Utopia Prediction by Alex Blade
£10.00 from :// www.magictricks.co.uk
http://www.magictricks.co.uk/prodshow.asp?code=980
The Effect.
A seemingly impossible prediction of a word in the current days newspaper is made several days before!
Several days/weeks before the show, the performer posts an envelope to a member of the audience with a request that it is brought on the night of the show. On the night, the audience are seated and the performer states how, "weeks/days in advance , I mailed an envelope to a member of the audience here and asked that she bring it tonight". She is asked up on stage with the envelope where she confirms no one has touched it and it has been sealed the whole time.
She then is asked to open up the envelope and announce what is inside.
Spectator: “There is a folded up piece of paper inside”
Magician: “Would you care to take it out and read what it says”
The spectator does so and reads aloud: "On Wednesday 15th of July , on page 9 of The Daily Mail , third word along , the word will be...DEMANDS"
A copy of The Daily Mail is shown, the date is confirmed , and is turned to page nine where – sure enough – the 3rd word along is "demands"!!
It uses no gimmicks, no stooges and no switches.
Any newspaper can be used.
It is completely self-working
Difficulty. 1/5
1=Even I can do it, 2=No sleights, but not so easy, 3=Some sleights used,
4=Advanced sleights used, 5=Suitable for experienced magicians only)
There’s no doubt about it. It couldn’t be any easier.
Review.
Well I have to admit that the method is very workable and does everything he claims it to do. If you are looking to do this particular effect then I have no hesitation in thoroughly recommending it.
When you find out the method I can guarantee that you will kick yourself, and my first thoughts were that surely someone must have already come up with this before – if not then Alex Blade needs one heck of a pat on the back for putting it in print. Let’s hope he has many more bright ideas.
Alex mentions in the manuscript that it is best performed at a friends house. Personally I’d disagree with this. For sure it would go down very well at a dinner party, but for me it deserves a bigger wider audience than this. I can imagine Banacheck, or Max Maven doing this on stage, and feel that it would be better suited in a Stage/Parlour environment.
I don’t do much Stage/Parlour work myself, however next time I am asked to perform at my local club, or the next dinner party I have I will definitely be giving this one a go.
Rating. Effect/item: 9/10, Quality of goods: 10/10, Value for money: 8/10
Bottom Line.
My first thoughts that this wasn’t great value for money. After all, in this modern era of ebooks, we can pick up the likes of the “Underground Collection vol1” or “Ignis Fatuus” for £10, and they are both choc-o-block full of effects, whereas Utopia Prediction is just one.
However, thinking about it for a little longer it is something I will be using, and so for that reason alone I feel that £10 isn’t that much to pay for a trick of this sort, heck I’ve paid a lot more for some very unusable effects.
This effect does everything it says it does. If you want to do the effect as described – then I recommend you use Alex’s method.
