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Magic and Illusion/Questions Answered by Expert Mark S. Farrar AIMC
| Subject | Date Asked |
| The Ultimate Mind Reading Trick | 10/8/2011 |
| Q: I'm looking for this Ultimate Mind Reading Trick on DVD to learn that's called therevelationeffect ... A: Sterling, 13 Steps To Mentalism was my first "real" book on the subject, although it is a bit heavy ... | |
| The Ultimate Mind Reading Trick | 10/7/2011 |
| Q: I'm looking for this Ultimate Mind Reading Trick on DVD to learn that's called therevelationeffect ... A: Sterling, Thanks for your question. I'm sorry but I'm not a believer in revealing other people's ... | |
| begginer magic | 3/2/2011 |
| Q: I am 13 years old and I was wondering if you know any magic trick that I can begin with. I am just ... A: Harrison, Thanks for your question, and welcome to the world of magic. One of the best ways to ... | |
| disappearing liquid glass | 8/20/2010 |
| Q: I am looking for a glass where the liquid "disappears". I want to use it in a ventriloquist act. A: Barbara, Thanks for your question. One prop that would seem to do what you want is a Pixie Glass, ... | |
| Making People Select the Same Card Over and Over | 11/19/2008 |
| Q: I was wondering if you know how to do the card trick where you make the person select the same card ... A: David, Thanks for your question. I guess there are two parts to my answer. 1. There is a ... | |
| Magic Tricks | 11/14/2008 |
| Q: I have been involve in magic trick for about 2 years, and I usually do tricks to entertaint kids and ... A: Yusuke, Thanks for your question, and sorry for the delay in replying. I'm not a great fan of ... | |
| overhand shuffle control 2 | 6/8/2008 |
| Q: In the royal road to card magic, the second section on the overhand shuffle control, explains that ... A: Daniel, Thanks for your question and sorry for the delay in replying. If I could show you this in ... | |
| magic, duh | 3/25/2008 |
| Q: Can you teach me how to do the magic square trick? Or the magic triangle or something to that ... A: As this is a bit hard to explain when I can only use plain text to reply, I've uploaded an extract ... | |
| card magic | 1/13/2008 |
| Q: I would first like to thankyou for reading my message, and I would like to say that I appreciate any ... A: Victoria, Thanks for your questions. To answer your first one, the sleight you are looking for is ... | |
| tool for altering playing cards | 12/5/2007 |
| Q: I found a brass device with a large scissor on it's side that looks like a small scale paper ... A: Andy, Thanks for your question. I've never heard of a card trimmer like that before, but a quick ... | |
| tamariz or aronson? | 11/9/2007 |
| Q: Hey Mark which stack do you recommend? tamariz or aronson? I am planning to learn one .which one ... A: Sourav, Thanks for your kind words, and I'm glad you found my previous reply helpful. Yes, Aldo ... | |
| tamariz or aronson? | 11/8/2007 |
| Q: Hey Mark which stack do you recommend? tamariz or aronson? I am planning to learn one .which one ... A: Sourav, Thanks for your question. I would actually go with a third option here (and already have ... | |
| I need some magic tricks | 9/16/2007 |
| Q: My friends are holding a magic show, and want me to be in it. But I don't know anything. They said I ... A: Kelly, Thanks for your question. The coolest card trick I know is not for beginners, but one of my ... | |
| the overhand shuffle control | 6/30/2007 |
| Q: im confused i am reading the royal road to card magic and when i do the overr hand control shuffle ... A: As far as I recall from the book, which I've not read for a long time (it was the first magic book I ... | |
| New tricks | 6/17/2007 |
| Q: How would i learn more difficult trick such as vanishing tricks A: Karl, Thanks for your question and sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Your question is ... | |
| fire magic | 2/18/2007 |
| Q: Please, if you can help me find a solution to this problem I would be so grateful. I am a magician ... A: James, Thanks for your question and sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Unfortunately, ... | |
| Coin trick - changing 3 to 4 | 1/21/2007 |
| Q: I saw a magician this past weekend and he didnt this coin trick that still baffles me. He set 4 ... A: Sara, Thanks for your question. There are many ways of performing this particular trick, and there ... | |
| Magic | 1/4/2007 |
| Q: Here and there i'v been doing a bit of magic but i really want to get into it and begin. How do you ... A: Adam, Thanks for your question. The answer is not that simple, unfortunately. Firstly, it partly ... | |
| Vegas | 8/8/2006 |
| Q: I`m going to Las Vegas next month. I`m trying to decide which show to see, Penn & Teller or David ... A: Joel, Thanks for your question. As you say, it is a matter of personal preference, but here are my ... | |
| Sam the Waiter, etc. | 8/3/2006 |
| Q: and a member of SAM and my local magic club. I have seen and am interested in what I assume is a ... A: Mark, Thanks for your question. The routine you describe is usually called Sam The Bellhop, and ... | |
| Trying to find a trail of bread crumbs... | 5/31/2006 |
| Q: Trying to find a trail of bread crumbs...and maybe you'll leave some for me. First off I would like ... A: Steven, Thanks for your question. Firstly, there are definitely magicians out there who will teach ... | |
| tell me 5 simple tricks | 1/26/2006 |
| Q: i want to know 5 simple tricks plzzz A: kmx, Thanks for your question. There are a number of resources that may help you. Firstly, if you ... | |
| do a magic trick on my compute... | 11/2/2005 |
| Q: do a magic trick on my computer A: JR, Hi! You could try this one: http://www.markfarrar.co.uk/mindreader.htm If you do a search on ... | |
| Invisible Deck | 9/15/2005 |
| Q: I am a amateur magician and understand how most card tricks work. However, I was recently at a show ... A: Armand, Thanks for your question. The trick you describe has several versions, some of which end ... | |
| magic trick with coins - answer! | 9/8/2005 |
| Q: I've got a question about a magic trick with coins. I don't know if you can answer the question, ... A: Eve, Thanks for letting me know what you found out - it's always nice to know that answers you give ... | |
| card trick | 8/31/2005 |
| Q: hey there im not sure if you will help me but i recently saw amagic trick that had 2 beer mats one ... A: Camilla, Thanks for your question. I'm not too sure, from your description, but it sounds as ... | |
| magic trick with coins | 8/20/2005 |
| Q: I've got a question about a magic trick with coins. I don't know if you can answer the question, ... A: Eve, Thanks for your question. To start with, unless there is some other process involved too ... | |
| ? | 8/12/2005 |
| Q: I want to know what webaite ti go to to learn magic and stuff like that? so could you tell me ? ... A: Shelby, Thanks for your question. There are many excellent websites out there that may help, but ... | |
| questions | 3/25/2005 |
| Q: who is considered as father of modern magic? who is known as a mentalist? annemann? Louis-cyr? ... A: Dianah, Thanks for your questions. Before I answer them, please could you let me know which ... | |
| magic | 2/11/2005 |
| Q: I am in the 8th grade and would like to know how to become a magician. I know quite a few tricks ... A: KC, Thanks for your question. I think the best advice I could give you is not to focus too much on ... | |
| stacked deck question | 1/10/2005 |
| Q: I am again starting to dabble with the stacked deck systems and I have used Boris' stack as well as ... A: Scott, Thanks for your question. First of all, it would definitely make it stronger. (Especially ... | |
| stripper deck and automatic cig lighter | 8/14/2004 |
| Q: kumusta mark, the mehod i was saying about is that when you show the spec the deck and have him ... A: Paul, Thanks for your question. I'm not aware of any specific websites that contain routines for ... | |
| Tricks | 7/29/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question -Hello, I've just read a book where it talked a great deal on illusion. I was ... A: Lexi, No problem about the follow-ups - that's to be expected, since as you receive more ... | |
| Tricks | 7/29/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question - Hello, I've just read a book where it talked a great deal on illusion. I ... A: Lexi, No, magic is anything but boring! There are so many facets to magic, that the study and ... | |
| Tricks | 7/28/2004 |
| Q: I've just read a book where it talked a great deal on illusion. I was facinated. I'm wondering if ... A: Lexi, I'm glad you found the information useful. Sleight of hand is a whole new ballgame, as they ... | |
| Tricks | 7/28/2004 |
| Q: I've just read a book where it talked a great deal on illusion. I was facinated. I'm wondering if ... A: Lexi, Thank you for your question. Firstly, am I right in assuming that, by "illusion", you mean ... | |
| Mark | 5/16/2004 |
| Q: How has Magic changed your life Mark? What's your view on David Copperfield? How do you suppose his ... A: Sterling, Thanks for your interesting range of questions. Taking them in turn: Magic has ... | |
| Magic Tricks | 5/5/2004 |
| Q: I am doing a project for school and I would just like to know some things about magic and what some ... A: Elfind, Thanks for your question, which is quite wide-ranging. I would suggest that you start at ... | |
Magic and Illusion
Mark S. Farrar AIMC
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
I can answer questions on stacked decks, mnemonics and magic squares.
Experience
I have worked with stacked decks for many years, and am an avid reader of Simon Aronson's work in this area.
I have been using mnemonics for over 40 years, often in conjunction with Magic Squares (see below).
I wrote a book on Magic Squares as my "entrance examination" to become a Member of The Magic Circle, and regularly receive and answers emails on this subject.
Organizations
I am an Associate of The Inner Magic Circle, as well as being a Life Vice-President of the Northamptonshire Magicians' Club.
Publications
I have also written a series on stacked deck magic for The Young Magicians' Club magazine, and wrote a full-length action/adventure novel, Ring Of Daggers, that features a magic square created specially for the story.
Education/Credentials
I left school with 10 O Levels, 3 A Levels and 1 S Level (all with the Oxbridge board of examiners).
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