'Manipulative magic is certainly not easy' - Shropshire magician reveals his secrets
For more than 50 years, Geoff Rushworth travelled the world, with his devoted wife by his side, delighting audiences with his mesmerising sleight of hand magic.
He entertained famous faces including Pricilla Presley and Muhammad Ali, performed to travellers on luxury liners and stood on the stage at the London Palladium.
Now the magician, known as Geoff Ray, has shared his experiences and expert knowledge as well as the secrets behind his favourite tricks in a new book.
The Magical Life of Geoff Ray and Pat is dedicated to his late wife, who was known to family and friends as Molly.
Writing the book has been a labour of love for the 93-year-old, whose fascination with magic began at a very early age.
“I was three years, 11 months and one week old when I saw a magician at an event at the Gay Meadow in Shrewsbury,” says Geoff who knows the exact date because his sister won the baby competition.
"The magician was Dan Leano, from Wrexham and he did three tricks. One was aerial fishing – he produced a goldfish over the crowd – and another was vanishing a dove,” he explains. In 1954, Geoff, who was then in his early 20s, was the victim of a hit and run accident near RAF Shawbury – where he worked as a radar technician.
"I was in the hospital for a long time,” he recalls. “My wife bought me a magic book to read and I started doing tricks for the nurses. It all started from there."
Geoff began performing, with Molly by his side, in working men’s clubs around the West Midlands as well as further afield.
In 1963, Geoff and Molly came first out of 6,000 acts in a national talent competition at Butlin’s.
