60 Old Woolwich Road Greenwich London SE10 9NY
The title of this talk is taken from a book released by Harry Houdini in 1924, and relates to the odd and sometimes confrontational relationship between stage magicians and psychics and mediums, which continues to this day. Paul Zenon will discuss the paradox which resulted in performers who rely on creating ‘supernatural’-style effects and phenomena for their audiences, pitting their wits against those who claim that their feats are actually real ‘magic’, debunking them in the name of rational, critical thinking and Science.
Houdini’s extensive work in the field will be explored, along with that of other skeptical conjurors throughout the past century, and there might well be a mention of Zenon’s own publicised run-ins with certain contemporary charlatans.
Paul is an award-winning magician, comedian, actor, author and pundit with around four decades of performing experience in around forty countries, and he is a Gold Star Member of the Inner Magic Circle. He was the pioneer of the Street Magic genre, with several one-man specials on C4 and ITV, and has made literally hundreds of television appearances, including being a regular Dictionary Corner guest on C4’s Countdown.