Peter’s Friends will blow your minds

Peter’s Friends: Tobacco Factory

IF Derren Brown announces that you are one of his favourite magicians, then you are guaranteed to get people through the door. Fortunately for Peter Clifford, Derren has offered a quote for the poster so there isn’t one empty seat in the Tobacco Factory.

After last year’s sellout season, Peter has returned to Bedminster, bringing two more of his magical mates with him.

The evening opens with Peter impressing the crowd with what seems like a simple card trick but, as ever with these things, it becomes a lot more complicated, and ends up with odds of something like 64,000,000 to one that he will get it right. Does he? Of course he does!

Our first main act is Nigel Mead, who is an extremely adept showman with a good line in patter and a few fun tricks like poking a spike through his tongue, and getting a teenage boy in a crash helmet to catch the right card in his teeth. All delivered with a fun line in banter and some knowing winks to the audience.

Second up is Nick Einhorn, who is more of an old-school, old-fashioned magician. Not for him the flashy suit or belly laughs, instead he had some genuinely mind-melting tricks of magic, illusion and intuition that really had everyone stunned. As an audience member who was called on to help with a trick, any cynicism I had was cut dead as I randomly selected some boxes, which ultimately led to our intrepid star successfully avoiding sitting on a four-inch spike (placed under one of six cups).

There was a lot of audience participation from all three, but it was all done in a good-natured way that didn’t make anyone uncomfortable. In fact, everyone in the packed house clearly had a fantastic time, and it was great to see traditional entertainment free of fancy technology displays getting such a rapturous reception from an audience that included everyone from children to pensioners.

I don’t give good marks lightly, but tonight, Peter, I easily give you and your friends...

9/10

JANE MORNEMENT