MIND PARADE Toby Hudson
© Copyright 2015 by Toby Hudson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the author. Basically don’t scan it and put it on Scribd! For further information, please contact me at:
[email protected]
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CONTENTS Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Principles Reverse Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Mood Swings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Mentalism ThinkTank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I Can Guess Passwords! . . . . . . . . Vanishing Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............... Memory Lane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Essays But is it Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Eternal Struggle . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Bonus Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Closing Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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INTRODUCTION Let me begin by saying thank you for purchasing this little book. And that although I've sat here for 15 minutes trying to think of something witty and clever to write here, my mind is blank. So, let me keep it simple. The idea for this book came about while at the Magick Lounge in Sheffield. A friend of mine Steve Brownley suggested I should write up some of my effects, so I did. This is my small offering to the mentalism community, and hopefully you can get something worthwhile from it. One thing that really annoys about mentalism books is spelling errors, so hopefully there won't be any of them in this boock. (See, that's the best I could come up with...) And finally, I feel like this goes without saying, but all the effects within here are of independent creation. Except, of course, the trick that lies in Roger Curzon's 1992 unpublished notes, but that's another story. Have fun, Toby (May 2015)
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PRINCIPLES
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REVERSE READING This first chapter revolves around a new idea that can be used alongside normal readings, whether you do tarot reading or cold reading. While it’s not an actual full system, it can be used before going into a full reading of any kind. There is also a lot of versatility within the concept and can be applied towards effects within mentalism itself. So, here we go!
What is reverse reading? Reverse reading in its simplest form is to have a tarot card selected sight unseen and you peek it, before leading the spectator towards it and making it appear as though they chose it themselves. Although this sounds a bit odd, let’s take a look at how to start the reverse reading and set it up. The first step is to have a tarot card chosen supposedly sight unseen, but you need to know what it is. Here are a few ways to do that.
Learning the selected Tarot There are many ways in which you can do this, but here are a few different ways. I think that the simplest is to set the deck up in a cyclical stack, so that when a card is selected, you can tell 6
what it is by looking at the next card. Once the deck is in a stack, remove it and perform a sly shuffle, retaining the order of the deck. Have the spectator cut the cards anywhere and to deal a card face down onto the table. As you square up the cards, peek the bottom card and this will tell you the face down card. Another way to do it using the stack is to have the spectator cut, then deal one card face up, and the next face down. Begin by performing a regular reading with the face up card, before going into the reverse using the face down card. You should be able to tell what the face down card is using the face up one, as both fall next to each other in the stack. The method that I use most often is a peek. Have the deck cut and one card dealt face down into your hand. Indicate for the spectator to place their hand palm up and as you do, tilt the card towards you and simply peek it. There is not much to this, and done in a nonchalant manner, will arouse little suspicion. Once done, place the card in their hand and return to the reading. Another way to peek it to as you place the card to the table, you hook your thumb underneath it as though doing the move to show both sides of a card the same. As you do, the card will flash in 7
your direction as you lift your thumb up and leave it on the table. Anyhow, all you need to know is the selected card.
Influencing the Tarot Let’s say that the person you are going to read is extremely quiet and nervous or the complete opposite, then I’d ‘influence the tarot.’ What I mean is that I don’t want a shy person to select ‘the fool’ for example, as the reading may go astray and embarrass them. In this case, you may want to force a certain choice upon them, so as not to ruin the reading. I won’t insult your intelligence and go over how to force a card, as I’ll leave that up to you.
Performing the Reading Once you know the card, place it on their hand, or just on the table and say that you’ll come back to it a little later. You’re now going to begin to do a standard reading, but what you want to do is theme all the points you make around the selected tarot. For example, if the fool has been selected, you would do your reading, but keep coming back to the idea that they can be quite silly sometimes of that they can be daft at inappropriate times. You can even mention the 8
word ‘fool’ if you like. Below are a list of the themes that I would use if certain cards come up. I’ve only used a few examples from the major arcana, as you can probably work most out for yourself:
The Lovers: Keep referring to how considerate they are as a person and how they care and metaphorically ‘give love but don’t receive it back’ and so on. The Hermit: Talk about how they feel closed off, and different from everyone else (who doesn’t from time to time?) how they always find a way to separate themselves from the crowd. The Hanged Man: Explain that they always feel like a scapegoat, as though they are on trial and under pressure from everybody else. What’s great about this is that because you’re otherwise using generalised phrases, they can’t say no, so whatever you say will fit to them, even with the added themes!
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Revealing the Card Once you’ve done the reading, you’re going to get them to name their chosen card. Let’s say they’ve selected the fool. What I like to say is from the information, I’ve just received, and I think that three cards fit you and your personality better than the rest. The Three of Coins, the Fool and the Chariot. Which of these do you think best described you, from what I’ve learnt? What you want to do is name their selected card in amongst two lesser known tarot cards, as this stop them from naming either of the other two. Also, the fact that you say they are to choose one based on the information just given means that they are likely to pick the one you want them to, rather than one that most described their genuine character. Once they’ve named the fool, reiterate that they picked any card, free of choice and that all the information you received was correct. They also had a final choice to pick one they felt was truly right, so if the tarot is correct, then there can be no reasonable explanation. Have them slowly turn over the card and reveal it to be… the fool!
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Cold Reading Now that you understand the basic idea, this technique can be used in all sorts of ways. Here is a way to apply it to cold reading in a slightly different form. Before you begin doing anything, grab a billet and say you’re receiving a thought. Scribble the words right brained on it and place it face down on the table. During the reading, get a sense of what type of person they are. This may be creative, logical or whatever, but keep a mental note of it. You can easily find this out just by asking them about their hobbies or job, but be warned that job isn’t that reliable as a lot of people seem to work at jobs they don’t like! I’d say that hobbies is your best bet. Say you discover they are a very logical person. When you reach the end of the reading, almost as an afterthought say Oh I almost forgot. It’s been scientifically proven that people are of a certain type of brain. Left, right or centre. I think, if I remember, left brain people are very creative and imaginative, centre brain people are very closed off, and right brained people are extremely logical. Which would you say you are? All you’re doing is saying their traits when you supposedly tell them what right brained people 11
are like. There’s no reason for them not to believe you. They will, of course, say right brained. Have them slowly turn over the billet and show that you sensed it before the reading even began! If for some strange reason, they say that they’re left or centre brained (which they won’t) simply acknowledge it and forget about the billet. As you never draw attention to it when you ask the question, it will appear as though you are just wondering out of curiosity. Another way to fit information like this is to write down, for example, the words ‘1:2 personality’ on a billet and place it sight unseen in full view for the show. When ready, take an impression device and have them write down any object/person, peek the info. If they wrote ‘Spatula,’ say something like people with a 1:1 personality will often go for a bedroom appliance, a 1:2 would usually go for a kitchen item and a 1:3 tends to lean more towards recreational equipment. Which personality do you think you are? When they say 1:2, show the billet before continuing to read their mind of the specific thought. 12
Playing Cards Again, the technique used here is slightly different from the above two, but I think it’s important you get to see all the different ways in which this idea can be used. This effect can also be done completely impromptu. Begin by having someone think of any playing card, something not too obvious. It’s important they don’t go for an obvious card as you will use this to your advantage later. Stare into their eyes and scribble the 7 ♥ down and fold the billet up and leave it on the table. Have them name the card out loud, say the 3 ♣. Go to open the billet, and then as an afterthought say actually, you seem quite responsive you let’s try something else as well. Three other cards I picked up from your subconscious as well were the Q ♦, the 7 ♥ and the 5 ♣. If you just want to think of one of those as well… Remove a second billet and write down the card that was originally thought of. Fold the billet and pick up both in your hand, mixing them around. Have them name their thought of card from three. If they say the 7 ♥, which they usually will due to it being psychologically appealing, open 13
the billet you wrote the 7 on and show it, before showing the other as well. If they thought of one of the other two, not the seven, say that it was just a silly experiment. Show you got it wrong before showing them you nailed the original thought of card. I love the one ahead principle, and I think combining it with the reverse idea makes it an absolute killer.
Wallet Prediction Have a card to wallet set up and ready to go in your pocket. You wil also need a billet that has '37' written on it, palmed in your hand. Have someone think of any animal, or anything at all, and pick up a billet. Write on it 'Check the wallet, you fool!' or any words to that equivalent and fold it and leave it on the table. Have them tell you what they thought of (in this case a lion) and smile in a confident manner. Say that as they are so receptive, you'll try it again. Have them think of either the number 10, 37 or 93. Pick up a second billet and write on it the word 'lion.' As you apparently put it on the table, switch it for the one in your hand that says 37. As soon as you put it down, go to place the pen in your pocket and at the same time, load the billet that says 'lion' on it into the wallet. 14
First open the number billet and show you either got it right or wrong. Shrug it off as fruitless if you got it wrong. Then, open the first billet to what they expect will say lion. It actually says check the wallet, and when they do, it looks as though you knew what they were going to pick before they even did! There are so many ways to use this. Have a play around, and if you have any ideas, I’d love to hear your thoughts. After all, two heads are better than one! Unless one of the heads is made of lettuce. (My, what a wit I have!)
Credits I’ve been told that Ken Dyne has some similar ideas like this in one of his published routines, and Colin McLeod has some thoughts of this kind of thing in his latest book ‘Divine.’ Credit also goes partially to ‘Cog’ by Ben Seward, with his effect ‘The Trip’ which inspired the playing card phase of this idea.
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MOOD SWINGS Let’s talk about colours for a bit. Or, more specifically, colour rings. These rings can be found extremely cheaply on the internet or in little gift shops, and apparently measure your mood depending on what colour they go. This idea came about after a conversation with Iain Dunford on the Mystery Performers forum. I hope you enjoy!
Rings to Use What you want to do is buy the band type of mood rings that are round in shape and fit over the finger. Any ring that is known as a ‘gothic mood ring’ and has a huge stone on the front of it will not work as well. These band rings can be bought in bulk from EBay or any seedy internet site.
Change the Colour Once you have purchased the rings, there are many ways in which they can be used in a show or as an effect within themselves, each of which usually involves changing their colour. After I have explained a few key ways to do this to them, I’ll outline a few effects that use the rings to great effect: 16
Heat: The main way in which the rings change colour is through the use of heat, and when they are heated up on the finger. If you take a ring and breathe upon it, it will turn blue/purple. Alternatively, cooling them down by blowing on them will turn them brown, and then eventually black. Varnish: You can use nail varnish for a more secure change. Take a ring and apply a small amount of nail varnish of the desired colour on the ring and slowly rub it round so that the whole ring smudges into that colour. Dry the varnish and when done, you will have a ring that is permanently one colour. This means you can switch a normal ring for a doctored one and so on. Ok, so now that you understand how to change their colour, let’s look at a few ways to use them.
Readings If you use the colour of the ring as a guide, you can perform extremely powerful readings. Have them hold the ring in their hand and see what colour it changes. Then, do a reading on the colour of the ring, talking about how red represents blood or deep love, or whatever colour it goes. You can also show the ring and swap it for a permanently red ring. Have them 17
hold it in their hands and say that you feel that they are the sort of person who might make the ring go red. When they open their hand, it will be. If you wanted to fit it in with a reading, I think though that you have to make it something other than just a ring. A friend of mine Roger Curzon always says that when performing mentalism that teeters on the edge of bizarre, you cannot make the items you use look like props. If you were to use it in a reading, put it in an old box and dress it up as you're dead uncle Albert's wedding ring or something. If they think, that like the tarot, you can influence it in any way it turns from a reading into a magic trick. It is also a great decorative piece that can be worn on your finger and never used, but to rather build up an image that you want to portray. It can also be dangled over tarot cards to pick up certain vibes and the like. Sometimes I use it in conjunction with my aforementioned 'reverse reading' technique.
Pendulums If you tie the ring to a piece of string, then you have a very pretty make-shift pendulum that can be used at a moments notice. I have found that sometimes they can be a bit light, so if you see 18
this as a problem, a small blob of blu tack or something in the ring will weight it down sufficiently. You can also get the ring to turn colour as it spins, which is a nice touch. If you breathe on your hands and hold them close to the spinning ring, you will see a slight colour difference that can be used as a 'change in the aura' or to prove that their mind is causing the pendulum to change colour. Read on for an effect that uses this idea. As well as changing it's colour, simple letting it reflect off light surfaces as it spins can give off a dazzling effect and enhance an effect by a mile. I think that many pendulum effects are self explanatory so I won't delve too deep into this section.
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MENTALISM
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RULE OF THREE Let’s begin with a favourite of mine. Why not? This effect is really strong and can, in the right settings, appear completely impossible. Best of all, all you need is a deck of cards and a small stack of blank business cards. This effect makes use of the brilliant Hoy Principle by David Hoy. Some noteworthy effects using this idea are Dave’s PIN from Michael Murray’s book A Piece of My Mind and Luke Jermay’s Touching on Hoy from Coral Fang.
Basic Effect Three spectators each think of a different thought and write it down. Somehow, the Mentalist manages to divine all three, before showing that he knew way in advance what each of them would pick.
Presentation Three mini slips of paper are shown, with a number 1, 2 or 3 written on each. They are mixed and three spectators (Brandon, Nathan and Gaz) take a card each and remember their number. The slips are then torn up. 21
‘Ok, so right now each of you is thinking of a number. If you thought of number 1, think of a simple geometric shape like a square or circle, nothing too complex like a star. If you thought of number 2, think of any playing card for me, but not an ace as they’re too easy. Finally, if you thought of number 3, think of any two digit number from 1 to 50 for me. Please, no decimals or recurring fractions.’ Each spectator writes their thought down on a billet. These are unmarked and completely normal. The Mentalist is blind folded and is handed the billets. He proceeds to correctly divine all three thoughts perfectly, (e.g. 19, triangle and Q ♣) before giving a short but extremely specific character reading on all three participants. ‘However, I have to admit something to you. I had a feeling as to what your thoughts were going to be a week ago. I gave you (indicates spectator 1) a deck of cards 2 weeks ago, and I asked you to bring it along with you tonight. Could you please get it out?’ The spectator takes out the deck, and with shaking fingers, removes the cards from the box. He is asked to count down to the 19th card. It is turned over. Sure enough, it’s the Q ♣, and 22
scrawled across the face of it, is the word TRIANGLE in big black lettering. The Mentalist never handles the deck, and it is completely ungimmicked.
Concept The basic idea at work here is the famous ‘Hoy Principle’ by David Hoy. What this means is that all three participants are actually thinking of the same thought without realising it. To set up, take a deck of cards and write the word ‘triangle’ across any card. Let’s say the 2 ♥. Then place this at position 36 in the deck. It doesn’t matter what card and what number you use, as long as you know them. You can then put the deck away and send it to a participant of the effect weeks in advance. You will also need a small stack of business cards that are blank on one side. Draw a medium sized rectangle in the middle of each card and in one, write the number, in this case 36, and in the other, write the card, in this case the 2 ♥. Place these two cards on the bottom of the business card stack face down in any order. You will also need five mini slips of paper. On three of these, draw a big number 1 on it, and then write 2 and 3 on the other two. Make sure the ink 23
doesn’t bleed through. You’re now ready to perform the effect. When ready to perform, place two of the slips that have a 1 on them on your lap so you can access them easily.
Performance To begin, introduce the effect and say that you’ll need ‘three random thoughts.’ Show the three slips of paper freely and have them examined. As this is happening, get the two slips in your lap, ready to be palmed. You’ll now perform a simple switch to swap numbers 2 and 3 for the ones on your lap. Take the slips back so that number 1 is on top. Hold them face down and get a break under the top slip. You’re going to let the two below it to slip onto your lap as you place the two palmed on top. Bring your hands together and as you do, briefly dip your hands below the table and drop the two slips below the break onto your thighs. Bring your hands back up as they meet and drop the two palmed slips onto the other hand. Grab all three with your right hand and spread them on the table. To the naked eye, it should appear as though you just transferred the slips 24
from one hand to the other and spread them on the table. Little do they know the slips now all have 1 written on them. What fools they are. Spread them out on the table and have the spectators take one at random and remember the number. Make sure to tell them not to show anyone else what number they got. This will ensure no one will see that all are the same. Take the slips back and dispose of them. Now follow the presentation written at the beginning. If you word is as shown, then all three of the participants should be thinking of triangle. Each of them also thinks that the other two are thinking of a card or a number. I like to follow this script to the letter as it seems as though you are putting restrictions on the number and card, as well as the shape. Take three business cards (careful not to disturb your stack) and draw three boxes in the middle identical to the ones drawn earlier. Hand one to each participant and have them write down their thoughts in the boxes. Again, caution them not to let anyone else see what they write. Blindfold yourself and take the three cards face down. Mix them up and hover your hand over them one at a time to pick up the auras the cards are leaving. 25
You can now proceed to supposedly receive the thought one at a time. I’m getting a shape coming through here, quite pointy, a triangle maybe? Don’t react anyone, don’t give anything away. Next, the number. This is quite central, like 36? And finally the card. Oh that’s easy, the 3 ….no 2 of hearts! Remove your blindfold and say quick yes or no, did I get yours? Ask them one at a time in quick succession and they will all say ‘yes.’ Pick up the three cards and set them on top of the stack casually. Relax a little here and soak up the applause. Pick up the business card stack and transfer the top card to the bottom and turn over the whole packet. Deal the three face cards onto the table. This is discrepant but will fly past the audience. Even though you’ve just switched out two cards, everything should appear normal. Each spectator will see their thought and what they presume are the other two people’s thoughts. You’re now going to do a quick ‘handwriting’ analysis and cold reading (Note: see the end for an alternative for this) I’ll just explain this briefly as it should be pretty obvious. Begin by saying ok, the way you’ve all written and drawn your answer is very interesting to me. We’ll try this 26
with the ‘triangle’ drawer first. Don’t say who you are, as this might give me a clue, but what I’m getting from you is… Give a brief reading. When you’re done, move straight onto the second ‘person’ who wrote the number. As this is no one, you can be as specific as you want as no one can verify it. The same with the last ‘person.’ Now ask each of them what percentage of the information that I just gave would mean something to you? As all three got the first, general reading, their answer will differ, one maybe saying 60%, then 80 and so on. Because you’ll get different percentages, this cements the idea that all the readings applied to only one person each. Finally, all you need to do now is say that ‘you knew what they were going to pick’ and go into the final reveal with the deck of cards. Make sure you NEVER go near the cards so that there can’t be any back tracking possible.
Alternative 27
Here is an alternative to the second phase. After you’ve revealed all three thoughts, all the face down cards still say ‘triangle’ so you can have them mixed as much as possible, yet you can identify which card belongs to which person, as they will always get a card with their thought written on it!
Final Thoughts I know this might read a bit dull on paper, but as long as you keep them captivated and involved, there’s no reason for them to be. People love themselves, so as long as you keep it centred on their thoughts and ideas, they’ll be hooked! After showing this effect to a friend of mine, they said that they liked it but they thought that revealing that you knew what they would think in advance kind of ruined the idea that previously I had read their supposedly read their minds. This is a good point, but I think that as long as you focus more on the readings and make it appear as though getting the thoughts was merely an experiment, this shouldn’t really pose an issue; make it look as though the mind reading was just a casual extra to the main event (the readings.) But if you just want to reveal the three thoughts with no deck ending, you can. 28
Finally. I’m sure some pessimists out there will be thinking ‘what if a participant doesn’t pick the triangle?’ The simple answer is that if you’ve built up good rapport with your spectators beforehand, then they won’t try and trick you and they will go for the triangle. Plus, what other shapes can they choose? There’s really nothing to worry about…
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I CAN GUESS PASSWORDS! Although I don’t perform this routine much as it doesn’t really fit my style of performance, I’m still pretty proud of how it turned out and how it all wraps itself up neatly. There’s a lot of nice little ideas in this routine and I hope you enjoy! Credits for this routine go to Luke Jermay for the idea of gathering two pieces of information or more during the action of getting someone to write it down.
Basic Effect Two spectators form a PIN and the mentalist proceeds to reveal it, before passing on him amazing gift to one of the other two spectators!
Presentation The mentalist begins by inviting a spectator up on stage and hands him a small billet. After a bit of by-play, Roger introduces himself and the Mentalist hands him a billet. ‘What I want to talk to you about now is something that I find quite worrying in today’s modern society. And that is, passwords. If you 30
think about it, there’s only one small word keeping all of your bank details, and accounts safe. So, I’d like to try something with this concept. Just think of any password you use every day. You can change some of the letters a bit if you want to keep your password safe. So Roger, just fill out the billet and write the password on it, if you don’t mind.’ The password is then written down on the billet and hidden somewhere on the spectator’s person. The mentalist claims that they will get back to it a little later. Another spectator, Les, is invited up on stage. ‘Ok, so what I want both of you to do is think of the last two digits of your birth year, as the first two digits will be 19 of course. Now, write each of your digits on this billet and keep the billet close to your chest so no one else except you two can see the digits.’ The spectators comply with the demands. ‘Ok, I’m getting an 8. Look at me… there’s another 8 as well. The third digit that I’m getting is… is…, try and project it to me please…a 4? Ok, the last one is a big harder so keep repeating it over in your mind like 3, 3, 3…yes? Very good.’ 31
The numbers are confirmed to be correct. The mentalist then claims that he will pass his ability onto the second spectator. He stares into his eyes for a moment and passes them a billet. The other billet that contains spectator one’s password is removed and ripped up. The two stare into each other’s eyes and the second spectator gradually gets the password. ‘So you see, passwords aren’t as secure as they seem. Thanks for helping me out tonight and… wait a minute, do you have a mobile phone? Yes? Well I’d consider changing the code on it from 5 2 9 3 to something a bit less obvious! Thanks for helping me out!’
Concept There are quite a lot of little ideas hidden within this routine, but what I like is that at the end, everything ties itself up in a neat way. The first stage will be a peek and some common sense, the second phase an instant stooge. Begin by writing ‘PLAY ALONG, THE PASSWORD IS _________’ on a billet and place it face down on the bottom of the stack. Then, take a piece of card and on it write ‘Date of Birth __/_/____’ and ‘Password _______.’ Writing the D.O.B in this fashion ensures they will write down their birth year as well.’ The lines represent a blank area 32
where the participant will input the required information. Finally you will need to set up a peek. This can be done any way, but the simplest way that I like to do it is to cut a hole in the back of an envelope. I also have a normal sealed envelope in my pocket which I will switch out.
Performance Begin by inviting two spectators up on stage. Once you’ve introduced the effect, ask the first spectator to think of any password that they currently use on their computer. Hand them the billet and you’re now going to use some clever wording to appear as though they are only writing the password down. Point at the D.O.B and say ‘fill this in for me…’ then point at the password section and say ‘and write your password there as well.’ A bit of DR here ensures that no one realises the date of birth has been written. Take out the envelope with the hole in it (careful not to flash it) and load the billet in face down. As you speak, casually seal the envelope and hold it up so you can see the information. Now in the action of searching for your pen, you can easily switch it for the other envelope in your pocket. I won’t go into too much detail about this 33
as you can probably figure out your own method being the experienced performer you are � Have them sign what they believe is an envelope that contains their password. Alternatively, you could just peek the information and not switch the envelope, but I think you get a bit more freedom this way. Say that you will get back to the password a little later.
Phase 1 Now, you want to have a second spectator come up on stage, but it is essential that they were born in the same DECADE as the first person. For example, they were both born in the 80s or whatever. After you’ve seen your peek, you should get a better idea as to what age you’re looking for. Choose your second spectator and ask that both of them create a four digit PIN by using the last two numbers of their birth year. Have them write these four digits in any order on a billet. But the sneaky thing is that you already know 3 of the numbers. You know the two peeked ones and you know that one of the second spectator’s numbers will match the firsts! Let’s say the first spectator’s digits are 84, then you know that one of the second spectator’s numbers will be 8, as 34
you’ve picked two participants from the same decade! Pick up the stack of billets, turning them over as you do so you are facing the card that will be used for the instant stooge. Write the password in the gap, but then act as though you’ve changed your mind and put the stack back down and move the billet to the back of the stack. It’s also nice to not write it exactly correct, so that it has more credibility at the end. Begin by saying that you’re getting two numbers coming through. Have them repeat the numbers in their mind, and name the two numbers you peeked, ‘8 5’ on the billet. Make sure you tell them not to react. You’re now going to get the other two. Of the remaining two, have spectator one remember the highest of the two numbers, and spectator two the lowest. This has no impact on the effect, but I like to make it look as though both spectators are sending me a number separately. You can reveal the first one as being an 8 in any way you’d like, but for the unknown one, you can go about this a number of ways. Begin by using the old Derren idea of saying repeat it over and over in your mind, like 3, 3, 3… and so on. If you hit, perfect, if not carry on. Then say this number hasn’t already been said, has it? If they say yes, 35
say I thought so. It will either be an 8 or 5 again. If they say no, then I just guess. It it’s right, great, if it’s not, shrug if off and ask for the number, before re-iterating that you already got three of the numbers and that it isn’t an exact science. There are, as you can probably think, hundreds of other ways of getting the last digit. If you want to, you can further this by psychically diving who each of the numbers belonged to. See more about this at the end of the routine in the ‘Final Thoughts’ section.
Phase 2 You’re now going to supposedly pass on your gift to the second spectator, and they will somehow divine the password of the first spectator. What you want to do is first stare into spectator two’s eyes and tell them you have passed over ‘the gift.’ As you talk, pick up the billets and casually move the top card to the bottom. Now, making sure no one else can see the face card of the stack, wave them in front of spectator two and tell them just to imagine a word appearing in the air ‘just about here.’ As you do this, they will get a clear view of the password. A sly wink here seals the deal. Add whatever presentational touches you’d like (i.e. asking spectator 1 whether it’s just a word or a 36
number as well.) Hand spectator two a billet and pen. Ask spectator one if there is any way anyone can see through the envelope. Whatever they respond, say it doesn’t matter anyway and promptly rip up the envelope and throw it on the floor. This is psychologically a very strong moment, as it now appears as though there is no possible way that you should know anything and you’ve destroyed the only paper that had it written on. Have the two spectator’s stare into each other’s eyes and when spectator two feels a connection, he is to write down whatever he feels. Ask spectator one to reveal what he’s written. Of course, spectator two will react and of course, there is the end to your routine. Thank both spectators for helping out and send them back to their seats as you soak up the applause.
Phone Code You may have noticed in the presentation that at the end of this routine, I reveal spectator two’s phone code as he makes his way to his seat. The reason I do this is because it kills the stooge. Technically, the final phase won’t impress him, so if you nail his phone code at the end, it completely throws them off the method. 37
The way I do it just guess and I’ll hit once every 100,000 times. Not really, that was a lie. If you have the ‘iUnlockYourMind’ app by Myke Philips then you could use that to harvest the code, or perhaps the simplest (and cheapest) way is just to wander about before the show looking at people. No one is particularly secretive about their phone code, and so you will get loads of opportunities to gather the information you need. Then, when both spectators are walking off stage, casually ask if spectator two has a phone, and then use the line about changing the code. Super simple! Another idea which is quite bold but means you don’t have to peak any numbers is to as they’re walking off stage casually say something like you have a phone, yes? Well I’d consider changing the digits to 5698 as they’re not as obvious at those. It doesn’t make perfect sense, but said quickly, will give the impression of saying their code out loud. Obviously you’re just saying any random numbers.
Final Thoughts 38
I thought I might just cover a few little things I mentioned earlier in the explanation: Divining Numbers. After the first phase, you’ll see it says that you can then divine whose numbers belong to who. I would only do this if I hadn’t hit the fourth digit bang on. What you’d then do is say ‘Ok, what I’m now getting is that your numbers are 8 and 5, yes? And yours are… are…3 and 8!’ Make sure to reverse the order of the second two numbers to make them appear more random. Star Sign: You may have realised that after you’ve peeked the birthday, you get a great opportunity to reveal a star sign along the way. If you know you’re signs, then you can incorporate it into the routine. Also see ‘Zodique’ later on within this book for a way to reveal star signs. And that’s all there is to it!
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VANISHING POINT I wasn’t even going to publish this effect, but I was convinced by a couple of friends that it was good, so here it is! Credits for this go to American card magician Jason England for a culling idea.
Basic Effect A deck of cards is borrowed from a member of the audience and shuffled thoroughly by anyone who wishes to mix them. A card is merely peeked at, but somehow, the Mentalist always knows!
Presentation The Mentalist asks for a participant to help him with his next ‘cardboard creation.’ A deck of cards is borrowed from him (let’s call him Steve) and the cards split into four random piles. ‘Ok, so you look like a smart guy. You probably know all the tricks using key cards and ‘secret helpers’ and that sort of crap. So what I’ve done is split the deck into four piles. Pick ‘em up on at a time and shuffle to your heart’s contents. ‘
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The helper does just this. He shuffles the packets on at a time. The packets are then gathered and squared. Right, so I’m going to turn my back and what I want you to do is lift up a section of cards anywhere, peek at the card, then slap the deck back together and thoroughly shuffle. You done? Good. The Mentalist should have no inkling as to what the card is. He stares into the participant’s eyes. ‘I’m getting a red card, yes. Look at me please, it’s a heart yes? Ok, now think about whether or not it’s a picture or a number card...it’s a number card. Now for the value. It a high card, is it not? I thought so. Look at me here, the 8, no 9 of hearts yes? Thank you very much.’ Steve confirms this is the card and the deck is fully examined, and there are no gimmicks or stacks to speak of. What I love about this routine is that it is totally impromptu and can be performed at the drop of a hat. I like to use this effect with the ‘move monkeys’ as it really confuses them.
Concept 41
This effect is extremely simple, and there are no hard moves at all within this routine. The basic idea is that at the beginning, you separate the deck out so that one pile contains all of the cards of one suit, and from there, it’s just fishing.
Performance To begin, have any deck of cards borrowed and shuffled. It isn’t crucial that it be a full deck, but it will make the effect easier to do. After it has been examined, pick it up and spread the deck with the faces towards you. As soon as you spread the deck, upjog the first two cards. You now want to upjog the values one to ten of the same suit as the second card. For example, if the second card is a heart, all of the hearts would be upjogged except the picture cards. This is all done so only you can see the faces. Strip out the upjogged cards and place this packet face up on the table. You can slightly spread the top card of the packet to show red and black cards. With the rest of the deck, do the same action but this time, really do remove random cards. Repeat this two more times. You should now have four packets that supposedly contain random cards, but the first packet is 42
actually full of hearts and the five of clubs, which will act as a cover card to hide all the hearts. Turn all the packets face down. Have the spectator mix the four piles one at a time until they are happy the cards are all mixed. Of course it doesn’t matter how they mix them as all the hearts will stay together in one pile. Gather up all the packets making sure the hearts is on top. Now, you want to cut the cards to centralise the hearts packet. However, if you’re doing this for a woman, cut the cards do that the hearts are bang in the centre. If, on the other hand, you’re doing it for a man, place the hearts a little lower down in the deck. The reasoning behind this will become apparent in a moment. Place the deck face down on the table. Now, to the audience, the deck should appear completely shuffled. Say that in a minute, when you turn round, the assistant is to cut the deck about the middle and to peek at a card. As you do this, you are going to demonstrate what they are to do by cutting off a quarter of the deck and flashing the face card. This is just to show the assistant what to do so that they are one hundred percent sure. Square the deck and turn around. As you do, say ‘so cut off ABOUT HALF and remember the card.’ 43
Nine times out of ten, they will hit the hearts packet. I will cover outs of they don’t later. With your back still turned, have them square and shuffle the deck. The reason for placing the hearts in slightly different positions depending on their gender is because I’ve found from experience, when asked to cut ‘about the middle’ women will go right for the centre, but men will cut a bit deeper. Obviously, this is not an exact science, but it does make a difference. Ok, so you now know that the card is a heart, but you’re going to present this as three hits. Have them place the deck down and stare into their eyes to ‘receive their thoughts.’ Again, see presentation at the end for all of this. First reveal that it’s a red card, then a heart, then a number card. Now all you need to do is fish for the value. Begin by saying ‘I’m not getting a high card, am I?’ If they say yes, reply with ‘yeah I thought so…’ but if they say no reply with ‘no I didn’t think so…’ This is an old technique but does the job perfectly. Let’s say it was a high card. Look at them and call out the values five to ten, as though studying their facial expressions. Now say ‘this is quite high, is it not?’ If they agree, you can assume it’s the nine or the ten. If they 44
say ‘not really’, it’s a six or seven. If they have trouble answering, it’s the eight. The same applies with the low values, but ask, ‘this is quite low, isn’t it?’ You should now have a choice of two values. Simply call either out. If they react, finish here. If they don’t, immediately click your fingers and say ‘eliminated, because your card was the…’ and say the second value. And that’s all there is to it. Obviously, there are a lot of other, quicker methods out there, but I like fishing as I think it works well.
Outs Ok, let’s be frank here. This effect doesn’t always work. Once every so often you’ll get a spectator who misses the block, and gets a different card. And, although this section is called outs, I don’t really have one. So, when it does happen, and you get the colour or suit wrong, I will say something like: ‘sorry, there are just too many thought going on in your head. Could you write your card down on this piece of paper for me?’ Then just resort to a centre tear. Not too ‘clever’, I know, but as it happens so rarely, I don’t have an out. Also, the spectator may have cut to the cover card, in this case the five of clubs. Always 45
remember the cover card and you can use it as a second resort. You could, of course, try and fish your way out, but you must be ready with lots of double meaning sentences such as ‘the value, it isn’t high is it?’ and so on.
Final Thoughts One final tip I would like to add is that if the spectator looks a little confused when you say the sentence about whether the value is high or low, it means they have selected the five. Don’t be put off by the simple method behind this, as it really does work. What I also love is that it creates a double bluff moment. After the effect, magicians will approach me asking the method, and they’ll always begin with ‘I know that the four packet splitting was just bluff…’ But it isn’t! I love things like that!
MEMORY LANE 46
This routine is based on an effect by Roger Curzon from his booklet ‘The Lost Papyrus of Imhotep.’ The effect, ‘Emotional Catharsis,’ is very different to my effect, but when I first came up with this, they were quite similar. However, over time the routine has been adapted into the piece you’re about to read. I’ve also been told that it is similar in principle to an effect by Docc Hilford, called ‘The Richie Technique.’ I’ve had a look at this effect and the two routines are based on the same idea, but carried out differently.
Basic Effect The spectator thinks of three memories that set off different emotions, and one by one, the Mentalist receives all three thoughts, before tapping into the mystery of ‘love.’
Presentation Three billets are placed out onto the table and a volunteer is chosen to help who has a good memory. A rather annoying spectator by the name of Tom makes his way on stage. I would like to try something with you Tom, but not with the psychical, but rather the mental. What I want you to do is think of a happy 47
memory, a time when you felt genuinely emotional, and concentrate on how that made you feel. The first billet is picked up and the Mentalist stares into his eyes and quickly scribbles something down. He folds it in half and writes the word ‘HAPPY’ on the front. The assistant is then asked to confirm her memory out loud. This is then repeated two times, one with ‘SORROW’ and one with ‘FEAR.’ Obviously, nothing too extreme, just a time when they may have felt uncomfortable. One at a time, very fairly the envelopes are gathered up and opened, and the mentalist was bang on with at least two of the three billets! However, there is one emotion we haven’t touched on yet, but is probably the most important of all and that is love. If you don’t mind, I would like to try something quite personal with you. If you don’t want to partake in this, then now is the time to…you WILL help me? Excellent. Hopefully, at the end of this, you will take away not sadness, but happiness, as love can provoke both feeling within us. The mentalist gets his helper to think of a beloved person who has passed away. He directs their attention to a billet that has been folded 48
with a heart drawn on it. They open it and silently read it to themselves before confirming that you know who they are thinking of.
Explanation This effect is in two parts really. The first three billets and the last billet. You can perform the first part without the second if you feel that the situation isn’t right, but I’d recommend doing the full effect for the person to receive a fully personalised experience. Begin by folding three billets in half and writing the words ‘SAD’, ‘HAPPY’ and ‘FEAR’ on them. Leave these writing sides DOWN on the table, in the same order as written. At no point are the audience going to suspect there is already writing on these. You must also use the same pen you wrote these words with for the trick. As you have probably guessed, this trick relies on the old ‘one ahead’ principle, but in a slightly different way which makes for a clean ending.
Performance Begin by talking about emotions and talking to your participant. I think when you do an effect 49
with a touchy subject such as emotions, it’s nice to get to know the spectator a bit and really connect with them. It also means that you can gather more information for a reading later on.
First Three Billets Anyhoo, when you’re ready to begin, pick up the billet on your very left, careful not to flash the word on the back. Start by talking about how memories can trigger certain emotions within us. This is a really nice time to billet should have ‘SAD’ secretly on it. As you do, hold it up towards you but make sure the writing is hidden. Ask the spectator to think of a ‘HAPPY’ memory. Get them to picture it and study them carefully, as if receiving a thought. Now write down on the billet ‘Loss, disappointment, maybe family? Pet? Not reaching a specific goal?’ Fold the billet in half and write ‘HAPPY’ across the blank portion, again keeping the other word hidden. Place it on the table with the word ‘HAPPY’ for everyone to see. Ask them what their memory was. Act intrigued by what has happened. Pick up the second billet and have the spectator think of any memory when they were scared or feeling fear. (Make sure they don’t pick anything too upsetting.) Again, keep the writing hidden and write on the billet the happy memory the 50
spectator just told you. Don’t make it too accurate of they will suspect something is up. Fold it in half and write ‘FEAR’ on it for everyone to see. Have them tell you the memory. Pick up the final billet, and have them think of a sad memory. However, on this one, act as though the thought isn’t coming through clearly. This is to cover you for the vague statement on the first billet. Write the fear memory on it before folding it up and writing ‘SAD’ on it. You should now have three billets on the table. Pick them up from left to right so that SAD is the top of the pile. Now here is the sneaky bit. If you turn the three billets over secretly, the memories will now perfectly match with the words that are uppermost. Don’t make anything of this move; just casually turn over the billets as you talk. Say that the ‘SAD’ memory was a bit fuzzy. Have them tell it you and open the top billet. Hopefully their memory will fit with one of the statements you wrote in the first billet. If it does, make sure to play it up, but if it doesn’t shrug it off and carry on. The other two should match perfectly. Always make sure that the writing on the other side of the cards is hidden at all times. I do realise this probably reads pretty quick, but if you give it a good presentational hook and really 51
go into depth about our connection with emotions, this can be really powerful to your spectator and can bring it out to about 10 minutes in total.
The Fourth Billet This is basically an ambiguous statement that can apply to anyone. What you want to do is write the following phrase on the billet: This person was very close to you and was always there when you needed someone to turn to. When they departed, it felt like you couldn’t live without them for a while, but you used their love as a way through. I want you to understand that even though they can’t be with you, as long as you keep them in your heart, they are never truly forgotten.’ If you know a relative has passed away recently or you do a little pre show, you can mention their name at the end. All you need to do is replace ‘they are never truly forgotten’ with ‘_____ will never truly be forgotten’ putting in the relatives name. Always remember to be careful with this as you don’t want them to feel upset when the routine is done. Have this billet on the table from the beginning in plain sight. When you have finished the first part of the routine, say that there is one emotion 52
that is probably more powerful than any of the ones already mentioned, and that is love. Have the participant think of a close relative who passed away recently. Show them the billet and have them pick it up and read what it says to themselves silently. This is where the word play comes into action. Instead of asking them ‘do you know what I mean?’ or something like that simply say ‘do you understand?’ If you look in the text, it says ‘as long as you UNDERSTAND that they will never…’ so to the assistant it will appear as though you are confirming that they understand what to do, whereas to the audience, it will appear as though you know who the relative is. Only slight DR used here, but it can have a really lasting effect. If you have the text written up on a really nicely designed card, you can give it to them at the end and you will find that it makes a beautiful souvenir for them that they will remember for years to come. It also takes the heat off the other three billets.
Alternative Here is an alternative that isn’t as bold with the last billet and doesn’t deal with the touchy subject of emotion. I used to do this before coming up with the above version. 53
It’s very simple to understand. Instead of using emotions, use three pieces of information such as ‘job, house number and middle name.’ You need to acquire the knowledge of one of these bits of info. Let’s say you know their job. Write the names on the back of the billets and have them in this order: job, middle name, house number. Pick up the first billet and have them think of their middle name. Actually write the job on it. Fold it in half and write ‘middle name’ on it. Have them tell it you. Do the same, next getting them to think of their house number. Write their middle name on it and so on. Then when you secretly turn them over at the end, you get three perfect matches! I would only do this as a demonstration before going into a longer, more substantial piece.
Final Thoughts As some of you may have realised, there is a great opportunity to do a cold reading in this effect. The assistant has already given you three memories and told you they are an emotional person, so what more could you need? When wanting to do a reading, I’ll usually insert it right between the two phrases. Don’t make this too long, but just a brief summary of the information you’ve gathered. 54
This is just a nice little convincer to make it appear as though you can really read their mind! Let’s say that the happy memory is when they last walked their dog. Pick up the ‘happy’ billet and act confused. Then say ‘out of interest, what was the dog’s name?’ Presume they say Whiskey. Say something like ‘oh, now I get it’ and place the billet back down. Then, when writing the happy memory on the next billet, never mention ‘dog’ but put something like ‘Drink? Alcohol? Pet?’ Then when you reveal all at the end, it looks like you not only picked up the memory but also the name of the dog, which they were probably thinking of during the memory! Simple! Finally when asked to pick a scary memory, 80% of people will say ‘watching a scary movie,’ as you tell them NOT to think of an emotion that is too upsetting. You can, if you feel confident enough that they will go for some sort of choice like this, instead of writing vague statements on the first billet, swap the order around and use the first billet as the FEAR emotion, and write the horror movie on it. It's not 100 percent, but if you never take risks, you'll never know!
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ESSAYS
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