Derren Brown
Psychological Illusion - magic, misdirection, suggestion, psychology, & subliminal persuasion
A Brief History of Derren Brown
Derren Brown was born on the 27th Feb 1971 in Croydon, London.
Although well known for his Channel 4 series Mind Control, Derren was initially interested in magic & hypnosis, performing as a "table hopper" at a restaurant. Prior to his tv series Derren Brown had been a very accomplished card magician, specialising in card tricks and even producing a video of his card repertoire called "The Devils own Picturebook."
Derren also produced 2 books, "Pure Effect," a book that covers some of the methods he uses in his Psychological Illusion performances, & "Absolute Magic," a book that describes Derrens beliefs regarding magic perfomance. The initial printing of "Pure Effect" was a spiral bound book which conatained 2 of his signature effects, "Reminiscence," & "Lift" which were removed from the later printings.
Derren Brown was allegedly auditioned for the Mind Control television series after being recommended by Jerry Sadowitz. It is rumoured that channel Four had been looking to produce a tv series based around Mind Control & Perceptual Manipulation but had been unable to find a suitable presenter. Derren Brown later became the host presenter of Derren Brown Mind Control.
Derren Brown claims that he is not a mind-reader, but instead uses a combination of "magic, suggestion, psychology, misdirection and showmanship" to create Psychological Illusions that appear to control Human behaviour.
Derren Browns tv series uses the input of other well known magicians such as Andy Nyman & Luke Jermay, much of the material consists of traditional magical trickery dressed up to appear as psychological manipulation, & subliminal persuasion. It is also rumoured that in some of the stunts the participants are hypnotised prior to filming to create the illusion of a more dramatic response.
Derren Brown has produced a number of tv specials, including Séance, Messiah, The Gathering, The Heist, The System, & Trick or Treat, & has performed a number of live shows Something Wicked This Way Comes, & Mind Reader, An Evening of Wonders. He has also had his show appear on US TV in Mind Control with Derren Brown on the Sci-fi channel.
There has been criticism of Derrens work, most notably his Russian Roulette stunt in which he claimed to be putting his life in danger, although later the Police commented that the gun used was not loaded with real bullets saying "There was no live ammunition involved and at no time was anyone at risk."
There is an interesting video on you tube allegedly showing a younger Derren Brown as an audience member at a Paul McKenna hypnosis course or seminar, presumably learning hypnosis or hypnosis techniques.
