Magicweek || Paul Zenon
Paul Zenon (born June 29, 1964) is a British magician known for television shows featuring him performing in pubs and on the streets. He is regarded by some as a humorous British alternative to David Blaine. He is listed in some sources as Peter Zenon, which may be his real name.
Early life
Zenon has a criminal record and has sometimes been billed as “King Con” and “The Sultan of Swindle”. He staged his first “attack” (a scam-type operation) at the age of eight when he sold fake raffle tickets for a phony prize. In his adolescence Zenon worked in a joke shop, The House of Secrets, in Blackpool before travelling the Mediterranean as a street magician. He also worked in a casino, from which he was fired for (allegedly) cheating guests and the casino alike. It is fair to say that over the years Zenon has led a life of deceit and trickery but he now uses his knowledge to expose hustlers and scam/con artists, so that the public will not fall into their traps.
Performance career
After spells in comedy clubs and Forces entertainment, Zenon moved to children’s television in the early 1990s, appearing regularly in the BBC shows Tricks ‘n’ Tracks and Tricky Business. He subsequently wrote and produced the Children’s ITV game show Crazy Cottage. He had a significant hit with a one-man show at the 1997 and 1999 Edinburgh Festivals.ibid
More recently he has become popular for a series of one-off magic specials on Channel 4 and ITV including Paul Zenon Turning Tricks (1999), Paul Zenon’s Tricky Christmas, Paul Zenon’s Trick or Treat (shot in Prague in 2000) and White Magic with Paul Zenon (shot in Lapland). Also appears as a special guest on Countdown sometimes. See also
Other work
He is the vice patron of the missing persons helpline (after having run away and gone missing early in his life).
He has also written three books:
- 100 Ways to Win a Tenner (2003)
- Paul Zenon’s Dirty Tricks (2004)
- Street Magic (2005)
Blaine allegations
It has been alleged that David Blaine has used many of Zenon’s tricks and routines without permission, leading Zenon to expose effects used by Blaine in his book Street Magic. There are counter claims that some of Blaine’s performances pre-date those of Zenon.
References
External links
- Paul Zenon’s official website
- His entry at the Internet Movie Database
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