My card trick is better than yours

Card tricks, white rabbits and disappearing things - all part of The Next Great Magician on TV1 this Saturday.

My first taste of magic was a sort of board game we had in the early 60s which featured a sort of wizard character who stood in the middle of the board holding a wand.

My memory of the exact details has faded (sort of magically I suppose) but you would sort of choose a question to ask the wizard and he would spin and wobble and when he became still he would be pointing at the correct answer.

We could never work out how it actually worked so concluded it was like the bloke we once saw at the old annual mardis gras fairground on Marine Parade who could weave two large steel rings together - simply magic.

And on television in the 60s there was a chap by the name of Burns Scandrett who would magically pop up on some after school show (in less than magical black and white of course) and do magic tricks.

But we all knew him as De Larno, and he was very good, especially with card tricks and pulling things from hats.

I daresay he, and especially the sophisticated tricksters who followed, who would have likely been put before a court of inquisition and then sent to get a close-up look at a bonfire had they performed their mysterious activities in the 16th century.

De Larno took magic into every household, as long as it had a television set mind you, and also went on tour along with John Rowles, Allison Durban and Chic Littlewood back in 1968.

What a varietal line-up.

My first close-up encounter with a magician was a lad from Auckland who while here in the Bay about 20 years ago decided to call up and entertain the kids in the old Napier Hospital children's ward.

He was very good, because that was his gig as an entertainer - a magician.

And I later interviewed him back at the office and he decided to show me a trick on the spot with a simple pack of cards.

To this day I can only assume he was equally adept at witchcraft because it staggered me and the photographer present.

He simply spread a pack of cards across the table, turned his back and said "pick one out, memorise what it is, and put it back".

Which I did and he turned around and scooped the cards up and back into a proper pack and then threw the lot at the ceiling.

And down they all floated ... except the one I had picked which was stuck to the roof.

I went cold ... with fear.

"How did you know ... how did you do that?" I said almost in a whisper.

He leaned forward and unleashed a strange smile and raised one eyebrow.

"Magic," he sort of hissed.

I had to have a couple of beers after that.

Too uncanny for a lad schooled in the simplicity of De Larno.

But he did teach me (as a simple mortal) an easy card trick which I've used on a couple of seven and eight-year-olds and got a "wow!" response every time.

Here's the magic.

Fan out a pack of cards and get the subject to pick one out and look at it, while you turn right around ... and while facing the other way turn the top card face down but make sure the rest are all face up.

So when you tell them to slide it back into the tightly packed pack they will slide it in face down ... like the one on the top.

But the rest, which they can't see, are facing up ... so it will stand out beautifully for you when you turn away again, fish it out and show them their card ... at the same time adjusting the top card to now suit the rest.

It's the only trick I know, although I can make a bottle of lager disappear during a halftime rugby break.

And so to television ... yes, magically after 648 words I finally get to make 'television' appear.

In the wake of the ever-revolving door of talent and reality shows I guess this had to happen ... a series in which magicians and illusionists compete for the title of The Next Great Magician - which, incidentally, is the title of the show.

It is an hour-long salute to trickery, and I'm sure the contestants will be imaginative and occasionally mysterious.

But if one throws a pack of cards at a ceiling I'm out of there.

● The Next Great Magician, TV1 at 8.15pm Saturday: No white rabbits were harmed in the making of this series.

ON THE BOX

● Top Gear: The Great Races, Prime at 8.35pm Saturday: Now here's an interesting compromise.

After Jeremy Clarkson torpedoed the long Top Gear careers of himself, Captain Slow and the Hamster, the BBC brought in a new set of hosts and basically, the whole thing lost its fire.

Host, and Clarkson replacement Chris Evans threw in the towel after one series although for what will be the 24th series American actor and car enthusiast Matt LeBlanc has stayed aboard ... sort of.

And he's brought back Clarkson, May and Hammond ... sort of.

LeBlanc sifts back through the first 21 series of Top Gear to pluck out what he calls the most memorable races staged.

I suspect this is just the start of a blend of old and new in Top Gear terms ... if the BBC can continue to milk the ratings with it then we'll see more like this.

Most memorable interviews ... most memorable celebrities ... most memorable explosions ...

● All-Star Family Feud: Comedians vs Comedians, TV3 at 7.30 tonight: Game shows, quiz shows, whatever they are shows, are abundant these days, and generally they are good watching because they allow the audience to both take sides as well as try and answer the questions first.

Having a sharp host helps and in this Kiwi case they have a sharp lad in the form of Dai Henwood who has a polished penchant (I've always wanted to use that term) for humour that hits the mark.

And here he is hosting his quiz show, but with two teams of fellow comedians making up the teams, so it has the potential to be rather fun.