Thanks to the generosity of two members of Hull Magicians’ Circle, Michael and Sylvia Harrop I was able to place two golden tickets into the draw, and amazingly my name got pulled out to be one of the 12 to attend this masterclass. Along with my friend Andy Lewis, and a small select group we were spirited away to the boardroom to sit down and spend an hour or so in Kostya’s company.

This basically was a masterclass on the cull, but Kostya took his time to point out all the little nuances, and details, on timing, finger position, tips on control and outs, that can only be learnt from the years of practice that Kostya has had with this move.

He showed a number of items from the Roadrunner Cull volume 2 DVD which he has for sale on this tour, including a great one-card cull. Finally Kostya finished the masterclass by showing some applications of the cull.

All in all a fantastic hour that really helped me and the other participants get a grasp on this move that Kostya does with what can only be descibed as grace and ease!

The first competitor in the close-up competition was Alan Mylecraine. Alan was very funny, starting out with a colour changing rope and then a great card to impossible location. A card was selected and the corner torn off, and then the card was vanished, only to appear in a back-pack shaped like a bear, in which was a mini R2D2 inside of which where a nest of eggs, which produced an Easter Chick holding the card, and the corner matched perfectly, all accompanied with Alan’s frantic patter. Alan then showed his routine for the finger chopper, and finally his variation on Simon Aronsons Shufflebored.

The second competitor was Allan Clarke. Allan had some really novel and great ideas. His first effect had a spectator pick the only card with ‘Pick Me’ on the back. Then Allan had a bunch of cards handed out, so each spectator got one card, and then he divined the cards. He then attempted to predict the Lottery, this was a really good take on an old number force, using the word LOTTERY to arrive at a total, which was predicted in advance. Finally Allan had someone write down a colour, which he divined by picking the correct colour marker from the table.

The third competitor Ken Johnson showed a lot of tricks, he tended to rush through them which killed the reactions and applause. His opening trick was an invisible dye tube which allowed him to vanish and reproduce a silk. He then rattled through a dice bomb, copper and silver coins across, a signed coin vanish to perspex box, and finally he showed a small finger puppet rabbit which vanished.

The fourth and last competitor was Derek Gustard, he started with a Cups and Balls routine, which for me was slightly too long and laboured, but it was obvious that Derek had worked hard thinking about his routining and scripting. A Wally Boyce Just Chance with Knitted Ropes saw Derek keep his £20. Finally he finished with a card revelation where he cued the audience into the spectators selection with a giant card stitched inside his jacket.

Nathan started with a very funny magicians only gag using the old silk vanish. Nathans coin work is immaculate and his wishing routine is a three coin production using fire and incorporates a three fly routine and a vanish sequence.

Nathan then showed his take on the haunted deck using the loops. His voodoo card is an easy version of a steranko plot where the chosen card ends up bent and burnt. Finally Nathan showed Diction his booktest using a small pocket dictionary. A great opening lecture with some commercial magic.

Richard Morrell is reporting live from The Northern Magic Circle Convention this weekend. you can see all his photos and read his reports right here

The Northern Magic Circle Convention takes place next weekend (Saturday 27th & Sunday 28th March) at the Marine Hall, Fleetwood, Lancashire and we are pleased to announce that Guy Barrett will be performing an extended excerpt from his full evening show, including the premier of an illusion never before seen at a magic convention.

Along with Guy this years convention will also feature Nathan Kranzo (USA), Steve Royle (UK), John Hotowka (UK), Chris Priest (UK), Thom Peterson (USA), Steve Hewlett (UK), Marc Paul (UK), Paul Joyce (UK), John Dixion (UK), Darren Bonas (UK), Roger Woods (UK), Maurice Howarth (UK), Brian Sefton (UK), Stephen Williams (UK), Chris Cross (UK) and Kostya Kimlat (USA).

The convention will feature lectures, workshops/masterclass, competitions, Saturday evening late show, history of mystery, an exclusive Northern Junior members masterclass, Close-Up Gala Shows and all culminating in an All Star Gala Show on the Sunday evening. A full weekend registration is just £50 and gains access to ALL events, you can book online at www.northernmagic.co.uk or contact the registration officer Allan Clarke on 01772 685073

Nathan Kranzo will be hosting an additional Masterclass at 8pm on Friday 26th March at the New Boston Hotel, Fleetwood. This will feature 2 hours of hands on advice focusing mainly on coin magic interspersed with othe close-up effects. The cost of this additional event is £50 and includes TWO of Nathans dvds (Stand Up Coin Magic & Nathans Lecture), which retail at £25 each and therefore offers great value. To reserve a place for this event contact Alan Mylecraine alan@northernmagic.co.uk

You can follow all our news and updates for the Northern Magic Circle Convention by clicking here

This year will see the Northern Magic Circle hosting two close-up gala shows during its weekend convention on Saturday 27th & Sunday 28th March at the Marine Hall, Fleetwood, Lancashire.

There is one close-up gala show scheduled each day and will feature Marc Paul, Nathan Kranzo, Chris Priest and Kostya Kimlat. The shows will be an ideal opportunity to sit back and appreciate four of the best close-up magicians demonstrating their presentation and magical skill..

Each magician offers a different style, technique and personality which suits their individuality and will ensure these shows are not to be missed during this year’s Northern Magic Circle Convention weekend.

Tickets offer fantastic value for money at just £50 for the whole weekend which will feature lectures, competitions, Saturday late show, history of mystery talk, exclusive Northern Junior masterclass with the stars of the convention, twelve dealers all offering varied products, junior showtime, free masterclass (if you are a lucky winner) and all culminating on the Sunday evening with an all star gala show, a full line up and more details can be found at www.northernmagic.co.uk or by emailing alan@northernmagic.co.uk

When booking, if you mention Magic Convention Guide then you will be entered into the draw for an exclusive Masterclass with Kostya, there will be 12 lucky winners and the draw will be made on the Saturday morning of the convention.

You can follow all our news and updates for the Northern Magic Circle Convention by clicking here