While magic is often at its best when performed in front of a live audience, there’s no denying that there are certain tricks that can only be performed on TV—like making the Statue of Liberty disappear, for example. Ever since the television became a household item, its history has been interwoven with illusion, from Doug Henning’s flamboyant performances, to David Copperfield’s flair for the moody and dramatic, to Penn & Teller’s hilarious deconstruction of the form.
Back in 2011, UK television network Channel 5 broadcast a two-hour special compiling and ranking 50 of the greatest magic tricks ever televised. The program didn’t just air a bunch of tricks and call it a day, though—it featured interviews with the magicians who performed them, as well as other magicians and celebrities whose lives were affected or otherwise touched by those performances. Spend your day watching their rankings in the video above, then let us know in the comments how it compares to your own list of favorite TV acts.