FISM 2012 - Day Four

[CraigMitchell]

Day 4 Thurs 12 July

The final day of the close-up competition and another 17 acts to get through. With sleep now becoming a rare commodity the contestants have to pull out all the stops to make an impact with a very magic weary audience.

1. Jeremy Tan Micro Singapore
Ouch. Not the start to the morning we are looking for. A fumble at the beginning ... ring to coins, a standard three fly and coins back to ring. A polite smattering applause.

2. Henning Nielsen Parlor Cheff Magic Denmark
Lame jokes with magic to match. Chopsticks to cutlery, substandard sleeving, an elbow permanently cast at a 90 degree angle ( I wonder what he may be hiding ) and my personal favourite flatulence on fire.

3. Vittorio Belloni Micro- Italy
Everyones favourite coin matrix returns with a difference featuring transparent cards and even transparent coins. The one vanishing sequence was particularly effective.

4. Vincent Hedan Parlor France
An experiment in a memorised deck which unfortunately failed to hit the mark. Something clearly went amiss in the routine.

5. Javi Santos Micro Spain
Whatever happens in front of the mirror becomes real behind the looking glass. Appearing dice, matrix with dice and compulsory dice stacking. Best line of the act my English no perfect

6. Johan Stahl Parlor Sweden
Presenting the same act from the previous FISM, Johans performance is one of sheer beauty. Presented from the perspective of the on-stage volunteer, miracles happen with a simple cup and sugar cube that must be seen to be truly appreciated. A beautiful act that is certain to place.

7. Mong Fung Ip Parlor Hong Kong
What a bizarre trainwreck. Perfume and fragrance themed with cards with scents and appearing Chanel #5. Being a little tad metrosexual himself the audience erupted with his dead-pan line a journey through time, space and gender

8. Yves Domergue Parlor France
The act flopped with the grand prediction failing to materialise. One novel highlight was the chair he was sitting on made completely of paper that he later squashed.

9. Andy Huang Micro Andost USA
Andost featured a simply incredible color change that looked like something straight out of a movie ... a single card on the table ever so slowly changed color before our eyes. A very beautiful moment. The act takes color changing cards to over drive ...

10. Ryan Lam Parlor Hayashire
Hayashis thoughts are made real via accompanying soundtrack as he performs cups, cups and more cups. Unfortunately the piece never connects with the audience.

11.Ludovic Julliot Micro France
A gangster character helping a client with his money woes. Vanishing chain from pocket watch, coin to card productions, matrix and multiplying coins.

12. Yann Frisch Parlor France
Our new Grand Prix winner who presents a piece of theatrical magic unlike anything seen before. His dramatic take on a crazed man dealing with the unexpected magic of a cup & ball is sublime. Fantastic!

13. Barry Olivier The Netherlands
A grown man with a paper heart on his chest. Enough said.

14. Hector Angel Parlor Spain
An endearing personality of a magician who takes his deck to sleep with him and finding a named card within the box.

15. Steve Sandomierski Micro South Africa
An ex-pat American with a highly infectious laugh and a somewhat bizarre discovery of a signed card in tin of baked beans.

16. Kristian Nivala Parlor Findland
Compulsory dramatic close-up music ... with a multitude of items being produced from his shoe.

17. Ricardo Rodriguez Parlor Spain
Another member of the bring your video camera to Blackpool club - a strange act set within a dressing room that suffers tremendously due to the language barrier. Very little magic all round unfortunately.


This brings to an end the close-up for FISM 2012. The undeniable stand-out acts today are Yann Frisch and Johan Stahl ... with my money on Yann to take the Grand Prix.

90 minutes to go until another 4 hours of stage contest followed by the gala banquet dinner and Blackpool circus.

In the words of the legendary FISM musical maestro, Theres magic all over the world ...

----------------

Stage Contest


1. Marcel Kalisvaart Prince of Illusions Stage Illusions Netherlands
WOW ! Finally a stage illusion act worth cheering for ... Marcels set was incredible ! And one of the best at a FISM that I can remember. Peformer is sleeping atop a bed and instantly vanishes replaced by a mythical demon acolyte. A beautiful transformation that was pure eye candy ... weve entered his nightmare world ... think Cirque du Soleil meets Freddy Kruger! The next 9 minutes were a blur with high powered, original, fantastical creations that told a true story. If ever there was someone that should have been booked for the FISM gala show this was it. The audience erupted instantly ... prize winner guaranteed.

Full pics of the act should soon be available so you can get the full impact.

2. Pedo Teixeira Ta Na Manga -
Theatrical, deliberate and measured a great performance piece with a live on-stage narrator to the one side illuminated by a single spotlight and magician on the other. Magician has to reconcile his love for magic versus his love for his partner ... in a tongue-in-cheek way. Lightbulb and hank transpo, silk to rose, vanishing and appearing tie between narrator and magician ( this is another new trend transpositioning ties at FISM ), Ellusionist smoke and a real-life slap on the face by the jilted lover which must have hurt big time. Congrats!

3. Mikael Askernas- Mental magic Sweden
Painful in all sense of the word. An IT consultant turned magician with poor equivoque, mind-reading dice and Russian roulette with staple guns. If you could really read minds would you be bothering with dice ?

4. Max Guito General Magic France
Lamp stands have become the de facto stage setting at FISM. A Heely clad performer with cassette to CDs, silk stuck in CD player and a novel use of an umbrella as satellite dish with CD from TV screen.

5. Do Ki Moon General Magic Korea
Playing the role of a musical conductor it was a fun act but no where near as good as the other musical conductor on the bill .... Mikael Szanyiel

6. Komur Murat Kenris Manipulation France
Rose, fan and tango with flaming cards and jumbo manipulation. Different.

7. Lee Young Woo Manipulation Korea
Top hat & tails, complete with pipe and moustache. Vanishing cane, classical cards ... and some 1980s disco to boot.
8. Hiroaki Kobayashi Dai Kobayashi General Magic - Japan
Traditional Japanese costume with masks and umbrella ... changing masks, vanishing masks, color changing kimonos and torn & restored mask.
9. Silvana Gordiola Silvana General Magic Argentina
Bright costume with clown-style shoes ... moving buttons on jacket a horrible zombie of ball of wool and a final levitation to reach the lightbulb.

10. Mikael Szanyiel Comedy Magic France
A brilliant act that has been seen at a past FISM and World Magic Seminar. A crazed conductor with fantastic sound fx sheets of music flying all over floating microphone and too many antics to mention. An actual act that is both funny & magical ... a winner in comedy magic for sure!

11. Maxime Delforges Cubic Act Stage illusions France
A levitating box with a woman inside. The audience loved it ... but its more puzzle than illusion. The light stand positioned directly behind the box takes away any sort of mystery.

12. David Sousa Mr Covilhete Comedy Magic Portugal
Past FISM winner, David Sousa, committed career suicide with an act that defied belief. How this ever reached FISM is beyond comprehension . The judges clearly took pity on him as a past winner but he should have been redlighted for being way below FISM standard. Leaving the stage for 20+ seconds in the midst of his act periods of complete and utter silence, cups & balls on stage, visible thread, a horrible rendition of the Living Hand how did David Sousa ever allow this to happen.

13. Jiang Ya Ping Manipulation China
Leather pants bejewelled crucifix and obviously a frequent shopper at the Criss Angel boutique. Make it end now.

14. Ha Won-Gun Haon Gun General Magic Korea
A fun act with colour changing tshirts, multiplying soda cans, enlarging hangers and much much more. Light hearted and easy going ... nice to sit back and just let the magic happen.

15. Sunny Chen General Magic Taiwan
An ice-cream salesman with a shark warning sign at the beach. Magic with the sign unfolds everything is better with confetti and spongeball ice-cream ending with quick change to beach wear.

16. Hiroshi Yamamoto Manipulation Japan
A painter with card manipulation along with a coloured cardboard stand. The props looked homemade and replacing cards with color pieces of paper may be a stretch too far.

17. Frederic da Silva Si Mentalism France
Mentalism agony with formulaic contest act set in a travel agency with chosen destination, predicted amount et al ... all magically revealed in a letter.
18. Ferenc Kohalmi Franz Koffer General Magic Hungary
A mad hatter with suitcase serpent silk , jumbo coins, he dropped the billiard balls and jumbo card fan and the red lipstick was a little too much.

19. Miguel Munoz Manipulation Spain
Bowl of water glass ball production contact juggling ... and a beautiful vanish of the crystal balls at the end.

20. Hun Lee General Magic Korea
A fantastic act that took the idea of rewind and fast-forward to a whole new level. After appearing card cases, multi-coloured cards and normal manipilation brilliance from the Asian bloc we got to see the entire act in rewind live! Wow!

Day four of the stage contests has been incredible ... and looking at the line-up for tomorrow it may get even better! What a joy to see some truly inspired performances ...


----------

Some other news:


- France overwhelmingly beat Blackpool's attempt to host FISM Europe in 2014 ... which would you choose ? Luxuy cruise liner visiting exotic ports or Blackpool, England ?

- the trip to the local circus was reportedly an enjoyable highlight for those who actually got to attend. In an example of very poor scheduling - those in the first sitting were required to miss the last 5 contest stage acts should you have wanted to see the show. Pity.

- the "gala banquet dinner" was abysmal. A 'buffet' dinner restricted to a single plate of food. Held within the halls of the Winter Gardens - the peeling paint was a nice decor touch.

[Richard Kaufman]

I took a look at the food being served and the ridiculously long lines, and bailed. Went to the local Italian joint and had a great dinner with some friends.

[IrishMagicNews]

I saw on Twitter that FISM 2015 has gone to Italy, Is this just some guy guessing? Or has this been confirmed?

[CraigMitchell]

Brendan, that is not correct. FISM General Assembly meets on Saturday ... and votes on FISM 2015 then.

[IrishMagicNews]

Thanks Craig, thought so. And while I am here I'd like to add my sincere appreciation for keeping us up to speed on what is happening.

I had planned to live blog a regular Blackpool on my site one year but gave up after an hour. it is tough trying to have fun, take everything in, meet with friends and all the rest. Throw reviewing "on the fly" in. I don't know how your managing but it is much appreciated.

Brendan

[Richard Kaufman]

Italy is heavily favored to win as the site of the next FISM in 2015 over Korea. No one doubts that the Koreans would do a wonderful job, but FISM has not been held in continental Europe in a decade, and many feel it's time to return the convention there.

[IrishMagicNews]

In fairness the Italy bid looks very strong. And the French Euro's could be my excuse for my first ever cruise.

Richard are you enjoying it?

[Richard Kaufman]

Am I enjoying what?

FISM in Blackpool?

So far, this FISM has had the worst gala shows I've ever seen at a FISM (I've been to Den Haag, Stockholm, and Beijing before this), and they're pretty poor by any convention standard. Even acts that are normally good are doing poorly here. The normal Blackpool Convention is far better than this.

So far, the event is totally lackluster and boring.

I have spent most of my time chatting with friends (always fun), and walking the dealer room. There are some GREAT new items just hitting the market and I've had a lot of fun in there.

But, I'm starting to get a little tired after Day 4.

Another three nights in the overpriced and dirty Hilton. I keep waiting to see if the maid will pick up the trash behind the bathroom door that's been left by the previous occupant and she never does. I finally realized that she never closes the bathroom door behind her when she cleans the room, and so has never noticed the trash on the floor. Just a little game to pass the time. We'll see if she finds the trash by the seventh night.

[Tim Ellis]

Personally, I really hope that FISM 2015 goes to Korea. Nothing against Italy at all, but judging from the sound of BlackFISM the whole event needs an injection of life, youth and innovation - which the Koreans have in spades.

They are extremely passionate about their magic, and want to deliver an event that will progress the art to the next level.

Italy is a lovely place to visit, but FISM should be about the competition, shows and lectures, not the sightseeing before and after.

Plus, Europeans can already visit Italy cheaply any time they like, this will be their one chance to visit Korea for a very, very low price. (The airline & accom deals they are setting up are truly amazing).

[Richard Kaufman]

Tim, I don't think you've met the man behind Italy's bid. He's a very young and energetic TV host, magician, and has organized the Masters of Magic convention for three or four years already. He is experienced and the venues in the city of Rimini look excellent.

I have no doubt that Korea will host a FISM at some point in the future--but the wind doesn't seem to be blowing in their direction this year.

[Tim Ellis]

I haven't met him, no. I did hear the reports about this year's Italian event.

Regarding the Championships this year though, here is a podcast I did in May for iTricks when I made my predictions of the winners in each category... do I get a prize for mentalism? ;)

http://itricks.com/news/2012/05/itricks ... 2-preview/

[Davide Brizio]

May I mention the choice of representing the italian buffet section with a 12 yo child dressed like a mafia gangster with a gun?
If it was an attempt at humor it failed miserably, also because the other countries were represented by people in traditional clothes. If it was not humor but a serious attempt to show the "italian traditions" well.. even worse. A fast google image search would have given them much better ideas on how to represent our country, if they really didn't know anything about it but the stereotipical "Corleone" image.
I personally felt insulted and I heard the same feelings by my italian friends.

Dear fism organizers, you may be surprised to know that italians HATE mafia, it's a criminal organization and we don't like to be compared to those bandits all the time, especially in an international convention like this one.

Dave

[CraigMitchell]

Cultural sensitivity ? Oh the humour ...

[martinduffy]

Craig - may I add my thanks to the many you have recieved so far

Richard - would you share with us which items in the delaers hall you liked the most please...?

[MaxNY]

Craig, Thanks. You are a breath of fresh air in this Indian Sweat Lodge of fools. What Stereotypes?

I hope Italy gets the next nod.

...and for those who meet on Saturday...I beg that all Policies be re-examinded. Even if it is a simple phone call to the Regional President, just to...(I don't know)...to check in. Check a name. Are there any checks in the system to make sure forgery doesn't exist?

I have tried my best to convince the North American Brass that our combined convention/contests have failed to be regional indeed. Due to the fact that our two big clubs are Multi National, the pressures to sell "The Convention of The Century" are not providing the best magicians that our region has to offer. My grass-roots campaign , has been reduced to ranting on this very board. I believe legislation needs to come from above. Realize this... If you don't enforce the "Regional" clause...the combined SAM/IBM convention will get to be bigger and more important than your own. Since we were snubbed 12 years ago, I think the unwritten word has been....f**k f**m.

[MarkWeidhaas]

In my report to the IBM last week and the SAM next week, I explained that the 2014 NACM contest will require Residency in North America. The contest will still be open for international magicians who want to compete for the IBM Gold Cups or SAM Gold Medal.

Of course, plans are still fluid, but beginning to solidify. Hope to see you all in St Louis in 2014.

[Geoff Weber]

Here's Yahn Frisch doing his eccentric cups and balls (not sure if the routine has been modified for FISM.. its unlike any I've seen before.. wonderful!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JI03MW3Oms

[F.Amílcar]

Mr. Mitchell,

Beforehand, thanks for your reports and comments that we truly enjoy every day at every post.
Your way to looking forward is specially real because you are in Blackpool and can see in live all the contest. I think that in anyway have been a hard work for you to take notes after every act and after in the computer to write for all of us your opinion.
We are agree with almost all your comments but when you have refered to some competitors, I think that you are a little bit hard too.
I know that, you are thinking what occurs is that I am from Spain and is true and it does that I am particulary positive with the magicians of my country.

It's only my opinion sir.

Truly yours.

F. Amlcar Riega i Bello.

[MarkWeidhaas]

Yann Frisch will be performing in less than 2 weeks as part of the "French Connection" Close-Up show at the S.A.M. Convention in Las Vegas. Will this be his first engagement after winning the Grand Prix?

Can't make the entire convention? Get a one day pass for only $125 for Thursday, July 26 to see his act.

[MattTarrant]

Just wanted to thank you Craig for all of your updates over the past few days,

Has been fantastic to follow from Australia.

Disappointing to hear Vincent from France wasn't his usual self, his routines were some of the best I have seen when he was recently living in Australia.

Thanks once again.

[IrishMagicNews]

The normal Blackpool Convention is far better than this.

So far, the event is totally lackluster and boring.

And there I think is the nubb. Since the European FISM a couple of yrs ago I always felt that FISM could do more damage to the regular Blackpool Convention then good.

It also points, at least to me, how strong the regular Blackpool convention is. Yes, the town itself is tacky etc but for a 3 days convention, with the worlds top artists and an abundance of dealers all for 90 we are so lucky this side of the world.

I am glad FISM Europe 2014 is on a French cruise. Blackpool 2014 will be all the better for it.

[F.Amílcar]

I had the pleasure to see Yann Frisch in the National congress in Madrid 2011 and talk with him personally.

I think is a great act and fantastic performer for any competition around the world.

It seems as look to Mr. Slydini who never had the pleasure to meet never in my life.
With all the respect to Mr. Slydini that R.I.P.

Sincerely,

F. Amlcar Riega i Bello.

[MickNZ]

Thanks for the updates. Would love to see video of some of those oddball entries ...

[Jonathan Pendragon]

Craig
I realize your report is opinion, therefore subjective, and as such legitimate material on this forum. My problem is the inconsistency. You complain about effects being done to death: there should be a law forbidding Vanishing Dove Cages and the like. Then comes Yann Frisch upon whom you extol great praise for doing what... the Cups and Balls? Of course he isn't just doing the Cups and Balls, HE is doing them wonderfully with new ideas and a skill set that includes theater. Rage against all things that think if they, in your opinion, doing so poorly. "Boards, don't hit back."

Illusions are not "toys" just because someone treats them as such. As a stuntman and a pilot I have seen and heard plenty of stories about idiots wrapping a high priced toy around a tree and worse. The majority of these stories involve someone who wasn't smart or well trained enough to handle what was between their legs, just rich enough.

When we censor the familiar it doesn't guarantee brilliant-original-new thought, it just eliminates the foundation on which it is built.

[CraigMitchell]

Hi Jonathan - to clarify - my issue ( as with most at FISM ) is stock standard effects performed standardly or poorly. I appreciate new, unique and original performances - whether using classic equipment or not. I apologise if that didn't come through fully ...

[Jonathan Pendragon]

Craig,

Trust me, I hate bad magic as much as you do. And you are absolutely correct about the Grand Illusion competition at FISMs. With a few exceptions, it's generally dreadful. I hope Marcel does well and redeems the category; you seem to have been impressed by his work. I apologize if I pontificated; we both have our soapboxes.

With respect,
Jonathan

[Hansel K]

Any info. about David Sousa disqualification?
That take my by storm!
I would swear that He competes this year with his regular/beautiful/suave act and won the Grand Prix...
So sad,
-Hansel

[Tom Frame]

Here's Yahn Frisch doing his eccentric cups and balls (not sure if the routine has been modified for FISM.. its unlike any I've seen before.. wonderful!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JI03MW3Oms

That's a terrific routine! His endearing character and his physical movements are charmingly Chaplinesque. The Tom Waits tune is inspired accompaniment.

[Jonathan Pendragon]

There is a Cardiniesque fill to Frisch's routine. Cardini the slightly typsy Englishman being taunted by cigarettes, cards and Billard balls, Frisch the over caffeinated Frenchman being taunted by the red balls and cup. Pure skill being driven by a great character.

[Rolf Reiner]

The Tom Waits tune is not a part of the act. It was added for TV, the act is silent - really silent, and even more impressive so.

[Tom Moore]

Trust me, I hate bad magic as much as you do. And you are absolutely correct about the Grand Illusion competition at FISMs. With a few exceptions, it's generally dreadful. I hope Marcel does well and redeems the category; you seem to have been impressed by his work.

I'd expect the overall standard to get lower and lower as the new entry rules make it very expensive and incredibly difficult for any real world working illusion act to enter FISM. With stage/close-up/manip act it can generally be a solo performer with an act that travels in excess baggage (and the act itself is useually a dedicated competition act not the one that the performer uses in the real world and can be rehearsed in the performers spare bedroom) so there's minimal costs involved in taking the act to the competition and the act itself is relatively cheep to put together. You'd actually need to invest in 40-50k in props/costumes/planning and easily another 10k to transport and accommodate an illusion act & crew to the actual FISM competition even if you're in Europe.

The new "regional heats" concept makes it even harder for good/working illusion acts to get in to the competition as generally Illusionist aren't members of clubs/societies and are generally booked on contracts far away from home so find it very difficult (and expensive) to take a few days off from their casino gig to audition to join a qualifying member society, another few days off several months later (probably having to fly half-way around the world) to take part in the regional competition and then a week off to take part in the main contest itself. To win the FISM illusion catagory you need to not only be very good and have a great act (Marcel is both) but also be able to perfectly syncronise your diary and be able to gamble the sort of money you could otherwise use to buy a House jumping through all the procedural hoops required just to get a slot in the final competition.

I know of two illusion acts who wanted to enter this year but simply couldn't make all the extra heats fit around their existing commitments and were very wary about committing to spending considerable sums of money when they could get a Merlin award for a fraction of the price and have virtually the same level of publicity from it.

[IrishMagicNews]

Ouch, comparing FISM to The Merlin. lol.

[Tom Moore]

As a marketing tool to get more bookings and raise your profile with real people, i'd say they're both on a par

[IrishMagicNews]

I'm not arguing.

[AJM]

"Boards, don't hit back.'

'it is like a finger pointing to the moon'
Slap
'Don't concentrate on the finger or you will miss all the heavenly glory'

Classic.

Jonathan - I do hope we meet at the Genii Bash to exchange a few favourite lines from Monty Python or 70''s Chop Socky movies.

Regards

Andrew

[Tim Ellis]

I'm not 100% sure but I believe there are other ways a 'working pro' can gain entry to the main comp and bypass the heats.

But I have to admit, the heats concept has it's flaws. One is, by the time the WCM comes along, everyone has seen most of the acts and a winner is easy to predict.

[MaxNY]

I don't blame the heats concept for early predictions. That would be a by-product of internet blogs and You-Tube hits. There is a way to contain that though, and if your act depends on the "surprise factor" you may want to control your coverage.

Example. I'm not familiar with the Matrix levitation, I may have given it props during one of my convention reviews..but searched You-Tube for it....seems like everything has been "removed"

I heard a rumor that you may forge your way forward. Just trying to kill two birds...

[Tim Ellis]

I like the heat concepts in principle. But yes, it does remove the "surprise" element which is soooo important in magic.

It was created as an attempt to weed out the "bad acts" before they reach the WCM. It sounds like we have had some very, very good acts, but still a lot of sub-standard acts have got through as well. For those who are at BlackFISM now, have there been fewer "bad acts" this year?

[Tom Pilling]

Chaps,

I am fascinated by reading the reports on FISM in Blackpool, thank you so much. There is one small niggle, however, over aspects of the coverage, that is Blackpool itself.

C'mon. Most contributors here know about Blackpool from experience. Hawking their wares annually or biannually, the flea-pits, the wind blown beach, the terrible weather, the sheer cheese of the place must be familiar. Which makes it such an unpopular choice for any sort of international convention, I daresay.

All my family are Lancastrians, (for those that are presently in Blackpool, they should understand what that means, or take their heads out of their bottoms.) Blackpool was already starting to suffer, commercially, from the 60's onwards. It began with the advent of affordable (nasty) holidays to the Costa del Sol. Fewer and fewer went to resorts like Blackpool, and these old fashioned, uncomfortable towns lost their domestic advantages in the holiday market.

Blackpool, like Brighton in the south of England, was never the most genteel of destinations in Britain. It was, and remains, somewhere for young people to go and shag. And a cheap holiday for those whose shagging has produced children, and possibly want to do more shagging whilst their children are occupied elsewhere.

You may recognise that scenario, as do I. And as I do, you might feel that there are better, pleasanter venues for said shagging/childcare combinations than Blackpool. The same, I imagine, goes for FISM. I'd prefer to go to Birmingham.

That's saying summat.

To give an angled perspective on the HORROR of Blackpool: I went on a trip with my brother, (I assume my parents wanted two weeks of shagging?) to the US. We were kids, staying in a nice bit of Maryland with some family friends, who took us for a trip to Ocean City.

Well, the weather was more reliable in August. Other than that? The same asinine atmosphere, the same over priced crap, but exotic to little English boys. And a lot of fun. If FISM were held there? No. As a kid, it was brilliant.

This stuff about Derek Beaver, or whoever, seems disgusting and above all else, petty. I'm glad I have nothing whatsoever to do with that person.

The idea of even spending three hours in the car to drive to Blackpool, a short hop, for FISM is unthinkable to one who knows its lumpy beds and hilariously cheesy ambience. But for a quick shag and a laugh? Absolutely.

The decline, in terms of entertainment, of what made Blackpool 'great', is personified by the character of Archie Rice (The Entertainer; Laurence Olivier; 1960).

Music Hall. Music Hall. Music Hall. And shagging. And drinking.

Music Hall was rather a lucrative circuit for many talents who now struggle to find work, be it in music, dance, magic or animal impressions. For FISM to be held in Blackpool brings to mind that song sung by Archie RIce:

"Why should I care,
Why should I let it touch me?
Why shouldn't I,
Sit down
And let it all pass over me?"

A bit like that dirt behind the door in the HIlton. If it actually came as a surprise, you would have actually complained, Richard. It's all a game, and a fun one at that.

Incidentally, the best "Downfall" magic related parody concerns a joint project by Magic Makers and Wesley James. If I were he, or Derek Beaver, I'd be upset. However much deserved it was, it would still hurt.

(Paid for by the Blackpool Municipal Apologists Society)

[Jonathan Pendragon]

Andrew
Your a Scot! I grew-up attending St. Andrew church (Episcopalian) in my home town of Fullerton, CA. Big influence on me and my brother who named his sons Ian and Conner. It would be my pleasure to have a drink (what else?) and discuss the classics!