On Jun 30, 2014, Bill Hegbli wrote:

"I guess it is true what they say about the English."

Yeow. "They" say a lot of things.

On a previous Paul Daniels DVD, he states that he believes the double-lift to be a bad move, that it is obvious to spectators what is going on. On these new DVDs, does he express this opinion?

Bill, I think there isn't a question about if the people who own this have taken something powerful away from it. We definitely have. The problem is, we are on overload by HOW MUCH we've been "hot between the eyes" by the material on this set. By far the most valuable part of this set is not the tricks, but the chats about psychology and business and how to play to the back of the theatre. Being an actor, I can use all of the advice he have in my theatre plays. He shows how to present yourself as a big deal and how to beam with confidence when you walk out. He has a great tip on making himself seem like he is with the audience. It's all brilliant. So I think the question you've been asking is completely wrong. Don't ask people IF they learned anything, ask them HOW MUCH they learned.

Spot on, Maddy!

Ray, I don't think he advances that opinion on Bravura, but as Maddy says, there is so much to take in that I may be mistaken. He certainly shoots down a few sacred cows...

I wonder if Paul Daniels has changed his opinion on the DL. So much magic is dependent upon it.

Now I think of it, he teaches a multiple lift...

I could be wrong as there is much information on here, I'm sure he shows what he considers to be a good double lift?

Yes, that they are much smarter than those who resort to insult.

Although Scots are smarter still.

I'm thinking that maybe Bill had a traumatic experience with an Englishman during his formative years; he may have been bitten by a Yorkshireman, or some such scenario. We must try to be understanding and swallow the insults. We are professionals, and we must rise above it.

I would like to reassure Bill that we, as a nation, wish him no harm. In fact, when I asked a couple of friends for their opinion on this worrying matter, they had the good grace to pretend never to have heard of him!

My copy arrived today from The Paul Daniels Magic Shop - many thanks to Newton for all his help , I bought it through there as I could get a signed copy which to me having grown up and been heavily influenced by Paul was a must.

I am currently just finishing the third disc and so far it has exceeded my expectations, I have never spent so much on a DVD set before and may not again.
This is the way new magicians need to think about magic it's an experience and not just a trick for people to be entertained by.

10/10

Dr Rob

I have just watched the 3rd disc and my brain is hurting these DVD's so far have given me a whole new thought process on presenting and entertaining,
The mechanics of his magic is not what is important it is his whys and when's and his thoughts. Worth every penny if you are a performer and want to understand how he got to being a brilliant entertainer. Pure dead brilliant

Honestly, Paul said many things that convicted me as a performer. I felt ashamed at times for giving my audience less than they deserve!

Let's face it, his work on the Classic Force is proper superb. He's a minx.

Dear Bill,

I thought I had given a reasonably detailed review.

This is not your normal DVD set. Paul teaches his act, which is world class. He teaches many other tricks as well. The set is bursting with hints, tips and sound practical advice, the kind of which rarely appears on any DVD.

The real worth of this DVD set is, as I said in the review, is about presenting yourself to your audience, something rarely touched in magical literature.

It is very difficult to give a really detailed review because there is simply so much to cover.

I understand, I don't expect a detailed hour by hour review. Just one think that made the whole DVD set worth it for you. As in my review for the Floating Ball, the brilliant moment for me was Luis's redesign of the set up form the 2 man Don Wayne set up to only the performer controlling everything. That was worth it for me. Did I expose anything in saying that, I don't believe I did.

So far (and I am only just scratching the surface of the set) I have already found some of his advice has been of use. In particular his advice on microphone use and placement has already been useful to me in a real world theatre situation.

He does a whole section on impromptu magic - it makes you think out the box of what you can do with every day things. If I was to take one thing from the set it is being a successful entertainer doesn't just happen - a lot of thought and preparation is required. You can be adept at the tricks but it is how you entertain that is important. He said drop your best trick from your act and if you get the same reactions to what you have left then it's you and not the tricks that is entertaining the tricks are the vehicle.

I just watched these. I loved watching his show on TV as a kid. Some of my earliest magic memories are his show. Anyway, I do agree that these dvds are FULL of important information about magic, theatre and presentation and all that I would expect that would come from someone with his experience, however there are two things that kind of threw me off.

1) His comment about women and the hairdresser. He did say that "some will call me sexist but...". Well Paul, that comment was sexist, so why say it? I thought that piece of advice could have been left out...sounded like an old man who hasn't changed with the times.
2) I noticed that some of his jokes from the show were pretty lame. If that's his "act"...it's needs a bit of humor reset. Come on Paul, you can do better.

Other than those two things...I found the DVD's to be quite entertaining and educational.

Since when is there a protocol about how people review items? Most people here aren't professional reviewers. Just guys who like magic. If they chose to articulate why they like something, that's fine. But no one should be PREACHING about how people write about products they like. This is a forum about magic. Not a critical writing course.

Bill thinks differently.