Do you want to become a super hero?
Well, don’t throw yourself into that vat of toxic waste just yet, because there’s always a chance you’ll run into Kyle Marlett, whose new show, Mutant Powers, is just what you need.
Convincing unsuspecting members of the public that you have magic powers is the stock and trade of a magician and child’s play for one as accomplished as Marlett, but he’s going to take the art one step further by convincing his marks that they too have superpowers.
Across five episodes, Marlett will convince people they have powers like telekinesis, super strength and weather control. The last time I saw this many people being convinced they could do the impossible, I was in a creative writing course at college.
When he’s not duping people into thinking they’re unregistered members of The X-Men, Marlett has his hands full touring the world and consulting for big names in the magic world, as well as producing and appearing on a ton of different TV shows. His quick hands and lightning fast, jabbering patter are an absolute delight, as you can see in his excellent appearance on Fool Us:
Mutant Powers will run for five episodes on Facebook Watch, the-house-that-Zuckerberg-built‘s answer to Netflix. The first episodes airs on May 24th, followed by an episode every Thursday at 3pm EST. Don’t worry, we’ll give you a shout when the show airs.
*Kyle Marlett will not actually give you super powers
Ledley King was one of the Tottenham Hotspurs’ best defenders before retiring due to knee injuries back in 2012. While he may no longer play soccer (or football, as it’s know literally everywhere else but the United States), he still acts as the official ambassador for the team, representing the Spurs on social media and at various engagements. For this particular event, King wanted to do something a bit more… magical.
?♂️ We know @LedleyKing could perform magic on the pitch…
? Can he provide the same spellbinding performance off it?
? Over to Ledley & @MagicalBones for a magic prank with @WilliamHill! pic.twitter.com/ZbqEFkK5FT
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) March 5, 2018
The plan was to roll into a special lunch hosted at Wembley Stadium for some contest winners, dressed up in a special costume, complete with wig and make-up. The guests only knew that they would be visted by a “Mr. Tottenham”, who would swing by, shake some hands, and perform some tricks. To prepare, King enlisted the help of illusionist and dancer Magical Bones, who taught King a few tricks to perform for the fans at this event.
A bunch of practice and a few hours of costume prep, and he was all set for the big day, the fruits of which you can view in the tweet embedded above. The way they work the last card trick into the moment King reveals who he is is pretty inspired, I must say.
Thanksgiving Day means a lot of things to different people, but for many it means loading up on carbs, getting into petty, passive-aggressive arguments with distant relatives, and passing out on the couch in front of a football game. When the discussion inevitably turns to politics, why not distract everyone with one of the simple but effective magic tricks taught by Magic of Rahat in the video above? Impress the hell out of cynical uncle Joe, blow your preschooler cousin’s mind, and save everyone else’s sanity at the dinner table.
Halloween is perhaps the one time of year you can safely prank strangers without getting punched in the face. Magician/actor Steve Valentine has five pranks you can pull on trick-or-treaters, party guests, the gang at the pub or your own kids using just stuff you’ve already got around the house. They’re creepy without being too over the top or gross, and they don’t require much practice or skill to pull off. Just please remember, after you cut a hole in the box, step two is putting your finger in the box. Your finger.