Prothoplastus of Plures

By Marc Spelmann

Contents
Forward By Peter Nardi .......02
Introduction By Looch .......02
Before I start .......03
Who Are You Really? .......04
Incentive .......05
A Point Of View .......07
Orifice .......09
Tribute To T.A. .......11
Road Kill .......13
Combination .......14
Hurdles .......15
T.A. Rides Again .......16
Progressive Improbability .......17
Marked The Sequel .......20
PATEOVOQUE .......21
End .......22
 Prothoplastus of Plures
Foreword By Peter Nardi – Alakazam Magic
I see a lot of magic and mentalism, books, dvd’s and effect’s, some are good, some are great whilst the
majority are easily forgotten. Marc Spelmann creates what I consider to be wonderful effects, he never
ceases to amaze me with his ideas, concepts, routines and principles that are new, dynamic and above all
else practical for the professional or hobbyist. All that he creates he performs, and he performs
often, some pieces get one showing and are left by the way side, whilst others grow, evolve and
become wonderful demonstrations.

Marc’s work is based on real routines that can be achieved, no pipe dreams, no filler and no nonsense
just good strong material. I have seen Marc do the most incredible card at any number that was so clean
even David Berglas would be impressed, a shuffled borrowed deck that he never touched, I was also at his
cabaret performance for 1200 IBM executives in Egypt which was quite simply sensational. (Myself being
booked as an advisor.. thanks Marc.)

A sure way of defining a good creator is whether people use the effects they create, well in Marc’s case he
can list people such as Richard Osterlind, Banachek, Larry Becker and Kenton Knepper, along with
thousands of professionals and hobbyists around the world. I believe in Marc Spelmann’s ability so much
that he is now my business partner with Inner Mind Productions, he has plans for some truly astonishing
material and thus we are all in for a treat.

Introduction By Looch – Author SAD

It seems that I’ve known Marc Spelmann for an eternity. We have spent countless hours brainstorming
and developing each others ideas and I consider Marc to be one of the closest friends I have in the Magic
community. The truth is, We’ve only known each other for a little over 18 months, and during that time I
feel I have developed not only as a performer, but as a person as well. I certainly feel I have aged a further
18 years with having to put up with him droning on late into the night over the phone. Nevertheless at the
conclusion of each and every conversation, I have left feeling inspired and full of ideas.

Marc wrote the foreword to my new booklet at a time when we hadn’t even met face to face. Since then,
I’m happy to say our relationship has blossomed into one of a deep understanding and trust (as well as the
odd squirt of KY Jelly) The guy is a great thinker and has a remarkable understanding of what works in
the real world, this is because everything he preaches, he practices, all over the world, for paid audiences.

This set of lecture notes is a perfect example of not only the strength of Marcs thinking, but also the pace
and diversity of his mind at this specific point in time. Think of it as a current snapshot of his mental hard
drive at this moment in his life, You don’t have to necessarily agree with each and every thought but I
encourage you to at the very least to stop and contemplate. If you do, I guarantee, it will make you in some
way, a better performer. Enjoy!

02
 Before I Start
Please do not be naughty!
There will be three ways you have obtained these lecture notes. 1) You have just seen me lecture and in the
overly excited state you find yourself in you have purchased them. 2) You haven’t seen me lecture but have
obtained a set by either purchasing them through Inner Mind Productions, from Ebay, or on Magic Week.
You could be 3) were you have obtained a bad photocopy or scanned copy off of a friend, or you are
reading this as a PDF on a CD crammed full of priceless material by other creators.

If you are number (3) then please consider this, in a recent survey it was found that 99.9% of people who
produce or read pirated material have very small sexual organs, this condition equals a very weak stamina
resulting in what experts like to call premature pop shots. In other words please do not copy this or scan it.
By all means sell the original once you have finished with it on Magic Week but please do not make any
copies. How do you know if you have an original? Easily as every set of notes is signed and numbered
making your set unique. These notes like any other take time, passion, patience and money to produce,
they are not expensive so if anyone would like a set please send them to Inner Mind Productions
(www.innermindproductions.com)

Another thing that should be mentioned is that I get side tracked a lot, my lectures are not heavily
structured, don’t get me wrong I do set out a structure but I enjoy interacting with people interested in
my work. I would rather talk with you rather than at you for two hours so please bare in mind whilst I will
do my best to stick to the lecture notes throughout my lecture if an interesting topic comes up I will
probably go off on a tangent. Thus the outcome maybe that not all of what is contained in these notes will
make it into the lecture. I apologize in advance if I miss out routines or certain elements. I frequent quite a
few conventions so please feel free to ask any questions you may have.

There are a few theory essays in these notes, they are my thoughts and beliefs at the time of writing these
notes, they are by no means cast in stone and a few years down the line I may disagree with them. You may
disagree with them now which is fine as we all approach things in different ways, this is currently my way.

I will be discussing playing cards and mentalism, your persona, mixing magic and mentalism, audiences
and disclaimers. Of course I will also be sharing some effects also but I urge you to read everything, even
if you do not agree, it may create your own thoughts about elements you may not have considered.

I sincerely hope you enjoy these notes, I have endeavoured to create a set of notes that I would want to
keep and re-read from time to time. There maybe typos and errors in grammar for this I apologize most
humbly, the time constraints to get these notes ready for a series of lectures means getting them read and
re-read will be unlikely. I will do my best to credit sources, creators and respect my peers, for it is their
shoulders I stand on.

Marc Spelmann - Rivoli Ramblas Hotel - Barcelona - January 2008

03
 Who are you really?
Establishing your persona
One of the most important elements to any performance be it professional or as a hobby is establishing
who you really are. This may seem obvious but it makes a huge difference with your performances
regardless of what material you do. It is important to define a persona that is believable if you are doing
mentalism. In order for an audience to believe in what you are doing they have to believe in you.

What you say, how you say it, what you wear, how you act and how you look will all make a difference as
to how you are perceived by an audience. I was fortunate enough to spend some time with Jeff Hobson in
Las Vegas last year and he explained his character. For those that do not know Jeff Hobson he is an
extremely exaggerated camp magician who is quite literally the funniest magician I have ever seen.
He explained how he had performed almost every type of magic, from big stage illusions with the
dramatic music and lighting through to serious mind reading but he never felt quite comfortable, so rather
than changing the material he looked at himself and decided that the material was secondary, he had to find
himself first before he could select material. It was by accident that he ended up becoming a camp
magician but for the first time he felt he had found his persona and for what it is worth I really thought he
was homosexual until Paul Stone told me Jeff had kids and a wife who didn’t have a beard or a hairy chest.

Derren Brown is a perfect example, a fabulous performer with the sexiest goatee I have seen since Max
Mavens. Derren not only creates wonderful effects, he has a believable persona, he looks like he has
studied human nature, body language techniques, NLP and psychology. He sounds educated, acts educated
and as far as I can tell is educated despite the fact he thinks Humpty Dumpty was a suicidal egg with
relationship issues. People believe him, they believe what he does which in turn makes it fascinating.

If you were watching a play or a film and the acting was awful you would not believe any of it, there would
be no suspension of disbelief, it would be a negative experience. The same applies to mentalism and magic
to a certain degree. You do get people like Jeff Hobson, Graham Jolley and John Archer who are all very
funny, but they are making a statement by being funny, rude or overly camp in Jeff’s case. Their
objective is to be funny and likable first, that is their personas which they have down to a tea.

I have followed David Blaine’s career like most and I think he is brilliant, he is believable, he is odd, he
might just be doing some of it for real but even if he isn’t it doesn’t matter as he is a ‘showman’. Imagine
the amazing Bill Malone acting like David Blaine or Criss Angel, it wouldn’t work, the same would apply
the other way round. Take a look in the mirror and see who is looking back at you, are you a mysterious
character, educated, funny or friendly. Will people believe you studied psychology, gambled for ten years
in Vegas, participated in psychic testing in 1970, studied with an Indian shaman since childhood?

What are your strengths, what are your weakness’s, ask others around you but do not be offended if you
can’t pull off the dark mysterious persona or be the funny performer with perfect comedy timing.
You maybe the regular guy who loves magic, mind reading and mystery and has done it since you were a
kid. There is no right answer but it is interesting how it can effect how your audiences perceive you and
what you do. As Vernon said ‘Be Natural.’

04
 Incentive
A twist on the bank night theme
Effect
The performer discusses observation and how we all like to think we have great observation skills.
A simple game will be played with someone from the audience. A five pound note is folded up and slipped
into an envelope, the performer puts his hands behind his back & after a little ‘mixing’ both hands are
brought to the front as the performer asks the participant which hand is holding the five pound note.
Naturally this is ridiculously easy as the envelope can be clearly seen in the left hand. The performer
comments on how good the participant is and introduces an additional envelope and repeats the process,
after more byplay the performer has introduced three additional envelopes making a total of four in play.

The performer says “John, I genuinely want you to win the five pound note, if you fail as a consolation
prize you win the contents of the other three envelopes combined, please indicated an envelope that you
believe does not contain the five pounds.” John points to an envelope which in turn is put to one side.
“Well done John, I think you have chosen wisely, now choose another.” After more byplay and mixing,
a single envelope is left which John believes has the five pound note. The performer asks John to reach
inside and show everyone what he has won, which turns out to be the five pound note.
“Brilliant John, give him a huge round of applause.”

As the audience applaud the performer stops everyone and says “Someone down here just said that
obviously all of the envelopes have a five pound note inside, which is a perfectly reasonable conclusion,
but as I mentioned if John failed he would win the contents of these three envelopes and I have to say I
am glad he won the five pounds.” The performer opens the other envelopes and says “Inside this envelope
is a ten pound note, in this one a twenty pound note and in the last one a fifty pound note.”

The audience applaud once more as the performer takes a bow but then stops everyone and says
“John, I feel that despite the fact that you have won you probably feel a little hard done by, so as I am
a gentleman I would like to offer you one last bet, you can keep the five pounds or exchange it for the
contents of my wallet which I promise you contains money. Would you like to gamble?”
John decides not to gamble and as a result misses out on the five fifty pound notes in your wallet.

Method
This is a routine that I have used for the last three or four years, it has seen a few methods and changes.
I love the bank night theme, there are some wonderful approaches out there, what I wanted to create was a
slightly different dynamic in that the participant actually wins and is successful in what I ask them to do.
I also wanted multiple phases and a nice strong climax, the type you may have after watching Belladonna.

The method that I present to you is quite simply that all of the envelopes do actually contain the five pound
notes as well as the ten, twenty and fifty pound notes. This can be achieved a few ways, my first method
was double envelopes but I wanted a hands off feel when the notes are removed. To achieve this I use a
technique that is used by the great Gary Kurtz in his wonderful chair routine which is very hard to get but
is well worth it. The principle is so simple yet so effective, it may exist prior to Gary Kurtz’s but at the

05
time of writing these notes I have not been able to find a prior creator. All you will need to do is to place a
five pound note in one end of the envelope, it is lodge in place with a dab of magicians wax or re-positional
glue. You do exactly the same thing at the other end but with a ten pound note, (the illustrations clearly
indicate this). I should point out that the envelope size I use is a UK envelope size reference DL, for
international readers it is an envelope where a standard letter is folded three times to fit inside. I use it as
it enables the tearing procedure to look casual and it is also the most common type of envelope. The notes
themselves are folded into small rectangles There is no
real rule to the actual size but as a guideline mine are
folded into quarters. Each envelope has a five pound note
at one end and one of the higher denominations at the
other. In regards to the set up of each envelope I have my
first envelope with a ten pound note, the second with a
twenty pound note, the third has two twenty pound notes
folded together and the forth has a fifty pound note. In
order to open the envelopes in a dramatically theatrical
way, it is preferable to open the lower denomination envelope first and work upwards, in order to achieve
this each envelope is marked with a number 1, 2, 3 & 4, you really do not need to be worried about the
marks as no one really examines the envelopes. If John were to choose envelope 1, you open the other
envelopes in order 2, 3 & 4. If he chooses envelope 3 you then open the other envelopes in order 1, 2 & 4.

Opening each envelope is something that must be done

casually, but remember the main envelope apparently of
importance is the one John chooses as his final choice, all you
need to do is to orientate the envelope so that when you rip the
‘top’ off you are getting rid of the secret note. It should also be
mentioned that when you tear the ‘top’ off of the envelope you
should have the flap side facing you. If you imagine seeing this
from the audiences point of view everything looks innocent as
they have a blank side facing them each and every time an
envelope is opened, by keeping the flap side towards you they
have no registration mark, but you do which is important.
I I know that if the flap is to the right and I rip the top off it will
leave my higher denomination notes behind, if the flap is
pointing towards the left it be the five pound note left behind.
In regards to the wax or re-positional glue which holds each
note in place you really do not want to use too much, when they
reach inside and extract the five pound note it should be easily
pulled free, this is hard to explain in words and it is recommended that you have a play with this. When
you open the other three envelopes to show what John missed out on you simply repeat the ripping action
but what I like to do is to pull the note out and flash the inside of the envelope. I did originally have other
spectators remove the other notes but this takes time and ruins the flow of the routine. The final phase is
simply a time honoured classic, the legendary Himber wallet, I added this two years ago as it created a nice
third phase and almost an encore, on one side of the Himber you have a one dollar bill and on the other two
hundred and fifty pounds. I really love it when they do not gamble as the stage picture is wonderful as you
thumb through all of the money they could have won. Finally you do not need to be a stage performer to
do this effect, typically I will have this set up in my case just incase I have the opportunity to do something
special, it packs small and plays big. I hope you get the chance to do this and ultimately enjoy it.

06
 A Point of View
Cards & Mentalism
A debate that rages on across the world wide web within little magic forums where people hide behind
fake avatars and odd names is that of the use of playing cards in mentalism. I have a simple rule and that is
‘almost’ everything with moderation, kind of like watching porn or going on a diet. I think as with
anything introduced into a mentalism set, playing cards, ESP cards, dice, envelopes or wallets, they have
to be innocent in appearance and ‘apparently’ regular. I also think that playing cards are far more innocent
in appearance than odd designs that most people have never seen before. As long as you establish fairness
and a hands off approach with minimal ‘moves’ then playing cards are as strong as anything else. One of
the strongest routines that has stood the test of time is the ‘Invisible Deck’ but when you think about it,
it breaks all of the rules which seem to be desirable, it is a deck of cards, they are gaffed, they cannot be
examined and it is not hands off, yet I have seen this piece beautifully presented by my good friend and
colleague ‘The Grey Man’ aka Philip Escoffey, his presentation is beautiful.

I present a memorised deck in my act which is incredibly strong, I also present a thought of card that is so
simple yet so effective. I do everything I can to establish fairness and separate a mental demonstration from
a more magical demonstration. What will ultimately determine what an audience believes you are doing is
YOU, not cards or the latest mental miracle. (see ‘Who are you really’). David Blaine on his second special
‘Magic Man’ performed sponge balls, despite this I still met people at gigs who would say “He doesn’t do
tricks does he.. he has some kind of weird gift.” It wasn’t what he did or didn’t use that created interest or
the public perception, it was David himself.

Finally I have to mention Chan Canasta, a master and pioneer of card mentalism, human influence,
apparent persuasion and mind control techniques. Mr Canasta flew quite close to the sun at times by saying
he could make people take the cards he wanted them to have, we all knew what he meant but to the public
it was interperated as some strange persuasion technique, Mr Canasta used cards often and created a
sensation. Finally trust me on this, people will think you are doing ‘tricks’ by the old gags, tacky bow tie or
ill fitting glitter suit you are wearing before a deck of cards is introduced.

Mixing Magic & Mentalism

This is another area which is debated time and time again. I will not dwell to long on it as we have much
to get through, I will give you my perspective at the time of writing. I perform magic and mentalism in my
close up performances, the magic I perform has to be ‘edgy’ whether it is a strange location of a card, a
coin changing from new to old or a deck of cards cutting itself slowly to reveal a selection. My persona is
that of someone who could cheat you at cards, could materialise a card on the other side of a window but
equally could bend metal by gentle stroking it as well as tell you your first love. I do not do rope tricks, I
do not use sponge balls or make coins jump from one hand to the other, that is not to say any of these are
bad, they just do not suit me. Luckily for me I have the appearance of a ‘dodgy’ character or someone who
looks a little like they may worship Lucifer himself, I don’t but my appearance helps me sell my weird
demonstrations. I do not sell myself as a psychological illusionist as that would count out metal bending,

07
geek magic, gambling demonstrations and all of the other weird and wacky things I love, also Derren
Brown and Marc Salem do it better than anyone else I have seen. If you are a psychological illusionist then
your choice of material is crucial as is your appearance, background, by that I mean your character story.
There are some magicians who just openly perform magic and mental magic which again is fine, my good
friend Nicholas Einhorn is a wonderful performer and mixes both well as does Nigel Mead who is a great
entertainer and makes me laugh with his very dry sense of humor. Ultimately being entertaining is the most
important thing, whether that is by being a little weird, hilariously funny or seemingly well educated that is
your choice. Can you successfully mix magic and mentalism and still have a believable premise which
creates an impact? ask David Blaine, David Berglas, Richard Osterlind, Dunninger etc. Finally another
reason why I mix mentalism and magic is that not all environments are good for mentalism, I cannot tell
you how many times I turn up at an event and put a lot of the deep mentalism that requires a lot of
audience attention and interaction to one side as the noise levels are not suitable, the guests have had a
little to much alcohol or a more visual performance is better suited.

I think that like any art, be it music, film, theatre, abstract or fine art, magic and mentalism should have
no ‘rules’ by creating dead set rules we can restrict it’s evolution and growth. The other side of the coin
is to transform a magic effect into a mentalism effect, I have done this countless times as for me magic is
too good to ignore or belittle which some mentalists do. They can work together both in performance and
within the creation process, if you are exclusively a ‘mind reader’ remember to pay your respects to
‘magic’ there is nothing wrong with a beautiful mystery be it a delightful deception or a mental
masterpiece, done well they are both beautiful forms of entertainment.

Disclaimers
I met the great Larry Becker back in 1999 in London, my discussion with Larry focused on many elements
that only someone like Larry could provide the answers to for a young mind thief and cheese addict, such
as what do you do when it goes wrong, what is the worst thing that has happened to you etc.
We discussed disclaimers and Larry mentioned the now very popular ‘Using the five known senses to
create the illusion of a sixth.’ I never liked this disclaimer as I want my audiences to question what they
have seen, I want them to come to their own conclusions, again to me it is important that they are
entertained, whether they conclude they have seen tricks, genuine paranormal ability or a master of
psychological persuasion, I am not bothered. I know one thing for sure and that is no matter how
amazing you are, some will always say it was a trick whilst others will say you have a gift even if you tell
them you do not. My view is that if I watch a film or a play I do not need the lead actor to come out at the
start and say “Just so you guys know, I’m not really Jesus Christ.” I apply the same in my performances,
I do my thing, make no claims or disclaimers and hopefully leave them entertained, if someone approached
me and said that my performance had made them rethink about joining a cult I would set them straight but
fortunately ‘most’ of my audiences have more than one brain cell and as yet I have not had to resort to such
in depth discussions.
This is all personal choice and my friend Marc Salem uses a disclaimer and does one hell of a show, it fits
his style and as we discussed driving through London whilst blindfolded on his last visit here it is up to
each individual performer and what they wish to create for their audiences. The ever popular
psychological illusionist approach does require a disclaimer, as that is what you are claiming anyway,
psychological techniques to create what would seem impossible. I prefer to be vague about what I am
doing, one moment it could be a trick, the next a psychological ploy and the next my Jedi mind power.

08
 Orifice
No! Not that one!
WARNING! If you decide to do this effect you do so at your own risk. This effect is not for everyone,
in fact I don’t think this will be for you, I present it to you as an alternative to a mentalism effect or a slick
piece of magic. It shouldn’t be performed at every gig nor will everyone enjoy it, some will be offended.

Effect
The weird guy hands a small bag to a participant and asks her to open it, she immediately responds by
saying she is not interested in buying any of his drugs. The weird guy says “You will find that the bag
contains small beads, please take out three of them.” She does so. The performer shows his hands empty
and rolls up the sleeves of his cheap jumper which his Mum brought him for Christmas, he then takes the
three beads in his left hand. The audience wait with baited breath, either that or they think this guy is nuts.
The weird guy licks his right finger and lubricates his right nostril, he then grabs a single bead and snorts
it up into his nasal cavity. He does the same with the next bead but this time into his left nostril, finally he
takes the last bead and wedges it into his ear. He prepares the audience for something a little strange and
starts to sniff. After a little contorting he produces a bead at his lips and lets it drop to the floor, he does the
same with the other bead placed into the second nasal cavity. Finally he pushes his finger into his ear and
asks someone to feel the last bead under the skin near his ear, he then pushes it along the surface of his face
until it emerges from his eye socket to conclude a truly disturbing piece of gross.

History
I have seen the Legendary Penn & Teller do a bean from the eye socket and I have seen Tom Mullica do
his beans in the orifices. Both effects where right up my street and thus I stand on their shoulders with this
piece. It has served me well but I do not use it all the time, the real skill is knowing when to perform it.

Method
This routine is a sort of one ahead, I’ll explain fully in a moment. The climax of the routine is when you
extract the final bead from your eye. There is no easy way to explain this other than that you simply have
to lodge a bead into your eye socket before the performance, this this is not an effect for every table or
group of people. If you hate touching your eyes you wont be able to do this, if you feel uncomfortable
about sticking things in your eyes you will not be
able to do this, if your eyes are painted on like a
dolly you will not be able to do this. Lets cover
the one ahead principle used here. In your eye you
have the climax bead, you have the three beads
in your left hand. As you apparently take a single
bead you really take two as in the illustration. The
audience should not be able to see inside your left
hand so cup it slightly and the right hand fingers
hide the extra bead.
(The illustration shows an exposed view).

09
You pop ‘the bead’ (really two) into your mouth to lubricate it and then remove a single bead, thus you will
secretly have one bead in your mouth which can easily be lodged in your cheek area. Put the lubricated
bead back into your left hand with the other two (really one) again keep your hand cupped to avoid anyone
seeing inside your left hand. Now you lick your finger and lubricate your nostril, immediately reach back
into your left hand and apparently take the just lubricated bead, but really you take nothing. I display the
bead but really show nothing, just do it in a casual manner and your audience will fill in the blanks. Snort
and sniff the apparent bead up into your nasal cavity for all it’s worth, a point to be made is that this should
look difficult, fumble with the imaginary bead. You do exactly the same thing with the next bead
apparently sniffing it into the other nostril. Note: This may read as complicated but with beads in hand it
will become clear. The final bead is a slightly different story, when I do it I pop it into my mouth to
lubricate it but actually swallow it, I then take nothing from my mouth, display the imaginary bead and
then wedge it into my ear. At this point I get someone to feel the bead under my skin, in reality all they are
feeling is a natural bump I have near my ears but it sells the illusion further. I then reveal the two beads in
my mouth one after the other which have apparently worked their way from my nasal cavities.
The last bead is apparently pushed from my ear, under the surface of my skin towards my eye, at this point
I pause as everyone watching realizes something gross is going to happen. I then proceed to push the bead
out for all to see and throw up at. There you have it, it isn’t pretty, it isn’t for everyone but all I can say is
that I have received some huge reactions from this.

Before we wrap up this effect let me try to explain how I put the bean into my eye, to be honest I have
done it so many times I can pop it into my eye in a crowded room in a second, which I have done. I have
also shoved a bead into my eye socket as I was being dragged to a group of people the host wanted to
witness this oddity. The beads I use should also be discussed, I originally used Balti Beans but on one
occasion the skin came off and got wedged deep in my eye socket, so I went over to beads instead.
The beads I use are right for my eye socket shape and size, they may not work for you. I purchase them
from a fabric shop and they are not necklace beads but beads that are sewn onto garments as decoration.
They measure about 5mm in diameter, I wouldn’t go much smaller than that as you will find it hard to pop
it out of your eye which looks odd and clumsy. A chrome bead looks great by the way.

To put the bead in your eye is pretty much as you

would imagine but for the sake of explanation,
pull your lower eye lid down creating a pocket,
pop the bead in place and then lift the lid up and
over which should lodge the bead in place. I have
tried to teach my great friend Peter Nardi how to
do this as he loves the routine but he simply can’t
do it. Originally when I started doing this I had
a little compact mirror in my pocket so I could
see what I was doing, this was useful as I could
also use it for drugs as well. Joking Mum! Keep
the beads clean and don’t put one in your eye if it
has dropped on the floor at the Soho Street Hotel
which is renowned for having a stream of urine on
the gents floor. I hope you DON’T do this but if
you do, you do so at your own risk. Enjoy..

10
 Tribute to TA
A card by chance, a card by choice
T.A. Waters was a genius. I have only a few regrets in life such as not listening to my Mum about not
trying to iron my shirt whilst it was still in the washing machine, attending Peter Nardi’s naked dogging
birthday bash on a slip road off of the M20, eating a curry pot noodle prior to my yoga class and missing
T.A. Waters last lecture in the UK before his passing.

This routine is heavily inspired by Mr Waters, it is something I have played around with many times and
have adapted in various ways. I am in good company as Derren Brown also has a similar premise on his
Devils Picture Book Video.

Effect
The performer explains that some choices are made unwittingly, randomly if you like, whilst others are
made with concerted thought. To demonstrate this the performer has a deck of cards thoroughly shuffled
and confirmed as being regular. “Mike I would like you to have a card in mind but I want it to be
completely random, a card that you yourself do not at this time know. Please just say stop as I riffle
through the cards.” Mike calls stop, “Please take a look at the card and create an image in your mind
which will make that thought stronger.” The performer turns to Tessa and says “Tessa you have
wonderful breasts and lips that could suck the paint off of a wall that was last painted in 1963, apart
from that Tessa would you please just create a card in your mind, it can be any of the 52 cards.” Tessa
wipes the paint from her lips and acknowledges she has indeed got a card.

The performer looks intently at Tessa and says “Technically it is slightly easier for me to get your card
as there are certain cards that women will go for more than others.” The performer places a card on the
table face down and say’s “I am quite confident. Tessa what card came to mind?” Tessa replies that it was
the six of hearts. The performer replies “I’m not spot on but hopefully you will see it as being close.” The
performer turns back to Mike and explains that his card is more difficult as it was not a conscious decision
but a random thought with no personal effort. The performer asks Mike to think of the colour first, then
to imagine the colour changing into a suit, finally visualize either a number or a letter slowly coming into
focus next to the coloured shape. The performer spreads through the cards and up jogs a card unseen by the
two spectators, he pauses, scratches his chin and then changes his mind to another card which he takes out
as he tables the rest of the deck and picks up the first card put down. “Tessa, I wasn’t spot on but
hopefully you’ll agree this was close, what was your card again?” Tessa replies “The six of hearts.”
The performer turns the card over and it is the six of diamonds. “Mike your card was?”
Mike answers “The four of clubs.” The performer looks genuinely surprised and says “I really didn’t
think I would have a direct hit.” as he turns the card over and it is the four of clubs.

Method
This may seem obvious to some but I urge you to read through the effect as there are some very nice
subtleties that disguise the modus operandi. This effect is totally impromptu, no set up whatsoever,
everything is direct, simple and effective. That to me makes it of value, I hope you will agree.

11
This routine uses a subtle use of the one ahead which even the initiated layman would have trouble back
tracking. Let’s start at the beginning, there are two ways to approach the first card which Mike chose at
random, when I started doing this effect, as the deck was handed back to me I would spot the bottom card
and force it via a simple riffle force but now I tend to keep the selection fair but peek it after. There are
many ways to do this, the simplest being to double undercut the card to the bottom and peeking it as the
cards are tabled, you could also do an under spread control which will control the card to the bottom with
no cuts, again it can be peeked as the cards are tabled. I do a one handed peek as the cards are given to
Mike to shuffle after he has seen a card.

So now I am in the situation where I know what card Mike has got in mind, I then ask Tessa to just think of
a card which is exactly what she does. I go on about her card being slightly easier which makes sense but is
obviously not the case, I also emphasize that Mikes card will be difficult as it was not a conscious choice,
which again is all nonsense but again it makes sense to them which is important.

I go through the cards a few times, frowning and looking like a need the toilet and finally settle on a card
that I place face down on the table. Really this is Mikes card, I ask Tessa what card she thought of as I act
quite confident. Once she tell me I mention I was not spot on but hopefully close enough. I know turn to
Mike and get him to go through some visualization techniques (remember his card is more difficult) I then
go through the deck and look for the near miss to Tessa’s card in this case the six of diamonds, I like to
change my mind for no other reason than to add a layer to the process, another hurdle for my audience if
you will. All that is required now is to reveal the cards, but before that I switch the cards VERY OPENLY.
It isn’t a technique whereas more of a timing thing as I reiterate what has taken place, I am also turning
back and forth from Tessa to Mike and back again which is a larger motion which helps hide the very
simple switch which is best described as a top change with only two cards held vertically.

I reveal Tessa’s card first after asking her to name it again as if I wasn’t bothered last time, then I ask Mike
what card he had in mind, I act genuinely surprised at the direct hit and will sometimes mention the other
card I out jogged which again cements the idea that at that moment I was looking for Mikes card and not
Tessa’s which is what I was really doing. With the subtleties described used in a very natural manner it
really is convincing, I have had quite a few knowledgeable performers with this, with their cards late at
night in some hotel bar. It also plays well for a lay audience as it is very direct.

I should point out you can have two direct hits but I like the dynamic of being off by one and getting the
other spot on, I think it makes the one ahead more deceptive and I use the same principle in most one
ahead routines. You can also have a direct hit with Tessa’s card but a near miss with Mikes instead but
again I like the notion that once I know Tessa’s card it would make no sense not to find it which is what I
do and therefore adds an additional hurdle.

I should point out that T.A. Waters routine used a duplicate that added a subtlety, he also finished with a
mote turnover move which I wanted to avoid as it happens at a crucial moment whereas my switch
happens on the off beat as I discuss the process, near miss and direct it with my participants.
Derren’s routine uses an X card and a table switch which is beautiful.

Finally I would occasionally ask the person thinking of a card if her card was a red card, a heart, a picture
card, the Queen of hearts before I put a card on the table as you may hit which looks great and all you do
now is reveal Mikes card. If Tessa says “No” at any point I simple say “Good, that card is to obvious.”

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 Road Kill
The Terror Of Mr Fable
A No Chance Routine
This routine is another that may read as horrific, I present this to you as an example of how reactions to an
effect can be totally enhanced easily and dynamically simply by adjusting the theme.

Effect
The performer has six cups positioned on a table, each one is numbered one to six. A participant in this
case Sergio is selected from the audience and welcomed on stage to assist in a game of chance. Three dice
are handed to Sergio as the performer say “Sergio, I would like you to roll the dice a few times to see that
they roll different numbers each time as I explain what the nature of the game is.” Sergio begins to roll
the dice on the table in his sexy Italian way. “Ladies and gentlemen what will take place here is a game of
chance, you nor I shall make any decisions it will be left to complete chance. Sergio, as you can see we
have six numbered cups on the table, under one of these cups is something that is precious to me, to say I
value it is an understatement I love it, it has sentimental value.” The performer brings forward a wooden
mallet and places it to the side of the cups.

“Sergio in a moment I will have you roll the 3 dice, naturally numbers will be on the top of each dice, I
will then ask you to nominate one of those numbers, which ever number you choose you will take this
hammer and flatten the corresponding cup. Please roll the dice now.” Sergio rolls 3, 2 & 6 and decides to
eliminate number 2, the performer hands him the mallet and says “Please eliminate cup number 2.”
Sergio flattens the cup. The process is continued until one cup remains. “So we are left with cup number
4, I think it is safe to say that we have come to this stage purely by chance, you could have rolled differ-
ent numbers and indeed nominated different numbers.” Sergio agrees that everything was fair and above
board. “Luckily the thing that is precious to me has survived this ordeal.” The performer carefully lifts the
final cup and says “Please let me introduce you all to Mr Fable, my pet hamster.” The look of sheer
disbelief is cast on everyone’s faces as they applaud a near road kill. Sergio is given the dice as a souvenir.

Method
In 2006 Peter Nardi and I released ‘No Chance’ via our company Inner Mind Productions, it was our
adaptation and routines for the ‘No Chance Die’ also known as the just chance die. I love the premise as
everything seems so random, no control, no choice, only chance. What Peter and I added to the premise
was to incorporate more dice as the original process used only one die, this can present a problem. The die
itself is mis-numbered in that it does not have a number 4 but has the number 3 on opposite sides. In the
one die version you can get stuck on the last two items, as one number doesn’t exist (4) and the other num-
ber has a one in six chance of turning up, this can look messy as you wait for the last number to turn up,
also it can seem strange that the repeated number (3) keeps showing up (as it is printed twice on the die.)
By adding two additional dice the process is speeded up and also adds more byplay.
If the numbers 1, 2 & 3 show up you can say “Please choose any of the numbers that are displayed.” or
“Please choose two of the numbers shown.” The odds of the final number required to show up is also
speeded up, thus avoiding that awkward “and roll again.” situation that can come up. The dice can be used
in many ways, as a utility within a bigger routine or as the main routine as described above. On the ‘No
Chance’ DVD we discuss six different routines, this one not being one of them. Let me discuss with you

13
how ‘Road Kill’ came about. I was booked to do a trade show exhibition in Belgium in 2006, the client
wanted a giveaway that could have a message but most importantly of all they wanted a performance that
would have EVERYONE talking around the exhibition center.

I had the dice manufactured with the company logo and also with regular pips and ‘No Chance’ pips.
As money was not an object I was also able to have three ‘force’ die variations made up as well so that if
people came by the stand again they would see a different outcome which would strengthen the effect.

The hamster ‘Mr Fables’ was real, I actually had 3 Mr Fables just incase one turned into a diva and wanted
more money. Also the little fur balls had a sufficient break from being under the cup, I should point out
that I did a show on the hour throughout the day. It makes no sense to move the cups around as they are all
clearly numbered, so the cups were actually stuck in place with sticky tape so that the other cups didn’t
move when one was eliminated and Mr Fables couldn’t move the cup he was under.

In order for Sergio to keep the dice I performed a very bold switch that went undetected. It will read as
though it couldn’t be deceptive but anyone who has seen ‘Blizzard’ will know it works. On the table is a
die shaker as used in casinos around the world, under the cup are the regular dice. The cup is never used as
I say “We wont use the shaker, just cup you hands together and shake the dice.”
At the conclusion of the routine I place the ‘No Chance’ dice by the side of the cup, maybe an inch away,
as I go over what has taken place I turn to Sergio and say “Would you agree that all was fair and by
chance?” Just as Sergio answers I lift the shaker off of the hidden dice and place it over the ‘No Chance’
dice in one quick motion, it is not rushed, nor do I look down at the table, I just do it. No one at this point
is interested in the dice, they are focused on Sergio as he answers and also what is under the last cup.
Trust me this works but you have to do it like you don’t care, if you don’t draw attention to it no one will
be drawn to it. You can of course do this effect with an expensive Rolex watch, or something of equal
value, you could also borrow an item and put it under the cups as they are shielded by a piece of board. I
use Mr Fable as it has that shock value I love so much.

Combination
Another No Chance Routine

Effect
The performer introduces a game of chance that will involve a potential prize of £10,000 in cash. Taking
his wallet out of his pocket he removes six index cards, each one has a six digit number on it.
“Please Muhammad would you take these cards, turn them number side down and give them a good
mix.” He takes the cards and does as requested. “Hand me anyone of the cards which we will number 1.”
Muhammad passes a card which is numbered, the process is repeated with all six cards, creating a ran-
dom situation. “The six digits on the other side of each card is actually a combination number, five of
them are bogus but one will unlock this briefcase.” The performer points to a briefcase on the stage. “I
will give five of you a chance to choose a combination in a moment, which ever one is left will be mine.
Whoever successfully opens the briefcase will keep the contents, now that could be something

14
valuable or it could be something quite repulsive. I will tell you this, whatever is in the briefcase is no
longer living.” The performer invites five participants up on stage who each in turn take a roll of some
dice, each participant gets to choose one of the remaining cards showing a number they have thrown.
Once all five have a card they each approach the briefcase and try the combination number which is on
their cards. None of the combinations work as the performer says “As I said the one card left would be
mine, I would like someone else to enter my combination.” The performer points to a lady and asks her to
enter the remaining combination which proves to open the briefcase, inside of which is £10,000 in cash.

Method
Obviously the main process is with the No Chance dice. This routine is actually on the No Chance DVD
but with a change that Peter and I discussed literally the day after filming. The extra subtlety I present here
is from that discussion. The cards are not numbered to start with as on the DVD, instead they are numbered
at the beginning in an apparently random order, however they are not. As Muhammad hands you each card
you number each one fairly until you come across the combination card you have marked ahead of time
with a simple pencil dot, whenever this card is handed to you, you number it as number 4 which is the
missing number on the No Chance dice, you number the remaining cards fairly. It is a small subtlety but it
creates an additional hurdle which can only make the effect stronger.

You do not need to have £10,000 in cash to do this either, you don’t even require any genuine cash. As I
explain on the DVD you can scan money into a computer, however on a PC there are some security
features that will block money from being scanned, I worked on a Mac which does not have this issue.
My friend Looch uses a PC and has told me that Photoshop can easily get around this issue. Once you have
your scanned notes printed off, get some money bands available at any bank and cut the band so that it is
a single strip. Take your fake £50 and stick the band in place so that the £1000 shows, once you have ten
of these you stick them to a piece of foam, polystyrene or board and wedge it into the briefcase so that it
looks like rows of money. The money should obviously look raised in the case.

This display is very convincing and looks great on stage. It is a strong piece of mentalism, I hope you give
it a try as it has served me well, also people love money and lots of it.

The No Chance dice are great for so many routines, these are just the tip of the iceberg, Max Maven has a
lovely piece on his ‘Nothing’ DVD which utilizes the freebies from a hotel room.

Hurdles
Distractions from the truth

I have mentioned hurdles throughout this book so it maybe worth elaborating on them. Hurdles to me are
elements or moments of process within a routine that will do two things, one the hurdle should enhance the
routines presentation, two, it should distract from the true method, in some way creating an alternate path
or paths that the viewer will wander down. A hurdle could be simply getting something wrong prior to a
success, it could be having a participant shake their clenched fist which holds a number of coins three times
before you write your prediction. Whatever routine you are doing, working on or learning think about

15
adding a hurdle or even hurdles to make the real method even more invisible and deceptive. I have a
moment in a routine where I go to choose a person to participate but then pause and ask them if they have a
phobia, whatever they answer I say “This probably wouldn’t be successful with you, but I will use you in
a moment.” I then choose someone else. This means nothing, but it creates a moment where the
audience will put importance to the question and if the question seems relevant then it distracts from the
fact that I am using a thumb writer or a special book. I like hurdles as they can be as outlandish as you like,
I have in the past asked people if they would pass wind in public even if they knew it would be loud. Inside
I am laughing my head off but I put all conviction into the question like the success of the demonstration
depends on it,

TA Rides Again
A word by chance, a word by choice
I previously explained my handing of a card effect that was inspired by the late great T.A. Waters. I want
to briefly discuss how the same technique can be employed with an impromptu book test. I doubt I am
the first to think of this, in fact I know I am not as Richard Busch has a similar ploy in his excellent book
which I re-read all the time ‘Peek Performances’

Instead of using cards you will in this case use a borrowed book. The first phase where you need to know
what your participant has chosen at random can be achieved a number of ways. I tend to use two methods,
one being Marc Paul’s excellent AAA book test which can be found in his Mind 2 Mind lecture notes or
on his Mind 2 Mind DVD which is not mentioned half as much as it should be as it is very good. The other
way is to force the page using a finger break or a piece of card or a coin inserted into the the force pages.
I use Richard Busch’s force which is described in Peek Performances.. Get it..

Once you know the word one person has chosen at random you ask the other person to merely think of a
book, it can be a real book or one that they have made up on the spot, you also ask them to imagine the
genre of the book, thriller, real crime, romance, horror, fantasy etc. Once they have a book ask them to
visualize flicking through the pages until they stop at a page, ask them to look down the page and stop on a
line, next they will scan across the line to a single word and then lock that word in their mind.

All you do now is to pretend to write their word down on a business card when in reality you are writing
down the word you know the other participant is thinking of. Do exactly as before by placing this card
down and asking them what word they saw. Now you turn to the first participant and ask them to think of
the word they are thinking of and write down the other persons word. You know have two words written
down that are either spot on or incredibly close, I still switch the cards as in ‘A Tribute to T.A.’ and display
the words I wrote down. This is a simple routine but oh so very strong when presented well.

You could of course use a Larry Becker Ultimate Flashback to gain the first piece of information and then
continue as described. The principle may exist prior to T.A. Waters Mind Myth & Magick but that is my
earliest resource to date. I hope you try this to realize it’s potential, it can be used in so many other ways
and I am sure it will not be the last time I use it.

16
 Progressive Improbability
A Multi Phase Effect
This has been the staple effect that I have performed at The Magic Circle in London for the last three years.
It is both deceptive, interactive, progressively theatrical and ends with a climax which may cause witnesses
to join your cult or religion.

Effect
A deck of cards is shuffled and spread across a table to display a random assortment of 52 different images.
The performer approaches a participant and asks them to cut a small batch of cards off of the top of the
deck. This is repeated with three more participants, all four participants are asked to look at the card they
have cut to but to show no one else. The performer approaches a participant and says “Some people think
this is achieved with psychology, let’s see how that might look. I will say each one of the four possibly
suits you could be thinking of, as I do you will say yes after each one, I will attempt to see whether I can
tell by your verbal answers when you are saying yes to the actual suit you have in mind.” The performer
pauses and the says the four suits, after each one the participant says “Yes”. “Good you did very well, what
I will do now is say each of the values, starting with ace and going through to the King, again each time
say yes.” The participant answers yes after each value is mentioned. “Again well done, I don’t know if you
currently play cards or lie to your wife but you should start as you can keep a straight face, however I do
believe your thought of card is the three of hearts, if that is correct please show everyone the card you
where thinking of.” The participant shows that they did indeed visualize the three of hearts.

“Some think I can tell purely by eye movement alone, let’s see how that would look.” The performer
asks the next participant to merely think of the suits and the the values but to look deep into the performers
eyes. “It is another red card, a diamond this time, a high value but not a picture card, you have the ten
of diamonds in mind right now don’t you.” The participant displays the card to be exactly that.

“Some say I do not even need to look or hear you, some say all I have to do is touch you and then your
thought is mine, let’s see how that would look.” The performer asks the participant to hold their hand up
with an open palm, he then makes contact with his hand. “This is a black card, a spade, either the five or
seven, I know it is definitely an odd value. I will say it is the seven of spades.” The participant gasps as
the card is shown to be correct.

“Some say that I know what you will do before you even do it, sometimes before we even meet, let us
see how this would look.” The performer asks the remaining participant to join him, when they stand by
the side of him he says “Please place your hand into my jacket pocket but do not remove what you find
there.” The participant slowly puts their hand into his jacket pocket. “Please show everyone the card you
selected.” The participant displays the King of Hearts. “Now please remove what is inside my pocket and
show everyone.” The participant removes a single playing card with an odd back design which is the King
of Diamonds. “I guess that’s what it would look like if I could do that.”

Method
I love this routine as it has many phases and gets progressively more impossible, from the possible

17
use of advanced body reading skills to the apparent ability to read just the eyes to then merely make
contact in order to receive a thought to finally predict in advance that, that could not be predicted. It builds
naturally and ends with a kicker, it also means that instead of being an anti climax as each card is revealed
four times one after the other, the impossibility factor is increased. The audience will at first think ‘I have
heard of this technique.’ Then after the next phase ‘I think I have heard of this technique.’ to the third
phase where they scratch their heads to the final phase where they have to admit defeat and applaud.

For this effect you will need to do a little work, but don’t see that as a bad thing. That, that takes effort we
cherish and respect Ivana Humalot - Russian Poet. I use my marked deck system which is both easy to
do, it will take you about 45 minutes if that, it is easy to read and once you have done it you will have a
powerful utility device that will last for years. I originally explained this back in 2004 on my four DVD set
The Chapters of Marc Spelmann, it has changed since then and is easier to read with less eye movement
which I will explain about in a moment.

This deck however is marked in a one behind way, what you need to do is either shuffle a deck of cards
into a random order or if you use a stack such as Osterlinds Break Through Card System, The Aronson
Stack or Juan’s Mnemonica system that is fine. The way you mark the cards is important, it will read as
strange but when you do this it will become clear. Take a look at the bottom card of the stack and make a
note of it, you will now mark the TOP card of the deck with the identity of the bottom card. Place the top
card face up to one side as you look at it’s identity, mark the new TOP card of the deck with the value of
the card you just placed face up to one side. Take the card you just marked on top of the deck and again
place this face up on the other face up card. You repeat this through the entire deck marking the top card
with the identity of the card that was before it. Eventually you will have done the entire deck which will be
in the correct order for your stack or random looking deck.

The reason you have done this is for the simply reason that if someone cuts a portion of cards off of the top
and you look at the back of the card still in your hand it will be marked with the previous cards identity, ie
the card they have cut to which is their hands. I love this principle as you are not looking for a mark on the
‘target’ card or card in action, you are looking for a mark on n unimportant card.

When I do this I even say “By cutting to a card I do not see the face or the back so even if the cards were
marked it wouldn’t help.” I know that maybe too much for some of you but when I performed this at The
Magic Circle they did sell ‘special marked cards’ as a gift to the guests thus I wanted to eliminate this
thought. So hopefully you understand the deck premise we will look at my marking system in a moment.

The routine itself has multiple people cutting portions, if you imagine a line of people in our example we
will call them A, B, C & D. You start with A who cuts some cards off, the same with B,C & D. If you look
at the back of the card in your hand it will tell you what card D has cut to, so you reveal them in reverse
naming D’s card first, D then replaces his cards back onto your pile, if you look at the back of the new top
card it will tell you what card C has cut to, once C’s cards are replaced you look at the back of the new top
card and it will tell you what card B has cut to etc. I hope that makes sense.

In regards to the revelations I didn’t want to reveal each card in the same fashion, this would be repetitive
and frankly a bore to watch, so I decided that each card revelation would need to seem more impressive
than the last, all I needed now was a frame to hang those different revelations in as I wanted it to make
sense that I was revealing the cards differently. I decided to make the first revelation psychological as

18
this would be believable, also with the current trend with NLP, body language reading and verbal tells this
would seem impressive but something some of the audience maybe aware of. The second revelation would
be more difficult as it is myself who is saying each element but this time the participant is just thinking the
answers, again some would see this as an advanced skill with being able to read someone’s micro reactions
and or rapid eye movement.

The third card revelation seems to exceed the possibility of psychology as it is only by making contact that
the card is revealed, and finally the idea that you could predict ahead of time a single card out of 52 really
eliminates a psychological explanation.

Whilst we are on the subject of the last card and how could you know which card the first person would
take, well it is simple, the card below it is cut short so it acts like a svengali card, all you do is obtain a
break above this short card by riffling up the back of the deck. When you approach your first participant
you simply say “I am going to have a few people take part in this demonstration so I need you to take a
few cards, please say stop.”

What you are doing here is the classic riffle force, I don’t go on about it I just do it. You may think that
someone might think that it would be a weak moment, but if you think about how fair the riffle force can
be it works. I presented this at my lecture in Ipswich and a knowledgeable magician who was the actual
person who had the card forced on them later asked me how I knew what card he would cut to, in other
words there was so much timed misdirection even he had forgotten that I forced the card and he actually
didn’t cut the cards himself as the others had done. I should say remember to put the odd backed duplicate
in your pocket, I know that again sounds obvious but I forgot once and had to improvise. Not pretty.

Peeking the marks is an important element to this effect as you will peek three times, how can this be done
deceptively? Easy by changing each peek so that no two moments are the same. The first time I peek I say
“Even if the cards were marked (I look down and peek) I cannot see the back of the card you have nor
the face.”

The next peek is achieved by apparently being extra fair, I say “This time please take a look at you card but
make sure no one can see, I even turn away myself.” As I do I peek the mark. The third peek happens on
the off beat as I say “Remember you cut the cards so if you had cut a few more cards it would be a
different thought in your mind right now.” As I say “you cut the cards” I casually lift a few cards off of
the top of the deck and peek in the process. Trust me no one knows, no one see’s and because of the one
behind marking, no one suspects.

Please do not pass by this routine, again it packs small but plays big, it involves numerous participants, is
progressively more impressive and fits into a pocket. Also this deck can be used for other effects such as a
single cut to card, it is a utility device that can be used for some wonderful hands off effects which is ideal
for mentalism with cards.

The last thing I have to say is whenever you do mentalism with cards try to keep saying “You are merely
thinking of this card.” or “I am dealing with a thought that is one in fifty two.” If you keep saying this it
will enforce this as being the process, thus when they reiterate what took place they are more likely to say
they were thinking of a card which as you know is better than them saying “I took a card.” anything that
increases the impossibility factor should always be employed.

19
 Marked The Sequel
My Second Marked Deck
I will briefly explain my marking system for a deck of cards, these are slightly easier to read and a little
different than the ones explained on my fourth DVD in ‘The Chapters Of Marc Spelmann’ DVD’s.
If you take a look at the card illustration below you can see how they are marked, I use a fine point over
head projector pen that is permanent. Take your time when marking the cards as one mistake and you’ll
need to crack open a new deck and replace the ruined card in the deck you are marking. You can mark
each back as it’s face value in the traditional way or if you are doing these for ‘Progressive Improbability’
described on the last few pages you will as mentioned mark in a one behind way.

A marked deck is a wonderful tool, the fact that they are available in toy shops should not put you off as
with a little thought you can ‘apparently’ hand out the deck as a souvenir at the end of your performance
which I do when I am performing either at a private dinner, parlour or cabaret performance.

If you look at the image on the right you can clearly see where I have marked the card. The top area is the
suit, I work via Hearts, Spades, Diamonds & Clubs, which I read from top left, top right then bottom left
and bottom right. The lower area which is the full circle around the Angel I see as a clock, 1 = Ace, 2 =
Two, 3 = Three etc. 11 = Jack, 12 = Queen and the King is represented by two breaks or dots at 12.
The card above is marked as the Three of Hearts, naturally I mark both ends of the card.

I tend to always use red backed cards but blue is a little easier to see. There is no rule what marker pen you
use just check for a good colour match on a joker or spare card. The marking is designed to be visual, I
do not need to be staring intently at the back of a card as that will tip marked cards long before the actual
marks will. Another thing to mention is, always have a regular deck in play, either before a marked deck
routine or after that they can examine. This is not an improvement on anyone elses marked deck it is just
the way I mark mine and they can be read from two to three feet away depending on you eye sight.

20
 PATEOVOQUE
What it says on the tin
I love impromptu magic and mentalism, not from the audiences point of view, but more my own. It can test
the old grey matter and keep you on your toes. Equivoque and the PATEO force are wonderful for such
occasions but with the public knowledge of equivoque (magicians choice) I like to adapt and disguise it’s
use, I want even those that know the process to be confused. I also love the PATEO force but must
acknowledge that it is a repeated process that can seem quite contrived to select one item. I have mixed
both of these principles many times over the last few years to great success, the most recent at the time of
writing was at an impromptu forty minute cabaret.

The process is very easy and is a great way to start out using the more difficult equivoque technique. Imag-
ine we have gathered twenty items on a table, the process would be like this.

“Elvis I would like you to separate the items into two equal groups.” Elvis shakes his hips, pouts his
upper lip and does so. “Excellent, please point to either half.” If Elvis chooses the target half I say “Okay
we will use these.” as I casually push the others aside. Obviously if he points at the other pile I say “Okay
we will get rid of these.” as I push the pile he has pointed to, to one side. Whatever he points to we will be
keeping our target pile in play. “I would like some others to help in this process, but also I want to point
out that we do not always make the right decision first time round so Dolly would you choose two that
you would like to consider for elimination.” Dolly does so by pointing at them. “Great, lets eliminate the
keys.” The keys are pushed aside with the rest of the eliminated items. “Let me nominate two items for
elimination and this time Dolly you decide which one gets trashed.” Dolly decides that the coin should go
but keeps the pen in play. “Great, Elvis will you please indicate any two.”, Elvis points to two none target
items. “Dolly you decide again but please think about what you are doing.” (I should point out here that
if Elvis had pointed to the target item I would have intervened and made the choice.) This continues, until
two items are left, I know go back into equivoque by saying “Elvis there are just two items left and this
final choice will be yours, please pick up an item in your right hand now!” If Elvis picks up the force
item I reiterate the fair process, how Dolly helped out and that Elvis could have had anyone of the objects
in his hand, I then turn over my prediction to conclude. If Elvis had picked up the non force item I would
say “and put it with the others.” just as he lifted it up, it should seem like a continuos sentence, I would
now say “Elvis we have eliminated nineteen objects, anyone of them could have been left on the table in
front of you but,” etc, I then turn over my prediction to conclude.

I really have only touched the surface here, and there are many ways that PATEOVOQUE could go in
terms of who goes when and how you jazz with the process etc. For more information this is discussed on
‘The Unexpected.’ with Peter Nardi and myself in an effect called ‘Drinks on the Pateo.’

I HIGHLY recommend you read Max Mavens booklet on the subject, it is gold dust, Michael Weber
explains the standard PATEO force in his book ‘Life Savers’ which is a wonderful book. The legend that
is David Berglas has a section on equivoque in his phenomenal book ‘Mind and Magic of David Berglas’
which is out of print but is worth the high price if you can find someone to part with their copy.

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 Thoughts at this time
Who knows what I’ll think next week!
I always think it is strange to write ‘Final Thoughts’ as surely the final thought anyone ever has is seconds
before death? I guess what I am trying to say is that I have no final thoughts on anything that I have
written within my lecture booklet, I don’t call them notes as the word note means something jotted down
on a scrap piece of paper, one definition is ‘a short informal letter or written message’ hopefully you will
value these a little more than that.

As I said, I have no final thoughts about what I have written here as I could change my mind next week,
next year or in the next century. The routines could evolve further, the methods may change, the
presentations may change or I may feel exactly the same, who knows.

That in many ways makes my chosen career even more mysterious because I do not know how I will feel
about things I feel so strongly about now, I love that element though.

I genuinely hope you get something from what is contained here, again I reiterate, I do not expect you to
agree with me but hopefully you may ask yourself questions you hadn’t thought of asking.

With that my friends I wish you all the very best, thank you for reading and until next time.....

Good health and good thoughts always.

Marc Spelmann

Special Thanks To:

Peter Nardi, The Grey Man, Mark Cairns, Looch, Nigel Mead, Uri Geller, Derren Brown, Banachek,
Larry Becker, Richard Osterlind, David Berglas, Max Maven, Gary Kurtz, Annemann, Bob Cassidy,
Andy Nyman, Marc Paul and Corinda (All of which have inspired my nonsense in some way.)

Tessa, Valerie, Amanda, Rebecca, Connor & Ethan (For constantly disturbing me, love you all.)

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