tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-188704332009-11-12T17:54:22.993ZThe ongoing adventures of a Cue Sport obsessed, music loving Close Up MagicianThe Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.comBlogger122125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-61718392180756724502009-10-24T14:20:00.005Z2009-10-24T23:03:48.621Z

Hi folksAs with everthing with this blog of late, this review post has been sitting waiting to be done for a wee while. In fact, this review has been waiting since about March to be posted! Well, better late than never - I hope!James Chadier is a new name to me. In fact, other than the contents of this DVD, I don't really know much about this French performer. The DVD is, however, contains some

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-46489127262837167262009-10-14T08:27:00.012Z2009-10-14T10:26:23.228Z

Oh boy! Where do I start?Hi folks and welcome back to the blog which was on a “can’t be bothered updating but when I can be bothered I don’t have the time” break. Apologies for the serious lack of updates eecently. I hope this post (and it’s a big ‘un too!) will help make up for those.So, when last we spoke, I had just been to see the mighty AC/DC in concert at The National Stadium, Hampden Park

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-76408779475119455842009-07-14T14:35:00.012Z2009-07-16T11:38:53.684Z

Hi folksAs I walked into Hampden for the second time in as many weeks, I found myself asking "could it really have been 10 days since I was at Hampden last and could I really have been here for a concert as different as the one I was about to see?" The answer to both those questions was "yes" as I was back at the National Stadium, this time with my brother in law, Callum, and best mate, Peter, to

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-81199421733560375332009-06-22T14:35:00.012Z2009-07-06T22:32:58.083Z

Hi folksSo, 15 years ago, if you had told me that I would have been attending a Take That concert with my sister and enjoyed it, I would have probably looked at you in a funny way – and I don’t mean “funny haha.” Yet, a couple of Saturdays ago, I was with Mhairi, her husband Callum and her best friend Irene at Scotland’s National Stadium at Hampden in Glasgow to see the former Boy Band perform. I

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-76933479843054190632009-06-17T11:05:00.004Z2009-06-17T11:29:06.076Z

Hi folksJust a quick post to let you all know that Mark Elsdon is doing a couple of lectures in Scotland next week. The first is one that he has organised himself and will be held on Wednesday 24th June at the SCA's headquarters - the Scottish Mask and Puppet Theatre, 8-10 Balcarres Avenue, Glasgow, G12 0QF starting at 7:30pm. The entry fee for this lecture will be £10 and includes 2 free sets of

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-86361659618924732062009-06-16T10:33:00.020Z2009-06-16T12:08:44.118Z

Hi folksWell, things have been a bit busy of late, but there is a blog that is long overdue. Hope you’re sitting comfortably because it’s a big one!The events themselves were a long time coming, incredibly fast in passing and now, sitting typing this, almost feel like the distant past. A trip involving a trip to Germany to visit Sonja for a few days and lecture for Magische Nordlichter in Hamburg

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-80935654648068081272009-05-05T09:55:00.005Z2009-05-05T16:46:41.723Z

Hi folks I thought I'd do a quick post to let you know about a couple of lectures that the Scottish Conjurers’ Association are putting on in the next couple of weeks. First off, on Wednesday 13 May, is Canada’s Shawn Farquhar who will be presenting his “Bread And Butter Lecture” in what will be his only Scottish date on his current lecture tour. I saw Shawn present the one-hour version of this

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-70474564569138470972009-05-03T00:27:00.003Z2009-05-03T00:32:15.555Z

Hi folksA quick post just now.Both my Mum and my Sister are going to be taking part in the Race For Life in aid of Cancer Research UK. This charity is very close to me and Mhairi's hearts as both our parents have survived cancer - Dad twice! - so, if you can, please click on one of the links below and give some money to this worthy cause.Mhairi's donation page (Mhairi will be 13 weeks pregnant

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-35696737284448915682009-03-31T14:08:00.002Z2009-03-31T14:13:33.952Z

Hi folksA quick post to let you know of a few events taking place in Central Scotland in the coming couple of weeks.First off, on Thursday 9th April, Paisley Magic Circle will be hosting a lecture by American Close Up Magician Gregory Wilson as part of his limited UK lecture tour. The lecture will take place at their usual meeting place at St Margaret's Church Hall, Oxford Road, Renfrew, PA4 0SJ

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-86100328897123786782009-03-18T11:41:00.005Z2009-03-19T10:59:28.600Z

Hi folksA brief post to let you know of a couple of things I've got coming up.First off, on Saturday 18 April, I will be presenting a lecture for Magischen Nordlichter (click here for the site translated into English) starting at 2pm in their headquarters in Hamburg, Germany. You can get more information about the admission fee from the club directly. German lecture notes will be available and

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-69909272040715787822009-03-18T11:19:00.003Z2009-03-18T11:41:12.744Z

Hi folksWell, you might just have noticed that the blog is looking a little different. Well, for the last few weeks I have been attending an introductory course about Flash (ah-ahhhh!) at Glasgow Metropolitan College. I've been learning how to do some pretty cool wee animations, as well as creating websites within the package. One of the important things that we learn is about making things as

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-19682248085106461002009-03-11T12:07:00.009Z2009-03-17T13:33:41.207Z

Price: $25 plus $5 shipping and handling anywhere in the worldAvailable from: Aaron Fisher's website from 4pm EST (9pm GMT) on 17 March 2009From reading the information above, you'll probably realise that this is not a review. This is, in fact, a preview. Let me just state here that I have not seen the product in question, but I do perform this effect on a regular basis which is why I am posting

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-36976976120002917422009-03-06T23:25:00.020Z2009-03-17T13:43:47.559Z

Price: £15 postpaid in the UK ($25 postpaid for the rest of the world)Available direct from John via PayPal at johncareymagic@googlemail.comJohn Carey is one of the UK's top "underground" magicians who, after some cajoling from his friends, has popped his head out into the open to share some of his material. This DVD contains a number of effects previously published in his "Carey's Cards" lecture

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-65690931743796324142009-03-04T23:22:00.003Z2009-03-04T23:55:37.866Z

Regular readers (hi folks!) will probably know that, thanks to my best mate Peter, I am a big fan of Bill Hicks. My sister and I used to stay over at Peter's after a Friday night out at a '70s night in Paisley and Peter would always play some of Hicks's albums as we were drifting off to sleep. From that, I got really interested in his work. Sadly, this was a few years after his untimely death at

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-55699945521340886812009-02-28T21:58:00.018Z2009-03-04T23:56:53.244Z

Hi folksWell, February is now behind us and another Blackpool Convention is part of history. It was a lot of fun and, to be honest, for the first time in a wee while I had more fun with the social side of things than I did at the organised events.The journey down was easy with me having a seat on the train with an electrical socket, meaning I could plug my laptop in and watch a DVD, making the

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-73020834414622951412009-01-21T11:15:00.008Z2009-01-23T09:14:02.996Z

Hi folksFirst of all, Happy New Year! Yes, I know it is nearly February but I have not really had a chance to post anything up lately. Anyway, I hope you had a great Christmas and New Year and that 2009 is a good one for you.I thought I'd post a quick message to let you know that I will be lecturing at Paisley Magic Circle at St Margaret's Church Hall, Oxford Road, Renfrew on Thursday 5th

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-44028588396668565052008-12-03T21:22:00.019Z2009-03-17T13:48:41.044Z

Well, another convention has come and gone. The International Magic Convention – otherwise lovingly known as “Ron’s Day” (even though it is now held over a weekend) after the late, great Ron MacMillan who started it back in the 1970s ­- is held in London at the end of November each year and has become one of my favourites over the years that I have attended it. This year’s line up had 2 major

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-33664315786618484642008-11-27T11:39:00.009Z2009-03-17T15:32:28.967Z

Price: $13.99Available from: Lee Asher's websiteI thought that I would post one of my rare product reviews. I'm not normally one to do them but I thought the magicians that read this (hello and thank you for reading) might be interested.Recently, I got one of Lee Asher's PDF e-books – "Thunderbird: The Modern Ace Production". I had seen Lee perform this a good number of years ago (possibly as

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-22657577327250916102008-10-29T09:58:00.010Z2008-10-29T14:38:38.769Z

Thanks to my best mate, Peter, I've been a Terrorvision fan for a number of years. It was him that pointed me in the direction of their albums after I heard a couple of their tracks being played at The Cathouse in Glasgow a long number of years ago. It was with great sadness back in 2001 that I attended what I thought would be their last concert in Glasgow as Terrorvision on that year's "Take The

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-65647586130586437002008-10-15T18:03:00.014Z2009-03-17T15:27:54.837Z

Before I get into this post, let me warn you that it is a big 'un! Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it.As regular readers (greetings!) may know, I love going away to Magic Conventions and I love going to Germany to visit Sonja. On my latest trip, I managed to do both - go to Germany for a few days to visit Sonja, then travel to Eastbourne for what turned out to be an excellent magic convention.The

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-7070520423495436322008-09-30T10:33:00.005Z2009-03-17T15:30:02.865Z

Hi folksJust a quick post to let you know that my friend, who also happens to be the 2008 WEPF Ladies World 8-Ball Champion, Lynette Horsburgh, will be doing a fundraising exhibition at Braehead Shopping Centre this weekend in aid of "Hearing Dogs For Deaf People". The dates and times are:-Friday 3rd October 2008 from 10am till 9pmSaturday 4th October 2008 from 9am till 6:30pmSunday 5th October

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-26649795174008026002008-09-15T11:40:00.007Z2008-09-15T19:58:45.593Z

Hi folksThought I'd do a brief post about an item a friend of mine has launched in time for the IBM British Ring Convention taking place in Eastbourne next week.Annabel De Vetten is a Birmingham-based artist who has designed a poker size deck of cards that I think looks pretty amazing. Now I am normally the first to denounce the use of the likes of "Viper" or "Tiger" playing cards which have

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-24637593365235848252008-08-31T20:05:00.024Z2008-09-03T11:37:58.069Z

Hi folksWell, it took a while to arrive but in what feels like the blink of an eye, my trip to London has been and gone. It was a great few days. I just wish I had a little more time to enjoy it all!ThursdayI arrived at my hotel - the Wardonia Hotel in King's Cross - and quickly unpacked as I had a few things to get done before I presenting my magic lecture for International Magic that evening.

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-68384115218715970022008-08-26T21:17:00.005Z2008-09-02T09:46:43.690Z

Hi folksJust a quick post to remind you that I am presenting my card magic lecture for International Magic. The lecture will be taking place on Thursday 28th August at their usual venue - 'Casa Italiana', 136 Clerkenwell Road, London EC1R 5DL (click here for a map). If you are interested in coming along, please e-mail or telephone Martin MacMillan on martin@internationalmagic.com or 020 7405 7324

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18870433.post-82651876415464149892008-08-15T20:15:00.018Z2009-03-17T15:34:19.655Z

Hi folksRegular readers (Greee-tings!) may know that I enjoy going to Edinburgh at least once each August to see what's on at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. This year, I managed to go through for a few days in a row, and great fun it was too. This was thanks to my good friend Julie, who had decided to travel up to Edinburgh from Watford for a few days to see what it was all about.We were staying

The Cardmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03571109604767962238noreply@blogger.com0