I thought it was amazing. So many things were predicted/forced etc in such vivid detail there is absolutely no way he could have guess them.

The fact he was able to guess 'clog dancer' and the exact description of the girl at the end - incredible!

And he was lovely enough to sign autographs after the show!

That girl was my girlfriend! The funny thing is we have(had) no idea what sex our baby will be, she bought that top yesterday and until we started getting ready was not going to wear jeans! I can honestly say we have no idea how he got her to pick 8 she says she just was going to say that number as soon as he asked people to think of a number. She even put her shoes on then because she says that somehow she knew she was going to end up on stage!

We went to his show last year the "something wicked this way comes" tour and both were equally amazing, I think having my mrs up on stage proves 100% once and for all that he doesn't use "stooges".

Btw The only dissapointment was that we hung around hoping to keep the sign as a souvenir but they wouldn't let us :(

10/10 :D

I went and thought it was really good!! Bizzarre, but very good!! and I don't know how he knew all the things he did, so insane!!

That man is creepy!

I was there. He picked out a girl "Katie" on the top balcony, I know her, so again she's not a stooge, and he was spot on about her.

I love how he has a go at the fake mediums out there by being better than them and at the same time being a skeptic/atheist. He mentioned bringing back the Fraudulent Medium law I think, right on!

Does anyone know how it's all done? Team of researchers finding out details about people through their booking records? Spies in the audience?

It was fab!! Have nooo idea how he can know those things about people....he is a devil man!! Really enjoyed the show though, and would deffo go again!!!

Does anyone know how it's all done? Team of researchers finding out details about people through their booking records? Spies in the audience?

That wouldnt explain how he described my mrs perfectly on a roll of paper that was suspended above the stage from the moment we got in the theatre and was never touched by anybody.

I doubt we'll ever know how its done and thats probably the best way to keep it. :)

That wouldnt explain how he described my mrs perfectly on a roll of paper that was suspended above the stage from the moment we got in the theatre and was never touched by anybody.

I doubt we'll ever know how its done and thats probably the best way to keep it. :)

I'd imagine a helper was writing the text on a roll of paper right up until the last minute and slight-of-hand was used to substitute it for the one in the box. He is a highly skilled magician after all.

I'd imagine a helper was writing the text on a roll of paper right up until the last minute and slight-of-hand was used to substitute it for the one in the box. He is a highly skilled magician after all.

Did you even go?

Explain the hosepipe then if you did that was written on the paper?

Did you even go?

Explain the hosepipe then if you did that was written on the paper?

Calm down, of course I went.

To explain for those not there - the word Hosepipe was written (amongst many other things DB correctly predicted) on a long scroll of paper unfurled at the end of the show - but no-one had mentioned Hosepipe before. Oh dear, it was looking like a minor failure on DB's part, but then:

He then asked a woman who he had earlier had no luck with when doing the mind reading a further question, and she confirmed she was thinking of Hosepipe all along? I'd suggest that this was one of the very few set-ups (or other type of cheat) of the evening designed to make people ask this very question.

I'd imagine the serial number ink on the £10 was barely dry too!

I was the clog dancer, and definitely wasn't a stooge! I also did the table lifting which was really weird. I have some ideas of how some of the tricks were done, but not that one. My fingers were only very lightly touching the table when it lifted.

I was there too, and I'm curious as to how and why he was able to guess so accurately so many people's birth signs and day of the week they were born. It's a random fact to throw at people.

I know our names and addresses were recorded with the seat numbers when we bought the tickets, and I'm pretty sure I was asked for my date of birth too, which I thought unusual.

I think he's possibly memorised everyone's birth sign and day they were born, which is why he needed to see where individual were sitting when they contributed to the show. It also explains why we had to put our initials on the envelope, as he's possibly memorised everyone's name too, and some addresses (remember he guessed that woman's address!)

It was an amazing show, I've not stopped talking about it all day.

I was there too, and I'm curious as to how and why he was able to guess so accurately so many people's birth signs and day of the week they were born. It's a random fact to throw at people.

I know our names and addresses were recorded with the seat numbers when we bought the tickets, and I'm pretty sure I was asked for my date of birth too, which I thought unusual.

If you know someone's DOB then their birthsign is obvious and the day of the week they were born can be found using a simple formule, here's an online version:

http://fi.edu/time/Journey/OnceUponATime/dayofweekbirth.htm

Also, why does DB keep jerking his head around, has he got a nervous habit or is he transmitting something to the audience? Maybe his robotic circuitry is faulty?

I was there too, and I'm curious as to how and why he was able to guess so accurately so many people's birth signs and day of the week they were born. It's a random fact to throw at people.

I know our names and addresses were recorded with the seat numbers when we bought the tickets, and I'm pretty sure I was asked for my date of birth too, which I thought unusual.

I think he's possibly memorised everyone's birth sign and day they were born, which is why he needed to see where individual were sitting when they contributed to the show. It also explains why we had to put our initials on the envelope, as he's possibly memorised everyone's name too, and some addresses (remember he guessed that woman's address!)

It was an amazing show, I've not stopped talking about it all day.

I'm sorry but do you really think he'd be able to memorize EVERYBODY'S name and date of birth, thats over 2000 people, I bought the tickets for me and the mrs but even if they did ask for my d.o.b I'm sure they never asked for hers. Also he did at one point do this blindfolded by smelling the envelope.

The techniques he uses are called cold reading and are explained a little here (http://www.ianrowland.com/Start/Home.html)

His nodding while speakings explained a little here (http://www.warwickboar.co.uk/core/arts/interview_1_5_2006/)

On and off the stage, Derren has a habit of nodding whilst speaking. I wanted to know if this was all part of his technique or a facial mannerism. Funnily enough it's a bit of both. "It did start off as a way of getting people to agree with me. It has since turned into a 'thing' that I don't mind because I think any hints of weirdness add to it. It's sort of ended up crossing into a habitual tick. Sometimes I do play up to it whilst performing, and when I'm self conscious then I find myself doing it anyway. It's one of those weird things".

I'm sorry but do you really think he'd be able to memorize EVERYBODY'S name and date of birth, thats over 2000 people, I bought the tickets for me and the mrs but even if they did ask for my d.o.b I'm sure they never asked for hers. Also he did at one point do this blindfolded by smelling the envelope.

The techniques he uses are called cold reading and are explained a little here (http://www.ianrowland.com/Start/Home.html)

More likely (as he's a magician), the questions that people submitted were taken backstage (by magicianly means) and opened, and a few picked out. DB was then supplied with detailed info on these people.

I don't think he uses the cold reading techniques mediums use so much because they are not that accurate. I wouldn't be suprised if DB wears a concealed earpiece for some parts of the show.

More likely (as he's a magician), the questions that people submitted were taken backstage (by magicianly means) and opened, and a few picked out. DB was then supplied with detailed info on these people.

I don't think he uses the cold reading techniques mediums use so much because they are not that accurate. I wouldn't be suprised if DB wears a concealed earpiece for some parts of the show.

God your cynical, he took his mike off, showed his ears to two people at the front of the audience remember? :rolleyes:

I was watching the glass bowl the envelopes were put in all through the interval. There was a guy in a beige jacket and a black baseball cap that spent a while placing his envelope in the bowl with his back to the audience - he looked very suspect... I reckon he took some envelopes out which were given to Derren and memorised during the interval.

As i said earlier, I'm fairly certain I know how he did the envelope trick, and the banner at the end - apart from the hosepipe bit - but don't know whether to share because I don't want to spoil it for people.

The guy is a very accomplished magician and mentalist, and a fantastic entertainer - not sure I'm bothered how he does stuff.

I'm just so chuffed so I got on to stage, and got a kiss from him!

Derren admits, and is proud of, the fact that everything he does is a trick and a con. He always says it's not psychic powers, it's just a trick. Read his wikipedia entry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derren_brown).


"It probably sounds odd. But as a magic-related performer to have that even being asked: Was it real? Was it not real? That lifts it to a level that I'm very comfortable with. What's left is the fact that it was a terrific piece of television."


I've watched all his shows, and picked up a number of the techniques he's explained, and you can apply most of them to the tricks he did last night.

It's a combination of a very, very skilled cold reader (did you see Messiah where he convinced some "experts" he was the best medium they'd ever seen just by cold reading?), slight of hand/magic tricks and flat out cheating.

So taking the scroll apart. He probably did write that all down before the show, and uses a combination of manipulation, cold reading, cheating and knowledge of human nature to get it right.

So, Denmark - he had a chance to assess that guy who said that, and then choose to ask him the country question (last), ask a regular person to name a european country, they'll say france, spain, germany. Ask someone who's trying to bamboozle Derren they'll say Denmark or something excentric. If that guy hadn't been suitable, or hadn't said Denmark he'd have asked someone else.

Pregnant lady? Pick a reasonably common description, find someone in the audience who matches it, ask them for a number, and use slight of hand to get an envelope that is three out from that (dead easy for a man who can make the three of diamonds at a specific place in the deck).

And so on. It's hard and takes a lot of skill, but not impossible.

With the envelopes and the oracle trick, I'm sure I've read a de-bunk of this. Easy to do these days with credit card bookings and credit checks. Combine that with his crew spying on the audience prior to the show and in the intermission he can get enough info to back up his cold reading skills enough to get an awesome hit rate.

I was impressed with the phone call one, and the only way I can see that working is with a stooge and two non-stooges. Make the first call ring out (don't really dial it), pre-recorded? Pre-recorded 2nd call and good actors?

Use great skills on enough real people to make people accept that the one or two stooges you do use are real.

WRT the money box at the start, having watched his shows and remembered what he said, I figured that his double bluff with the blue box which by no means contains 500 meant it had the 5 grand. then I remembered his thing of stick to what you first think, because I have less chance of making you change then, so I did. Of course he'd have figured out I was an arse if I was up and would have brought the green box out, so I'd still not have got big money. Plus I also decided that since the rule was if you get what's in the box he chose right you win that, the only decent strategy is to say 5 grand because it's derren brown, you aren't going to win, and on the off chance you do win cos he's a bit ill or something, it'd better be the 5 grand not the 500...

I do agree with a lot of that, but as for the pregnant lady I dont think the description was particularly common, I mean how many other women in the audience would have matched that description if for instance we had not been there? As I said said she only bought that top the day before, and up until we were getting ready she was not going to wear jeans.

So taking the scroll apart. He probably did write that all down before the show, and uses a combination of manipulation, cold reading, cheating and knowledge of human nature to get it right.



Bet there weren't many clog dancers in the audience.......:-)

I was there. He picked out a girl "Katie" on the top balcony, I know her, so again she's not a stooge, and he was spot on about her.

I love how he has a go at the fake mediums out there by being better than them and at the same time being a skeptic/atheist. He mentioned bringing back the Fraudulent Medium law I think, right on!

Does anyone know how it's all done? Team of researchers finding out details about people through their booking records? Spies in the audience?

alot of what he does is by reading body language and using suggestive techniques i.e getting you to do what he wants.

To be fair that's now two nights I've been unable to sleep trying to pick this apart...

Now with the bowl, no-one except those right at the front saw the gorilla, so they could have switched the bowl and fed him questions. Only the bowl was (when it wasn't on the table being filled up) right at the front and the people near it would have noticed as they noticed the gorilla. Unless perhaps the last person to put a ticket in was an assistant who swiped the whole contents and replaced them? Or some of the contents? I don't know.

I still think learning a few dozen names and dates of birth from the audience is a better option, but the accuracy of the other information was a bit too worrying. Hmm...

With the scroll, I don't think the box could be tampered with without it swinging around up there and would have been noticed. But, Derren opened it himself, pulled out a tube and opened that. Time for him to switch the tube then I guess? Or was the box empty and did he pretend to pull out the tube? He could have had the scroll mostly pre-prepared and fill in a few really hard details just to make it look incredible. Still would have picked out the pregnant lady in advance. Just needed to add clog dancing perhaps at the last minute, fill it in as he went through the show?

I dunno. Hard stuff. The fun I get is that he wants you to figure it out and gives you clues. He can't be that much more intelligent than everyone, so it must be possible to work it out. But I guess he has a strong magic background and the basic knowledge and aspects of that he builds on we just don't know. His website actually links a number of good resources and books to learn what he knows. I'd read them, but, I enjoy it this way better ;-)

Remember that he told the audience that people were to write a question, their initials and row number on the card in the envelope. However, on the actual cards, it asked for your name, date of birth, the question and a piece of personal information to "test" him. He also said that some people should mix the envelopes up, facing away from the stage.

As someone has already mentioned, there was a guy on stage in a black baseball cap and beige jacket who spent too long putting his envelope into the bowl.

He took maybe 15-20 of the envelopes (you wouldn't miss that many out of 150) and went backstage to give them to DB who then opened them, memorised (he's good at that) the questions and personal information (remember that most of the audience didn't know that any personal information was written on the cards) and either put the envelopes back in the bowl (sleight of hand) at the start of the second hald and used the initials and row number as an aide memoire or left the envelopes in the dressing room and remembered everything.

When he was guessing people's personal information without using the envelopes, the people he was speaking to would have been amazed as to how he did it as he didn't even have their envelope in his hand, whereas everyone else in the audience (and this is the really clever bit) who didn't fill in the card would have been even more impressed/astonished as we didn't know that anyone had supplied any personal information at all.

Brilliant trick. Absolutely brilliant and fantastically performed.

I'm sorry but do you really think he'd be able to memorize EVERYBODY'S name and date of birth, thats over 2000 people,

yes, when I saw him he had memorised the phone book for Sheffield central

yes, when I saw him he had memorised the phone book for Sheffield central

Hmm tour itinery

April 2007

29th: Blackpool, Grand (01253 290190)

30th: Llandudno, Venue Cymru (01492 872000)
May 2007

1st: Birmingham, Hippodrome (0121 689 3000)

2nd: Birmingham, Hippodrome (0121 689 3000)

3rd: Manchester, Lowry (0870 787 5790)

4th: Manchester, Lowry (0870 787 5790)

5th: Manchester, Lowry (0870 787 5790)

6th: Sunderland, Empire (0870 602 1130)

8th: Hull, New Theatre (01482 226655)

9th: Hull, New Theatre (01482 226655)

10th: Nottingham, Royal Concert Hall (0115 989 5555)

11th: Nottingham, Royal Concert Hall (0115 989 5555)

13th: Liverpool, Empire (0870 606 3536)

14th: Liverpool, Empire (0870 606 3536)

15th: Stoke, Victoria Hall (01782 213800)

16th: Cardiff, St Davids Hall (02920 878444)

17th: Cardiff, St Davids Hall (02920 878444)

18th: Southend, Cliffs Pavilion (01702 351135)

19th: Plymouth, Pavilions (0845 146 1460)

20th: Portsmouth, Guildhall (02392 824355)

22nd: Ipswich, Regent (01473 433100)

23rd: Salisbury, City Hall (01722 434434)

24th: Dorking, Halls (01306 881717)

25th: Dorking, Halls (01306 881717)

31st: Glasgow, Royal Concert Hall (0141 353 8000)
June 2007

1st: Edinburgh, Festival Theatre (0131 529 6000)

2nd: Aberdeen, Music Hall (01224 641122)

3rd: Carlisle, Sands Centre (01228 625222)

4th: Bradford, St Georges Hall (01274 432000)

5th: Sheffield, City Hall (0114 278 9789)

8th: Oxford, New Theatre (0870 606 3500)

9th: Eastbourne, Congress Theatre (01323 412000)

10th: Southampton, Mayflower (02380 711811)

11th: Woking, New Victoria Theatre (01483 545900)

12th: Northampton, Derngate (01604 624811)

13th: Northampton, Derngate (01604 624811)

17th: Bristol, Hippodrome (0870 607 7500)

37 dates, roughly 74'000 people, and as I already I bought the tickets and gave my details but was never asked for any details of who I was with.

I think hearlons theory sounds more plausible, it would be interesting to know if the things like pets names etc were on the cards handed in.

I believe it's called 'warm reading' when you're pre-prepared with information about peope which you then feed back to them in clever ways. As opposed to 'cold reading' which Derren Brown also does very skilfully, when your victims inadvertantly feed you information under questioning, and you then make it seem as though you have been given this info by the spirit world.

There are some hilarious examples on the web showing how the famous - ahem - 'medium' Doris Stokes used to do precisely this. When you read back the transcripts of the sessions it's almost comical.

You can book him privately via his website, for large corporate events or even small dinner parties etc..... that would be class!

I wonder how much he charges???

£5k?

You can book him privately via his website, for large corporate events or even small dinner parties etc..... that would be class!

I wonder how much he charges???

£5k?

When I worked at Objective Productions, Derrens fee for a corporate event was around £35,000. Private parties were negotiable.

when is he coming back popxx

I thought it was a fantastic show. The 20 questions/hosepipe bit was actually quite simple and I saw it coming from a mile away, but then I am a little bit familiar with some of the methods used in this kind of act. Absolutely fantastic showmanship and a great night out. The best magic show I've seen in ages.

Just a note to Chris Re. the table tipping. If you really want to know how it's done, Derren's book 'Tricks of the Mind' explains it in some detail. It was a popular stunt used by spritualists and mediums before the ouija board became the preferred method for 'talking to the dead'.

Hi Kimmo

I understand the table turning, but it was the levitation of the table with just my fingers on it I don't understand - I've read Tricks of the Mind and don't remember it in there, but it was a long book, and I may have skipped bits! Maybe it wasn't just my fingers on it - everything's a bit disconcerting when you're on stage.

Any chance of a page reference???

Cheers

Chris

PS you're a pretty good magician yourself - you did my grand-daughter's birthday party in January and entertainned everyone from 2 year olds to those of us of mature years!

I forgot about the table rising! That isn't described in the book but I used to sell that prop! Usually magicians go over the top and have the table floating up in the air and around the stage. Derren kept it very subtle and the small rising motion was far more effective and creepy. Real proof that less is more!

I'm delighted you enjoyed my act as well! Thanks for the comments.

I'm sorry but do you really think he'd be able to memorize EVERYBODY'S name and date of birth, thats over 2000 people.
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i wasn't there so not sure if he did do that, but could he? yes, you just have to watched his show when he was in the library.

have seen him before, bought the book (not the t-shirt!), and he's amazing.

as for it being called a magic show by some, i think that's rather unfair - it's way, way more than a magic show (i'd never pay to watch a magic show in my life). the guy's a great magician, yes, but he's multi-talented and uses several different skills

i wasn't there so not sure if he did do that, but could he? yes, you just have to watched his show when he was in the library.

have seen him before, bought the book (not the t-shirt!), and he's amazing.

as for it being called a magic show by some, i think that's rather unfair - it's way, way more than a magic show (i'd never pay to watch a magic show in my life). the guy's a great magician, yes, but he's multi-talented and uses several different skills


I've seen that show, and I've also seen the show where he memorised the A-Z of London, in fact I've seen everything he's done but those were not when he's on tour doing shows night after night having to memorise a new audience EVERY night.

Quite right. Don't take Derren's 'explanations' of his methods too seriously! He does have impressive memory skills but never forget he IS a magician. If there is an easier way to accomplish the effect he is going for - he'll use it! There is no way he would memorise an entire audience!!

Quite right. Don't take Derren's 'explanations' of his methods too seriously! He does have impressive memory skills but never forget he IS a magician. If there is an easier way to accomplish the effect he is going for - he'll use it! There is no way he would memorise an entire audience!!

i think it's said that most human beings use less than 90% of the potential of their brain - it's proven that people can use their brains and achieve extraordinary things, and feats of memory is just one of them. many of derrens' explanations aren't actually his, and neither are the skills unique to him - they're well documented elsewhere. if people are happy paying just to see a magician then that's fine, but in my eyes he's way, way more than that. he combines recognised skills, some of which are not unique to him and have no mystique about them whatsoever, and others which do.

i would argue that he is a magician, but never forget that he does have very impressive memory skills!

i think it's said that most human beings use less than 90% of the potential of their brain - it's proven that people can use their brains and achieve extraordinary things, and feats of memory is just one of them. many of derrens' explanations aren't actually his, and neither are the skills unique to him - they're well documented elsewhere. if people are happy paying just to see a magician then that's fine, but in my eyes he's way, way more than that. he combines recognised skills, some of which are not unique to him and have no mystique about them whatsoever, and others which do.

i would argue that he is a magician, but never forget that he does have very impressive memory skills!

Derren Brown is a BRILLIANT magician with incredible sleight of hand skills as well as a highly trained memory. I wouldn't argue with any of that. I was a fan long before he abandoned his more traditional magic act and went down the 'mind control' route.

He has a talent for taking standard magic props and techniques and dressing them up to look like incredible feats of memory and psychology. This is where his genius lies. The fact that you are so convinced that what you saw was more than just a magic show is proof of that!

I must admit that I felt a little disappointed when I first discovered that Derren's 'mind control' schtick wasn't all that he makes it seem and that his explanations were all part of the con...

But now I think my admiration for the way in which he has very cleverly misdirected so many people and combined skills in such an original way leaves me more impressed than ever.

Exactly. When you know how he's doing it you appreciate his presentation skills all the more.

I have been lucky enough to attend some of his lectures for magicians. Even at these events he plays his cards pretty close to his chest and doesn't give too much away. When he does, the method is usually very, very simple. The real skill lies in the way he uses language and presentation to lead you away from the real solution and make it impossible to reconstruct the effect in your mind.

Credit also has to be given to Andy Nyman, who devises most of the routines and methods Derren uses.

What I now want to know is, was that bloke's baby a girl as he predicted?

What I now want to know is, was that bloke's baby a girl as he predicted?

Yes she is! Amelia Rae (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1434/1473006822_e8a7f6a2f0.jpg) we called her

So Derren was right :eek: