Mind Games from Derren Brown

By Derek Robins

Wednesday 5 December 2001

Mind-reader Derren Brown will amaze C4 viewers later this month with a stunning display of his mental powers.

The 30-year-old will demonstrate his baffling skills in Derren Brown: Mind Control 3, on December 31.

He says: "Paul revolutionised TV magic in the way David Blaine is doing now, but I think he had his time and maybe now it's over. But Blaine does some of the card tricks which Paul and David Copperfield did first.

He will risk his life in a stunt with ex-SAS soldier Chris Ryan filmed at Greenham; tell members of the public what jobs they do; and help a blind athlete "see" a romantic evening with his wife.

"I also did stuff like the hypnotist Paul McKenna but not now. I use a lot of suggestion rather than hypnosis."

Filming the sequence proved tricky for the mind-reader. "I was blindfolded and had my hands tied behind my back and had to walk across wooden planks linking concrete bunkers as I was guided by Chris," explains Derren.

Viewers seem impressed by Derren's skills, even if they do not know how he does it.

"Chris had put some booby traps in and I had to read his mind to tell if he was telling the truth or not. There were occasions when he lied but I did complete the course!"

In his last TV special in August, he told rich dinner party guests their cash card PIN numbers, memorised the contents of a book in 20 minutes and made Tube passengers forget their destinations by waving his hand.

While studying law and German at Bristol University, Derren got interested in magic and illusions after watching a stage hypnotist.

He says: "I am quite a solitary person but the reaction has been good. People say 'You are the guy who does weird stuff'."

He says: "I learned hypnosis and did close-up magic but I've moved on now. It takes a lot of study but I don't do hypnosis now. I'm more interested in the psychological side. It is difficult to explain but I get a feel for people very quickly."

Derren got his big TV break in his first mind-reading special shown last Christmas.

Derren has often been compared to US street magician David Blaine.

Now Derren, who lives with his parrot Figaro in Bristol, wants to crack America.

He says: "I know David well and I admire him but I am careful not to copy him. David is the new look of magic. He is very hip and everyone is copying him now."

He says: "I hope to remake my shows for US TV and had talks there, but they were on September 11, the day of the terror attacks, and I am still waiting to hear from them.

Earlier this year, Blaine spent several hours in a block of ice and Derren hopes to stage a spectacular stunt himself next year when he embarks on a major UK stage tour.

"I'd also like to do more TV here, maybe a show with a celeb - Stephen Hawking, rather than Carol Smillie."

Derren says his mind-reading skills have led to him being banned from casinos in Bristol.

Gambling bosses have been worried about his card skills combined with his mental abilities.

He says: "They worry because I can get inside the croupiers' heads and they see what I want them to see. I did not win much but they think I can predict lottery numbers and the like but I can't."