We’re back with our first special episode for a while. After our recent look into Victorian Spiritualism, Sean F Smith contacted us, offering to discuss the topic from the perspective of stage magic. Sean is a magician and mentalist by profession, with a special interest in séances and mediums. We discussed the history of Victorian magic and how it relates to fraudulent mediums. There are also a few diversions into the psychology of trickery, techniques to encourage creativity, and the secret of how to hammer a nail into your face. You can find Sean’s work on DriveThruRPG, and you can check out his websites below. * Sean’s magic website * Sean’s RPG website Sean and friend Links Things we mention in this episode include: * Victorian Spiritualism * Mentalism * Hiding the Elephant by Jim Steinmeyer * Harry Houdini * The Prestige by Christopher Priest * The Prestige (2006) * Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin * Nevil Maskelyne * Penny Dreadful: City of Angels * James Randi * Derren Brown * The Davenport Brothers * Davenport’s magic shop * Spirit cabinet * The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens * Domain-specific learning * Practical Mental Effects by Theodore Annemann * Spirit slates *