As you can tell by the jump in episode numbers, it has been a while...a loooong while since my previous post. But throughout the pandemic and continuing every week, The Magic Word Podcast has continued to give quality content by posting broadcasts of conversations with conjurors. If you have missed any of them (and I suspect that you have), then you can always delve into the Archives at The Magic Word Podcast by following this link: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/archives

But to kick off the new year, our most recent episode features a chat with not one, but two magicians both of whom reside and work in Australia. And our topic is quite unique, too. Tim Ellis and Nicholas J. Johnson talk about ten "myths" that many magicians consider to be truths. But are they? We give our opinions, but we'd like to hear your thoughts and even suggestions on other "magic myths" that we might discuss in an upcoming episode.

You can listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts, but for more content and to listen online, please visit: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scot......hbusting This week's episode was also recorded on video so you can watch our chat on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/xQbMGqi4GDY

Good stuff

Something I’ve never understood about “The Magic Word” podcast is why Mr. Wells always does two intros for each episode. He starts every podcast by going into excruciating detail on the person he’s going to interview and then when he switches over to the pre-recorded interview itself, he goes through all the same stuff again. Honestly, it drives me nuts and it’s one of several reasons why I find this podcast virtually impossible to stick with for more than 20-25 minutes (on a good day). Sometimes the double intro takes as much as ten minutes. Today I tried listening to the latest episode and Mr. Wells shared that “The Magic Word” has been rated the best magic podcast in the world. Really? Are the rest of them THAT bad, with hosts who talk more than their guests, ask inane questions and appear to have done little to no prep work about the people they interview? I just don’t get the hoopla on this one.

Or you could just…not listen? Link us to your Magic Podcast, would love to hear it.

Also, I’m fairly sure most audio players on various devices have a fast-forward button or you can skip forward by just moving your finger on the play bar.

You’re a riot! Thanks for that incredibly helpful tip. The “maybe you just stop listening” advice above is more on point. He’s right, I don’t have to listen. No great loss as Mr. Wells is terrible at interviewing.

You have to just fast-forward the first 5-10 minutes of him pontificating about nothing, and you’re right he always does two intros for some reason, one when he records the intro and the other with the guest, typically saying the same stuff twice. Very odd.

I totally agree. Sadly, though I’m almost always interested in hearing from Mr. Wells’ guests, overall I find his podcasts un-consumable. In addition to the two intro bit, there appears to be little-to-no preparation done in terms of guests and their backgrounds. For example, I just tried listening to Mr. Wells’ latest interview featuring Jason Bird. Mr. Wells admitted in the intro he hadn’t read Mr. Bird’s book and didn’t even have a copy. After the usual two intro nonsense, Mr. Wells then seemed unaware that Mr. Bird has created and marketed several magic effects; a simple Google search could have revealed that detail. Interview questions are generally weak, follow-ups are even weaker and we usually hear more from Mr. Wells himself than the guests he’s supposedly interviewing. By comparison, and this is just one random example, Erik Tait asks more insightful and thoughtful questions on Penguin’s podcasts and he is also much more concise. I truly want to enjoy Mr. Wells’ podcasts and I keep trying, but every time I come away disappointed. IMHO, “The Magic Word Podcast” unfortunately fails to deliver, entertain or inform on every level. I realize there are many loyal listeners and fans who probably disagree. To each his/her own. My singular opinion doesn’t matter anyway, and besides, there are thankfully other magic podcast options available. I’ll happily support them while tipping my hat to all with more tenacity and patience for Mr. Wells’ content-light, random, repetitive streams of consciousness than I’ll ever be capable of mustering.

I’ve never in my life done a podcast of any kind on any subject and I’d wager my house that I could do a more interesting, thorough, well-researched, engaging and informative podcast than this one. No question Mr. Wells has devoted much time and effort into this endeavor and he seems to thoroughly enjoy it, which is fantastic for him and presumably for you as well. To each their own. But attacking someone for expressing a perfectly valid observation with a weak, “you think you can do better” retort is lazy, dismissive and unproductive. The fact one doesn’t have a podcast vanity project doesn’t diminish their voice in constructively criticizing someone who does. But as you wrote, no one has to listen. My guess is the lack of sponsors of “The Magic Word Podcast” is validation that you’re on to something.