and seems to be more popular with viewers (In a Facebook poll asking whose live show performance was best, Landon got over two-thirds of the vote). However, some may see the fact that Seth got his 5th place in a far stronger heat as an advantage to him. However, most viewers vote based on an act's most recent performance, so this may only be indicative of their live show performances and probably won't have any bearing on the wildcard round. This means that most viewer's votes will depend on their wildcard performances

WHAT DO THE JUDGES THINK?

All three judges have generally praised Landon and Seth, but, in the liveshows, Howie and Sharon criticized Landon's presentation, which may have led to his failure to get through (Howie's predicted top 4 that week were all put through instead). This will put pressure on Landon to prove them wrong in the wildcard round.

WHAT DO SWANK AND GRABEL NEED TO DO?

LANDON SWANK needs to improve his presentation. As Brett Daniels found out last week, a good trick means absolutely nothing if the presentation is terrible. Doing an original trick would help too, otherwise a trick that is hard to figure out to begin with (Such as Scott Alexander Eclipse trick in Vegas) would work fine

SETH GRABEL needs to avoid mistakes and oversights whilst designing his tricks, because the more viewers that can figure out a trick there and then, the less votes he will get

WHO ARE THE COMPETITION?

In the wildcard round, each judge chooses four acts. Piers voted for Swank in the judges choice in Swank's heat, and Sharon voted for Grabel in his heat, so it's a safe bet that they each chose them.

The 12 competitors (Listed by the judge implied to have chosen them) are:

PIERS

1. Landon Swank
2. Charles Peachock-Like with Swank, Piers supported Peachock in the liveshows against strong critism from Howie and Sharon. The two claimed that his precision juggling in the liveshows was not as spectacular as previous performances, so Peachock needs to mix spectacle and skill this time to win everyone over
3. Summerwind Skippers-This group finished below Grabel, and may have trouble improving their act. Better tricks and less obstructive visuals would help
4. Yellow Design- This group needs more focus when they perform again, and maybe a strong visual gimmick (Matt Wilhelm performed similar tricks to them but with blacklights). They should also avoid mistakes like in their audition and live performance

SHARON

1. Seth Grabel
2. West Springfield dance- This gothic dance crew have good moves, but seem to lack personality. They also need to stand out from better dance acts in the top 24
3. The Knetic King- His last performance failed, so the Knetic King is only in the wildcard round out of pity. But even if his chain reactions work this time, will they impress viewers?
4. Avery and the Calico Hearts- The judges think this trio have potential, but most viewers think that they are too much like the Chipettes to succed

HOWIE

1. Shevonne Phildor- This singer hasn't performed live yet. She has talent, but was only seen briefly in Vegas. Therefore, she goes in as an unknown quantity, but should be encouraged by the fact that, every year since series 3, a wild card originally rejected in Vegas has proved the judges wrong by making the top 10. As this years only wildcard to have been rejected in Vegas, could she continue the trend?
2. The Fiddleheads-This group were disappointing in the live shows, but got a suprisingly high number of votes, only going out in the judges choice. The forecast looks good for them, but every other judges choice loser is in the wildcard round. Therefore, they may have trouble standing out against this competition
3. Those Funny Little People-There is only one reason why they are here. Piers doesn't like them....
4. J. Chris Newberg. This singing comedian is also hated by Piers, and was probably put through for that reason. His audition and Vegas performance were alright, but he lost the respect of many viewers with his terrible live performance. This time, he should put focus on winning over the audience rather than annoying Piers

WHAT ARE LANDON AND SETH'S CHANCES?
The two are both equal in talent, and up against a diverse and exciting batch of opponents. Therfore, they both have moderate chances of advancing at the moment. It all hinges on their wildcard performance.

SAFECRACKER

THE EFFECT

This is an excellent trick for you to perform on holiday. In it, you get a volunteer to put something of value in a hotel room safe. You then tell the volunteer to do a set of sums to get a four digit code number to lock the safe with.All this is done with you out of sight of the volunteer and not looking at the safe. But you are able to guess the code and open the safe in one try!

YOU WILL NEED

• A hotel room with a small safe in the cupboard
• A willing volunteer
• A calculator, or pencil and pen (Optional if your volunteer doesn't need them)

HOW TO PERFORM

1. Tell your audience that you are so good at safecracking that you can open a safe by instinct alone. Go into another room and stand with your back to the safe
2. Give your volunteer the pencil and paper or calculator. Tell them to put an object of value to them into the safe, but not to lock it yet. Tell them they'll have to do a couple of sums to get the number to lock the safe with. Tell them to pick any three digit number where the first and last digit are 2 apart (So they can have 320, 321, or 325, but not 322 or 323). Then tell them to reverse it and subtract the smaller number from the larger one.
3. Tell them to reverse the number they end up with and add the new smaller and larger numbers they have. If they have been doing their sums correctly, the volunteer should always end up with 1089 as their final number.
4. Tell the volunteer to key this number in and lock the safe. Sometimes, the number flashes on the safe for a few seconds, so don't enter the room with the safe in untill you are sure (Or told) that the number has gone
5. Remind the volunteer that you have not been watching them, or the safe at all. When they confirm this, key in 1089, and wait for the safe to open. When it does, tell them to get better locks and give their object back to them

AMERICAS GOT TALENT LIVE SHOW 5- BRETT DANIELS

What did Brett Do?

Wisely, Brett chose not to do the motorbike routine in his youtube video on the Americas Got Talent stage. Instead, he did one of his signature tricks, making an assistant dressed as Marylin Monroe appear and dissappear. When she appeared, her image vanished from a picture above her, reappearing on it when she vanished herself. The trick was beautiful and impressive. However, there was one major problem; The performance was too slow, with the middle of it seeming to be nothing more than padding. As a result, Brett got buzzed by Piers, a first among this year's magicians. As the viewer is judging partially on what the judges think,  the X is a disaster for Brett's, which puts his chances of getting through in serious jepordy. I think the wildcard round will end up as the last chance to get a magician through.

What did the judges say?

The judges were in agreement when it came to this act. They all thought that the trick was good, but found the presentation a bit boring. However, this didn't prevent the judges from continuing to argue amongst themselves, with Howie setting off a fart machine and a stink bomb under Pier's desk, preventing him from finishing his critique properly. This behavior of a two year old from Howie overshadowed Brett's act even further, making things even worse for him.

What is the competition like?

In general, the competition was not very good (this time, I am listing it in order of performance). TNC elite were not special, especially compared to past cloggers. Gabe Rocks was an utterly useless dog act, but was not quite as bad as Pup from last year(Though that isn't too hard). Aeon had some good tricks, but their performance was too cluttered and a bit repetitive, the latter point being the chief problem with Breena Bell. Kevin Kolis was pretty good for what was his first time on stage. Following him, Beth Ann Robinson was praised for her technique and dedication. Gymkana delivered an amazing Roman Ladder act with added tumbling, Whilst Kalani Basketball freestyle did some good tricks, but dropped the ball in his grand finale. West Springfield Dance were creepy and precise but not original, whilst vote winner Matt Wilhelm was creative in his use of blacklights, but there were some technical problems. Finally, Powerhouse were a Glee-Lite singing group.

What are Brett's Chances?

With an X to his name and an early performance slot, Brett's chances of qualifying are pretty low. However, it was a weak heat overall, with only half the acts not getting an X, and only a few of those really standing out. Brett's best hope is to qualify for the judges choice, and hope that the judges see enough potential in him to put him through

America's Got Talent Youtube heat - Could Brett Daniels be magic's last hope?

FOR BRITISH VIEWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

After Landon Swank, Seth Grabel and Scott Alexander failed to get out of their first round heats, the future of magic acts on the show this year hinges on two events. One of these will be the wildcard heat next week, which could involve at least one of those three (Only Alexander failed to make the judges choice). But first of all comes the Youtube heat, which airs tonight. Hundreds of acts submitted videos on Youtube, and twelve of those will perform in the liveshows. One of these twelve is Brett Daniels, and you can see his Youtube video below

WHAT ARE BRETT'S CHANCES?

The video that Brett submitted to Youtube was not that good, and the dislikes for it outnumber the likes. It involved him making a motorbike appear, then vanishing on the motorbike and reappearing on it on a wire model on stage. The middle bit has already been exposed by the Masked Magician, and the other parts of the trick are cliche. Judging by it, Brett's chances don't look great

However, Brett has two assets. One of these should be appreciated by viewers, but only devout magicians are aware of the other one.

Brett's first strength is showmanship. The trick and presentation were dated, but with all the smoke and dancers, the staging was at the level few acts could compete with. His second strength is thus: He has a varied- and excellent- Repertoire of illusions. As a popular and respected magician who has performed all over the globe, he has a number of impressive tricks up his sleeve,  ranging from clever sleights to the sort of escapology that earned Cosentino Second place overall in this year's Australia's Got Talent, thus setting the bar very high indeed for magicians in the western world. Hopefully, Brett will aim to go one better...

WHAT IS THE COMPETITION LIKE?

As is the case with Brett, It's hard to tell how his competition (Which was revealed earlier today) will fare tonight. The change in stage is one factor, and it is also worth noting that there will only be two singing acts among the twelve contestants. This top twelve is:

1. Brett Daniels
2. Kevin Kolis- a singer with a nice voice, but how many singers can this show have?
3. Gabe Rocks- Dog act. I thought that Pup's disastrous performance last year may have put the judges off picking a dog act, but here we are. At least Gabe appears to be properly trained
4. TNC elite- Clogging act .Cloggers use their feet to create percussive music in a manner similar to tap dancing.As previous such acts like Series 4 finallists The Fab Five can attest, they tend to do well in the votes, but are never spectacular. Personally, I found this act less exciting than others
5. Aeon Fever- A group of gymnasts whose routine was influenced by parkour. Their routine may not fit onto stage (which happened to Ryan Rodriguez last year) but there were some good tricks. 
6. Beth Ann Robinson- A gymnast/Dancer. She is very talented, but may be a bit limited
7. Breena Bell - The same as Beth, only much younger
8. West Springfield Dance- Very good for a dance crew, but their video was a bit short.
9. Powerhouse Choir-An All-Singing, All-Dancing choir, they are good, but not "Wow". Choirs have never been seen in the liveshows before.
10. Gymkana- An acrobatic troupe who did a Roman Ladder routine. They were very impressive, but I'm not sure about their range.
11. Kalanai Basketball- A basketball freestyle juggler whose video was the shortest of the top 12, but included some excellent tricks. This is another act that has never been seen on Americas Got Talent before.
12. Matt Wilhelm- Unlike the other eleven acts, who were chosen by the judges, Matt was chosen by the viewers, which gives him an advantage of sorts (Jackie Evancho was chosen that way last year). However, his act is very different from Jackie's. His involves bikes, and although only one of this years three biking acts in the liveshows have made it through (Like with the magicians, this may change in the wildcard round), Matt used Fighting-Gravity style Black lights to stand out, and used the bike as a prop for some excellent acrobatics rather than a thing to ride up ramps on. His act is also more focused than, say, Yellow Design Stunt crew were last week.

These are the sort of acts without a firm voter base and who may be prone to a disaster on tonight's stage.They are also the sort of acts who look like they could be interesting viewing, just not in a distorted online video There is no-one that appears to match last years Youtube heat standout Jackie Evancho, but, overall, the group of twelve appears to be better than last year's. If I were to rate Brett's chances, they would be moderate, as are those of everyone else, even Matt Wilhelm's. It all depends on tonight's performances

Penn and Teller: Fool us -Episodes 6 and 7

Having been on holiday the last couple of weeks, I was unable to access ITV player to watch it. I'm back now, and I've watched the two episodes I missed on ITV player. what happened in them?

EPISODE 6

This episode featured an street magician with a habit of insulting the audience, a physcologist, a Quick-Change act and a pair of Sweden's Got Talent finalists. But which of them manage to fool Penn and Teller?

Gazzo - Street Magician

Despite being a former pupil of the famous cardsharp Walter Irving Scott (He didn't mention this but you can find out about it in his wikipedia article), Gazzo didn't do any card tricks. Instead he did a version of the cups and balls, with a patter involving him being mean to the audience (He established pre-performance that it was fake, but it's still an overused device among comedy magicians). So far, so banal, but Gazzo finished on a high by making several oranges appear from the cup, and a melon appear from his hat. The trick didn't fool Penn and Teller, but they noted that Gazzo did it better than them

Colin Mcleod - Psychological mentalist

Like Gazzo, Colin did an inventive spin on a trick as old as time. He did a version of the book test in which he predicted the invisible word chosen from an invisible book by a volunteer. He finished by making a brick appear from his hat. The trick didn't quite fool Penn and Teller, but was very interesting

Keelan and Charlotte Marie - Quick Change performers and Dancers

Keelan and Charlotte Marie changed clothes at rapid speeds whilst dancing to a diverse medly of songs.The best quick change acts are the ones with the most varied routines, therefore I liked these two a lot. Penn and Teller  weren't fooled, but noted quick change acts were not desingned to "Mistify, but instead Amaze"

Brynholf and Ljung - Swedish Illusionists

These two Swedens got Talent finallists called themselves Joanas and Peter throughout, so I will refer to them as that. They were like a Swedish Penn and Teller (Or, thinking outside the show, Barry and Stuart). For their performance, Joanas covered Peter's whole head in duct tape. He had Teller choose and sign a card, then had Peter try to pick it. After a few failed attempts, one of which utilized a staple gun, Joanas removed the duct tape, and revealed the tape in Peter's mouth.. The trick fooled Penn and Teller.

Penn and Teller finshed the episode with a trick (How many do they have in their repetoire?) In which they did a cut and restored rope trick with a sheet of polyester and a young volunteer, then passed the polyester through his neck. The tricks were nothing new, but I liked the religious patter

EPISODE 7

This episode featured a Canadian Card champion, a "Cuban" magician living in Margate, a French magician, and a performer known to thousands in Britain for lending his face to the Britain's got Talent magic set. Which of these fooled Penn and Teller?

Shawn Farquar-Canadian Cardsharp

A world champion at card magic, Shawn had Penn choose and sign a card from a brand new deck. He put the deck in Penn's hands, and made it appear in another, brand-new, opened box, with the chosen card reversed.Wow. Needless to say, he fooled  Penn and Teller

Manuel Martinez- Not Cuban illusionist

Just like those psuedo-Chinese magicians of the 1920s, "Manuel" was a brit named Gary pretending to be Cuban. But the trick he did, whilst a bit overdone (|Penn and Teller themselves did a version a few weeks ago) was solid. It was a version of Russian Roulette involving "Manuel" choosing four out of five staple guns. Of the five staple guns, one had staples in it, but Manuel managed to avoid choosing it.Amusing, but meh. It didn't fool Penn and Teller, natch

Ettienne Pradier - French Cardsharp

Ettienne had Telle sign a card. He made Teller's teleport from his pocket to his purse, his watch, and finally into a bottle, then made a card predicted by Penn appear on the reverse of the deck. This  isn't a  particularly memorable trick, but it dd fool Penn and Teller.

Chris Dugdale - British Illusionist

If there was one trick that really stood out in this show, it was Dugdale's. This was a world away from the thumbtips and linking rings of the Britain's got Talent magic kit his face is on. Giving every direction and reveal on video (Not weblink), he had Penn pick a volunteer at random, and made him take the person next to him as a second volunteer. Dugdale predicted on his shirt the location chosen at random by the second volunteer, then predicted the cost of the trip via the envelope. Then came the most mind-blowing part. The second volunteer came to the cenre of stage and revealed himself as Dugdale! Though the effect is fairly easy to figure out when you consider that Dugdale had the location and cost on him throughout the effect, and therefore, he didn't fool Penn and Teller, it was still an impressive and memorable piece of magic. Penn even said that he would love to perform it himself.

Penn and Teller showed us yet another trick to finish things off. This involved Teller eating several needles, then a thread, and removing the thread with all the needles attached. I've seen this trick many times before, but it's still impressive.

AMERICAS GOT TALENT LIVESHOWS-SCOTT ALEXANDER AND FRANK MILES

FOR BRITISH VIEWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

This blog supported both Alexander and Miles during the callbacks, even though the latter is not a magician per se, so it will anylyze both's performances and chances last night

WHAT DID THEY DO?

For his performance, Alexander got a whole church choir to go into a box, made them vanish and reappear in a royal box. It was impressive and well choreographed, but there was a little too much time spent behind the curtain by the choir. Meanwhile, Miles had  crossbows fire at a jelly donut on his head (and miss). This went too quickly, and the miss was not impressive Alexander could break the spell on magicians (Both Landon Swank and Seth Grabel went out via the judges vote) and go through. Miles, though, should be going home

WHAT DID THE JUDGES SAY?

After Alexander's performance, Sharon called it "Unique" and "Fun". Howie and Piers also like it, but felt there were minor problems,  having differing views views on what they were. Howie liked the trick but not the presentation , whilst Piers thought it was "The oldest trick in the book", but praised the presentation For Miles, Sharon found it exciting, but questioned whether or not it was a million dollar act. Howie liked the fact that he "Saved the donut" but Piers was dissappointed by this

WHAT IS THE COMPETITION LIKE?

The Knetic King's act was a disaster and can be ruled out (His Rube Goldberg device failed to work) The two singing acts, Avery and the Calico Hearts and Taylor Davis, can be ruled out, as can "Dancer" Sam B. Charles Peachock got X's from Howie and Sharon but praise from Piers after using his juggling to play "Jailhouse Rock" on the piano. Piers is the most sensible of the judges, so maybe voters could side with him, but then again, as the mean brit, he is also the least popular, so Charles could go. Zuma Zuma were impressive but unconventional, as were Team ILuminate. Impressionist Melissa Vilasenor nailed some impressions but not others. Meanwhile. BMX biking act Yellow Design stunt crew also made mistakes, the judges praised them, and dance crew Fatally Unique also went down well. All in all, competiton considered Alexander has a moderate chance of advancing, but Miles' chances are low

AUSTRAILIAS GOT TALENT FINAL -COSENTINO'S PERFORMANCE

WHAT DID COSENTINO DO?

Cosentino's final performance was amazing. After floating down onto the stage, Cosentino announced that whilst that was an illusion, everything he was about to do would be for real. He was restrained in a straitjacket and dangled underneath literal (And flaming) Jaws of death which would snap shut in 82 seconds if he had not escaped by that time. Cosentino milked the suspense generated by this routine to the last, literaly jumping down to the ground, free of the restraints, just as the jaws snapped shut, and the relief when he got up safe and sound was palatable. When asked how well he thought the routine went, Cosentino joked "I survived"

WHAT DID THE JUDGES SAY?

Brain  praised the fact that Cosentino just got "Better and better" and also supported his aim of using the $250,000 prize money to open a magic school. Danni noted that the trick scared her, but was generally full of praise, comparing his performances to "Some kind of new fantasy land". Finally ,Kyle, who was unwell but judging by video link, said Cosentino was "World-Standard" and "Excellent" and likened his last-second escapes to the Roadrunner

WHAT ARE COSENTINO'S CHANCES OF WINNING?

Cosentino is coming into the results show as a dark horse. He performed last and recieved good comments from the judges, but the nine acts he is up against are also excellent. However, Cosentino's main rival is Jack Vidgen. A 14 year-old singer, Vidgen has recieved praise and attention from media across the world, but has recently suffered some negative publicity. This concerns the fact that the "Original" song he performed in the final, "Yes I am" is not his own work.. This has led to some strong critism online and could cost him victory. That said, he is still the one to beat. There are also other acts who gave excellent final performances, such as song and dance group Tinomatic and comedian Rod Gregory, but I still think Cosentino has a moderate, hopefully high, chance of winning

Americas Got Talent Liveshows-Seth Grabel

FOR BRITSH VIEWERS, THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

WHAT DID SETH DO?

Seth performed an act which began with him being hoisted over a tank full of what appeared to be tar in a straitjacket. He appeaerd to fall into the tar, then the tank opened up to reveal assiatants carrying what appeaerd to be his body. They put it in a cannon and fired it at a water tank, where Seth then appeared, alive and clean. Like all Seth's other tricks, it was unique and inventive, but too easy to figure out. There were mistakes which aggravated this problem too (When Seth fell into the tank, his hands were free, but the body in the cannon still has bound hands). Nonetheless, the production values were good, and the trick wasn't conventional

WHAT DID THE JUDGES SAY?

Howie claimed that he was fooled by the trick and thought that Seth blew him away. Sharon claimed that she hadn't seen the trick before and liked the lavish production values, whilst Piers said that it was "Bigger, better [and] Slicker" then his previous performances

WHAT IS THE COMPETITION LIKE?

Whilst "Singer" Mauricio Herrera, Young rappers the Sh'boss boys,Yo-yo performer Ian Johnson, Dance act The Purrfect Angels and sideshow performers Captain and Maybelle can all be ruled out of the running, the rest of Seths competition was all very impressive. The Summerwind Skippers did some impressive and exciting jump rope tricks. though they may not have worked well on the big stage, they were still excellent. POPLYFE impressed the judges with a solid version of "rolling in the deep". Landau Murphy Jr. made a safe song choice ("Fly me to the moon") but is still very talented indeed. Monet has a sob story that will get votes (About her losing her home in a hurricane) and may offset the fact that the judges felt her voice hadn't yet matured. Lys Agnes made a bad song choice ("Habena" from Carmen) but still sang it well. Finally, Professor Splash dived nearly 37 feet into a pool of water only a foot deep, setting a new world record.

WHAT ARE SETHS CHANCES?

Low . If Landon Swank couldn't get out of a very weak heat last week, Grabel should have no chance in his more competitive group. However, Grabel had good stage presense and a memorable, if not perfect, trick that was more spectacular than Landon's. Expect him to be the last performer eliminated before the judges choice 

COULD A MAGICIAN WIN AUSTRAILIA"S GOT TALENT

Whilst many britions are familiar with Britains got Talent or Americas got Talent,  the controversy when a

comedian on the show copied a Lee Mack joke is the only knowledge we have of the Austrailian version

However British magic fans are missing out on something big. One of the finallists this year is magician and escapologist Paul Cosentino. His Audition, quarter final and semifinal performances can be seen below

So, can Cosentino win? The final airs in Austrailia on Tuesday and Cosentino has several excellent rivals, such as the 14 year old singer Jack Vidgen or the singing dancing group Tinomatic. However Cosentino has impressed Judges and viewers alike with his performances and even though Adam Murby who represented the art of magic in the final last year with the trick shown below didn't win, Cosentino has advanced with more support and better votes

So, how will Cosentino do in the final? Find out on Tuesday evening how well he did and see if he can do what only Swedens Charlie Caper before him has done-Prove that a magic act can win a Got Talent series