“On or off?” says Malaysian magician Andrew Lee as he holds up a blindfold in one hand while brandishing a throwing knife in the other. 

“Off. I’ll have it off.” responds Britain’s Got Talent host, Declan “Dec” Donnelly, visibly sweating.

“Good choice!” says Lee. 

He then puts the blindfold on himself.

The routine is an excellent example of how a good bit of patter can elevate even a fairly simple knife-toss trick into a great time for an audience. It helps that Dec appears to be genuinely terrified.

“I’ve never been so nervous in my entire life,” he admitted later in the show.  

The trick earned Lee four yesses from the judges and a pass into the next stage of the competition. Even the notoriously difficult to please Simon Cowell liked it.

“That was one of the most amazing things I’ve seen on this show,” he said. “Near death. Magic – everything I love.”