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Ready for all your wonderful contributions!

To start with the schedule of events is on view at https://blackpoolmagicconvention.com/schedule/ and the new Convention App is available to download. It looks like being a very useful app, you can see all the activities and shows, set reminders and generally hone your visit so you don't miss your favourites!

Anybody from TM going to the Blackpool Convention this year?

Courtesy of www.magicweek.co.uk:

The Big One is Back! Blackpool Magic Convention 2022 - Thursday to Sunday! Starring: Andrew Basso, Paul Zenon, Chris Cox, Jean Luc Bertrand’s 'Magicbox' Show, The Christian Farla Show, Franz Harary, The Showgirls of Magic, Florian Sainvet, Topas, Paul Zerdin, Lynette Chappelle, Ehrlich Ocampo, Daniel Rosenfeldt, Barney Addison, Nikola Arkane, Graeme Shaw, Stuart McDowell, Mark Calabrese, Oliver Graham, Henri White, Paul Stone, Rune Carlsen, Simon Lipkin, Noel Qualter, Matt Pritchard, Jon Marshall, Michael Diamond, Matt Edwards, Laura London, John Lenahan, Marc Oberon, Matricks Illusion Show, Brando, Craig Petty, Jasper Cherry, Liam Moorhouse, Ruben Fernandez, Michel Huot, Nikolas Mavresis, George Quinn, Graham Lee, Rodney James Piper, Jaana Felicitas Scandariato, Nick Einhorn & Craig Squires, Magic Sam's 'Beat the Wand' and Wayne Dobson! www.blackpoolmagicconvention.com.

I must be getting a really old fart.

Going through all those names, only 7 rang a bell that I am aware of. Then I noticed it wasn't Nikola - just someone with the same name.....so I'm down to 6 (one of whom I consider an egotistical *rse$ole of the highest calibre - and couldn't abide being anywhere near).

I'm sure that they're all very good and I hope that people have a great time. For me personally however, it would be 4 days of absolute purgatory.

If Magic Books by Post, Joe Riding, Ken Brooke, Al Goshman and Pat Page were there it may have been tolerable (for a few hours). Sadly, those days are long gone.

My old mate Keith Bennett is coming over for a curry next Tuesday so if anything is worth reporting from a dealer's perspective, I'm happy to feed it back chaps.

I agree that there are many more 'unknown' names listed this year but I've seen some of them elsewhere and they're excellent quality. Sadly, the amount of 'known' names is lower than usual but that might be a sign of the times and the problems over uncertain travel restrictions etc. Like you Barry, I acknowledge that there is a complete and utter @rse here who I shall enjoy ignoring! (Actually, now I come to think of it, there are two complete and utter…. )

I'll keep you posted as to any developments worth mentioning.

Well, the first day seems to have gone OK, plenty of people here and some interesting lectures. As usual, things clash so it’s a case of pick what you really want to attend and don’t cry because you’ve had to miss other stuff. Loads of dealers vying for your hard earned cash, I only made it round about half of them so something to look forward to. The Gala Show was excellent, plenty of big box stuff and very cleaver juggling.

Barry Allen wrote:My old mate Keith Bennett is coming over for a curry next Tuesday so if anything is worth reporting from a dealer's perspective, I'm happy to feed it back chaps.

I'm pleased to say that Keith seems to have had a stream of visitors to his table, I hope they all bought something.

On the whole, a good start – let’s see what the next two days bring.

I sometimes watch a few Channels on Youtube (Old Blackpool Biker & Walk on the Wild Side); people living in Blackpool, who go out and film the area, etc.

On one particular channel yesterday (Blackpool and Beyond) the guy, who is NOT a Magician, was just wandering past the Winter Gardens and said "ahhh, it's the Annual Magician's Convention - let's go inside and take a look".

He proceeded to walk straight in with no I.D. tag, then onwards into the Dealers Hall. At no time was he challenged.

During the 15 minutes that he filmed inside the dealers room, what was particularly noticeable was the amount of dealers just standing there, either just chatting away, or gazing into space. There was not one single Dem going on! Even on the larger stands with a few staff, they were either chatting away to each other, or in some cases, just sitting down.

This guy was walking around yet I didn't see one dealer use eye contact and try and engage with him and/or show him something - with trick or prop in hand.

Can you imagine Ken Brooke, Joe Riding, Mark Mason or (more recently) Paul Gordon just sitting there watching the world go by?

These demmers are surely meant to know the basics of grafting, pulling in and holding a crowd, presenting tricks and GETTING THE MONEY? I didn't see a single sale happening during the 15 minutes that he was filming.

Now I know not everyone likes the 'hard-sell' - as a Travel Agent (now retired) I've been a Salesman myself for many years. However, there's a big difference between a hard-sell......and not even bothering; or at least appearing interested; in showing people your catalogue/range of products. I can imagine my Sales Manager over the years, spotting me sitting on my @rse at (for example) a show at the NEC; whereby the company was paying thousands of pounds for the stand. I don't think I'd have (quite rightly) lasted very long.

Even from the age of 14 and working at a Joke Shop in Greenwich, I'd be demming Svens, Strippers, Cups & Balls, Dynamic Coins, Spot Paddles, jokes, etc. literally all weekend; and working hard to pull in the money from the never-ending stream of tourists. Even putting my commission aside, it also made the days fly past. Rest assured, I'm not trying to blow smoke up my own rear end, it's just that IF you are being paid as a salesman to sell.....then you work hard and bloody well Dem the products!

Anyway, I'm glad that Keith was busy; he sells some very commercial magic. I look forward to meeting up with him next week.

I do wonder though how many dealers will be bleating that sales were quiet this year (as they often did during the good old days of Abra). If so.......I wonder why?

Interesting aspect Barry, thank you for pointing it out. Certainly this year was less frantic than in previous years and several dealers who have been there year after year were absent, no doubt for all sorts of reasons.

However, having watched the vid, I see there’s a cut at about 6:04 which is where any challenge would have happened. At 16:30 you can see the guys in red coats who were checking ID etc. so they were there. If the camera guy is a regular, he may have been recognised and allowed in – just a guess. From my experience this weekend security was tight and bag searches took place when entering through the new part of the Winter Gardens but, sadly, not when entering through the old entrance doors. The state of the dealers’ hall is typical of how it is when shows or lectures are on, in fact, that’ s the best time to visit the dealer hall as you can get round easily! It would be interesting to know at what time the 15-minute walk around took place so I could, check and see what was actually on – the shows and lectures were all well attended with standing room only at several of them.

As for the content and shows for Saturday and Sunday, I’ll scribble some words about that when I get back and catch up on sadly missed sleep!

Sometimes I wonder whether a percentage of the people there might not be magicians or at any event be raw beginners. Or as it sometimes happens although they know about other branches of magic might not be familiar with the svengali deck.
When I see the crowds that Blackpool gets, it tempts the grafter in me to wonder if I just went there to sell the decks and divested of my mind that everyone might know the svengali deck I would do just as well as I normally do. Dunno.........just thinking out loud!

Some interesting observations there Mandrake.

I hope that you had a cracking time and look forward to reading your feedback.

I'm not sure that he's too well-known in the Winter Gardens - I don't think I remember seeing him film inside there before.

I can't believe how many magic dealers are actually there. Of course, most people will want to look around - but with so much competition, I thought there would have been some demming on the stands and money changing hands. Afterall, if people toddle off, you may not see them again; particularly if they spend it elsewhere! I can understand not being overly pushy as that just annoys people. However, I would at least be showing them stuff to try and 'help' them decide.

Difficult I know from a relatively short clip - but I also didn't notice anyone trying to draw people in as they walked past. In the days of the aforementioned people, they knew how to create a crowd. This tends to attract other people who come over to see what's going on; and/or what they may be missing. I just can't see the point of laying stuff out on a table and expecting it to sell itself.

As for your point Mark about the Svengali Deck. I've said it before - I don't really know of any other card routine that plays so well for laymen. In a nutshell, it's Card Magic eye-candy of the highest calibre. You can do almost anything with a Sven; locations, vanishes, transpositions and changes.

What I have also noted in the UK (this may also be true for Canada?) is this. I truly believe that less people have seen/know about a Svengali Deck than at any time during my life. This may be due to the fact that years ago, kids would often get a pack as a Christmas/Birthday present from their parents/grandparents. Now, for the past couple of decades, computer games (or other technology) have become more popular; and I now meet people in their 30's who have never owned a pack - let alone ever SEEN a Svengali routine!

We might know how to handle a normal pack of cards and deliver an entertaining routine with these. However, as you'll know only too well, following a Sven routine with a normal pack takes some doing! In fact, apart from Out of this World, I don't know of any individual card trick that matches the impact of what you can achieve with a pack of Svens.

It would indeed be interesting to see how they sold at a location such as the Blackpool Convention. You are right - not everyone is going to be experienced, nor having been in the game for years. There also might be the childrens entertainer, or balloon modeller, that just wants a few pocket tricks that aren't going to break the bank.

I'm thinking of the stall myself now and what you could have on it!

Svengali Deck - plus any of the following:

Stripper Deck
Cups & Balls (the chrome plastic ones look good)
Dynamic Coins
TTs
Shell 2p
Hindu Papers
Chinese Compass
Spot Paddles
Professor's Nightmare
Dutch Looper
Pen thru Anything
Sponge Balls

RRTCM (the Annotated version of course)!

Squirmy worms to reel 'em in?

Just as an aside, all of the above have stood the test of time - visual, easy to follow, etc. Apart from Pen Thru Anything, these are the tricks I was selling back in the late 1970's; and others no doubt much better than me, were selling many years before that. What's more, they'll still be sold in years to come; when no doubt the latest brainfarts, released last week in Blackpool, have long since been forgotten about.

Yes, I had a great time, thank you! Sadly, I spent more on food and drink than on magi but, having suffered C.U.P.S. (Compulsive Uncontrollable Purchasing Syndrome) for many years I think I can rein in my tendency to buy half the stock at Blackpool. I only managed two tours of the Dealer hall and, although there seemed to be quite a bit of demming, the place wasn’t as crowded as in previous years – thankfully.

I’m glad to say that a lot of the items you list were on sale there:
Stripper Deck – Along with Sven, a couple of stalls were selling them but I saw no demming.
Cups & Balls – Various versions from the cheap and nasty to the downright expensive.
Dynamic Coins – Nah, didn’t see those there.
TTs - Allsorts but mostly unbranded ones. I didn’t see Vernet on any table.
Shell 2p - Several. I thought I’d spotted a bargain when I saw one stall with posters advertising £2 shells (and cig thru’) at £2. It was only when In asked why they were so cheap that the guy told me that was only to show which coin was referred to, the actual price was £40!
Hindu Papers – Didn’t see them.
Chinese Compass - There was one of those in a bargain box on one stand.
Spot Paddles – Lots and there was even a workshop on them. Unfortunately it clashed with another event so I didn’t get to learn the deeper mysteries of this device.
Professor's Nightmare – Several.
Dutch Looper – Nope.
Pen thru Anything Yes, see Shell above
Sponge Balls – buckets of them, all Goshman!.
RRTCM – might have been, there were plenty of books on sale but, as I literally have no more shelf room for actual books, I didn’t dare start browsing.

According to the programme, there were 150 dealers which I think is lower than in previous years, the most energentic demming was by Mark Mason but he always draws a large crowd - I just hope he sold a lot of stuff to make it worth his while.

Here is a video of me doing the svengali deck. The Dutch Looper is about one minute in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJEM-mlDM80

However, here is a more recent video of me working. I look old and tired but I warm up after a minute or so. I do that when I smell money! Not that I got any this time!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDSoOco6jOA

Hadn't seen the newer clip Mark.

I love that pitch. It truly is watching a Master ply his trade; it's honed to perfection.

CA $15 is around £8.66p. I can't believe how tight Canadians are! Do they all hail from Yorkshire?

Barry Allen wrote:
CA $15 is around £8.66p. I can't believe how tight Canadians are! Do they all hail from Yorkshire?

Yorkshire? Oh God--I hope not! I would leave the country!