My name is Alan. My last post was on 21st January. I’m very ashamed of myself. I’m going to try regular posts for a while - but obviously this could be the last one for another 3 months so who knows. Anyway, just added a new comment to my site for a nice job I did in Oxford - I’ve put it on my Oxford page (where else?).“I just wanted to write and thank you for entertaining us all at the Finance & Commercial Forum in Oxford last week! With over 80 people to please the magic you performed at tables between courses worked really well and the show after dinner was a great end to the evening. Feedback from all attendees was excellent, would definitely book you again.” Rebecca Henry, Siemens PLC

A nice email just came in - and I know you all like to hear it here first…Alan, just a quick thank you note to say well done and many thanks for keeping our large team superbly entertained with both the close up magic sessions and the group show. We have had great feedback from the team and no doubt we will see you in Manchester in due course. John Sodhi, Cooperative Financial Services, Manchester

Hi Alan I wanted to write to you to say how fantastic you were at our wedding - literally everyone has been talking about it! It was really excellent and god knows how you do everything but it must be magic! I am sure that my father has been in touch with you as he was talking about his 60th in May that he was interested in … I shall leave that to him to organise ! I am so sorry that I have taken so long to write to you - excuses range from honeymoon, christmas and generally being a little rubbish. But better late then never. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend you to people in the future, I am very glad that we got you - you were brilliant.Thanks again and happy new year Regards Camilla, Chiddingfold, Surrey

More Haste Less Speed - I forgot the date - MONDAY 3RD DECEMBER 2007

As a special blog friend, you are invited to attend Hush Hush. A new alternative cabaret evening featuring magic, music, comedy and burlesque style performances. Rob James and myself decided there was nothing like this in Hull so we’re doing it ourselves. Tickets are £6/£5 and should be a great night. We’ve booked top acts from all over the UK including magicians, singers, escapologists and a burlesque striptease artist- and we are personally very excited about it. Tell your friends and feel free to dress for the occasion… Haworth Arms, Cottingham Road, Hull - Doors 7.30pm/Starts 8.15pm 

Hello, my name is Alan. I am a blogger. It has been nearly one month since my last blog. I thought I’d kicked the habit but….. Yes, I’m back. I’ll try not to leave you for so long again. There’s too much stuff since the last one to put it all here, but heres a couple of highlights. I performed at a trade show at NEC for the Dental Showcase BDTA - also there were fellow magicians Phil Jay, Dave Vegas, Steve Faulkner and Sam Strange (Oxford magician who I’d never met before) . I performed at Jason Manford’s (TV comedian and all round nice guy) wedding  - lots of comedians there who watched (and largely enjoyed) my magic - so that was nice. Went to the Magic Circle Magic Dealer’s Day in London and also saw a nice show with a fair few magicians in it (along with a singer and a man who proved how good he was at getting an edited music track together) with the 2 Magicians (Barry and Stuart) and Pete ‘Firmski’ Firman who were excellent. Also on were Christian Lee and Lee Hathaway.Also in October I performed at the Hull Comedy Festival in a show called ‘Live Naked Idiots’ - a sketch show with lots of Hull talent and me doing my act just before the interval - went well I thought. Anyway, normal service will now resume with hopefully a blog or 2 a week. Keep it real, keep it here, till next time…… 

A thankfully quiet week this week. Next week is completely full so am enjoying the rest. Heroes, Prison Break, Curb Your Enthusiasm  - they won’t watch themselves you know. I did one job on Sunday in Sedgefield near Teeside. I was performing alongside 3 other magicians. It’s always interesting to work with other performers and see how they go about things. Magicians tend to work out a plan when they are working together at the beginning of the evening to make sure not everyone is doing similar (or exactly the same) tricks, to divide the tables up to make sure everyone gets to see magic etc. Think of it as a plan to go to war - a battle plan.I was working with 2 magicians that I’d never worked with before. One in particular was very interesting. He decided to change the agreed plan for his own advantage using, what we call in the trade, ‘dirty tricks’. To ask the audience to clap and cheer and bang their hands on tables to create the illusion you are going down well, is in my opinion, bad. Even more interesting is the fact that the magician in question is a very good magician with a good image - he has the whole package. So why he feels the need to go down this route is beyond me. Anyway as I said - always interesting to work with other magicians.Foot note - If you ever see me at an event, I will guarantee that the audience reaction I get will be 100% genuine. I won’t prompt them to cheer or clap extra loud - they will do that if they enjoy what I’m doing. Good, strong, direct tricks and funny lines gets the reactions I like - no need for the ‘dirty tricks’. 

Just received this nice email”Hey Alan, Rob and I just wanted to thank you for your amazing performance at our wedding last Friday.  You were the highlight of our day… everyone there was baffled, amazed, kerfuffled, and thoroughly enjoyed your show, so thank you very very much for making our day so memorable J Becki & Rob Stiles” 

Well what a week it’s been loyal blog fans. Monday saw me in Oxford at the Keble College. I thought this was going to be a tricky one as everyone was sat on benches on just a couple of long tables (not on round tables, which gives me easy access to my adoring public, and is definitely my favorite set up for close up at dinner). Been the consummate pro that I am, I started at the ends of the tables (easy access) and tried to make everyone jealous that they were missing something special. Well to my genuine surprise, this actually seemed to work and people were actually  turning round to invite me to perform. Quite good in the end. On Wednesday I went to Uxbridge for the Brunel Uni Post Grad Ball - was ok. Outside under a small marque - my fingers got cold. But students are my favorite audience as a lot seem to react to my tricks like I’ve asked them to ham it up for TV special. After Uxbridge I drove to see my friend Sam (self named ‘Handsome Sam’). We went for a drink in trendy Camden and in walked Amy Winehouse. She’s quite small I seemed to remember. Quite nice seeing such a current A-lister in the flesh though. Normally I just see people like Big Brother contestants or Norman Collier who was big in the 80’s for having a broken microphone.Thursday - did a close up magic gig (show, performance - can anyone come up with a better word than gig? Not sure it’s befitting. Oasis do gigs. Amy Winehouse does gigs. Not sure if card tricks at a posh hotel really fits in with them) with magician Dave Jones. Dave is a good magician but hasn’t got a website so I find it difficult to pass people on to him if I’m already booked. He is good though. Anyway we had a lovely time at The Grove in Watford for 200 people as some business thing (it was Dave’s gig - so I’m not even sure who they were. It was mainly men though).After Watford I drove home having been away for a few days. Always a pleasure to come back when you’ve been driving round the country. Alas, I was performing in Lancashire the following day so no time to appreciate the good home feel. Another wedding in Immingham on Saturday and finished off with  a 20  min slot at Oulton Hall in Leeds.I do realize that one problem of doing a blog is if I were to ever lie on my tax form about the number of shows I do. Luckily for me I am very honest and would never do such a thing. Also  my accountant is too much of a wimp and too scared for it not to be 100% correct. 

Don’t worry - a new post is on it’s way. Was going to do it now but am to wait till tomorrow (well later on - it’s 1.26 am). Some good stuff on my travels this week…