HE’S IN BLACKPOOL… AND YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
It is pretty extraordinary that in the social media age, where it’s virtually impossible to keep any information under wraps, Derren Brown’s stage shows remain entirely unspoiled. The great illusionist, who is currently touring the UK with Only Human, explains: “People are incredibly good at keeping the secrets. In the first show I ever did, I asked people to keep it quiet, and I was amazed and touched that they did. That was pre-social media, but audiences still respect the secrecy – I think it’s part of the fun.”
It’s also testament to the thoughtfully crafted shows which have made Brown such a popular figure. This isn’t just well-performed magic, but a deep dive into human behaviour, and even a source of salient life lessons, albeit with plenty of entertaining showmanship and those jaw-dropping stunts as well.
Brown was always interested in this added dimension, he recalls, even in the early stages of his career. Born in Croydon, he was studying law and German at Bristol University when he saw a hypnotist, Martin Taylor, doing a show. “I was utterly captivated,” says Brown. “I wasn’t much interested in law, so I devoted all my time to learning close-up magic – it was easier to get work doing that than as a hypnotist. But the psychology aspect, and the relationship between the performer and the audience, really fascinated me.”
Brown notes that there weren’t many people doing mentalism at that stage, but he was inspired by performers like Polish mentalist Chan Canasta. “He was a very charming, masterful, magnetic character – I remember thinking how much weight his act carried. I wanted to create shows that might affect people beyond just making something disappear or getting a card to appear on top of the top of the deck.”
Brown gradually developed his own style, combining sleight-of-hand magic with subliminal messaging, and also his onstage persona, which is just a version of himself “with any stuff that’s unhelpful or confusing stripped away,” he explains. “Magicians can sometimes come across as cheesy if there’s too much artificial gesturing and cape swishing.”
Brown became a household name thanks to the 2000 Channel 4 series Mind Control and follow-ups such as Trick of the Mind and Derren Brown: The Events, and also a prolific stage performer with shows like Evening of Wonders, Enigma, Infamous, Miracle, and Showman.
But even now, he hesitates to pin down what exactly it is that he does. “It’s quite nice not having a label,” he says. “It gives you a permission to do so many things. I opened a ghost train ride at Thorpe Park the same year I published a book [Happy: Why More or Less Everything Is Absolutely Fine] drawing on Ancient Greek philosophy.”
The starting point for Brown’s shows, he says, “is thinking, ‘OK, there are a couple of thousand people locked in a room with me – where can that go? What’s the psychological experience I want to give them?’” He thinks audiences never spill the beans on these experiences because “it’s hard these days to find a genuine sense of mystery. That’s a thrill. It’s part of your job as a magician to straddle the area between the known and the unknown, comfortable and challenging, real and not real. The audience relishes that sense of not knowing what’s coming, and I love feeling their excitement.”
There’s an element of surprise for Brown too, since his shows often revolve around bringing an audience member on stage. Although live theatre, by its nature, is always changing, that goes double for a production like this. Doesn’t Brown find it nerve-wracking? “Not really – it keeps it feeling fresh every night,” he explains. “Having different people coming up keeps me in the moment. There are always parts where there isn’t a script, so I’m essentially having to improvise, and it’s just lovely. It makes the show so varied: it can become more funny or serious or spooky.”
Meanwhile, for the audience, just seeing one of their number up there changes their reception of the show, says Brown. “Everyone has a vicarious relationship with the person on stage, thinking ‘That could be me!’. Sometimes the person will talk in a way that’s very vulnerable and open, and it creates this warm, connective feeling in the audience – we’re all naturally empathetic. It’s different to more traditional magic acts, where the volunteer is basically a prop.”
Brown selects his volunteers carefully, he says, using a few tried-and-tested methods. “There are things I can do in the show to see who is more responsive, and filter out people who aren’t. But I do choose some people at random too by throwing out frisbees. Although I should say you absolutely don’t have to come on stage – you can always hand the frisbee to the person next to you.
“But it’s actually helpful if I get someone, at random, who’s more sceptical, more antagonistic and trying to catch me out, because it makes them more predictable. For example, if I ask someone to think of a letter of the alphabet, and they’re trying to throw me, they’ll probably go for either Q or Z.”
Brown explains he doesn’t worry about going off track, since it makes these live shows interesting and authentic. “The whole show is basically going to be a series of little things going wrong. I once struggled to get a lid off a marker pen, but oddly that made it feel more human and added to the jeopardy – it’s like a juggler dropping a ball.
“In one show, I had a running gag about pretending to be a bad psychic and trying to get someone’s phone number. The big climax involved people shouting out long numbers, and then I’m multiplying them, and magically I get it right. Well, one night it went completely wrong, and worse, we had pyrotechnics and a confetti cannon going off! I felt terrible but people still had a good time. I’ve learnt that when stuff goes wrong, you just park it, find a solution and carry on. It’s something I try to apply in the rest of my life too.”
Making such a connection between magic set-pieces and deeper ideas is key to Brown’s current stage shows, he explains. “I think about how I want the audience to go away feeling, whether there’s a call to action or a motivation to try something in our everyday lives.” He proudest of his projects where something he’s done has helped someone – like 2012 TV show Apocalypse, in which he persuaded a man called Steven that the world was ending. That acted as a wake-up call and completely changed his outlook. Brown says: “It meant a huge amount to Steven. He’s now doing really well: he has a family, and he’s working in special needs education.”
For Only Human, the starting point was time, reveals Brown: “How we think about our futures and how we think about the present. Magicians have often tried to predict the future, but as mortal human beings, there are some things we can’t know or control. As I get older, the shows have become about these things that I find important and really want to explore. They grow up with me.”
Only Human differs from previous shows in its aesthetics and some key production elements, says Brown. “It looks more modern, instead of having that faded grandeur vintage feel. We’ve got a fantastic video and lighting team doing amazing things. I hope it’s moving and surprising, and takes people to places they’re not expecting. Audiences so far have been fantastic. I feel like every night I’m going on a ride with them.”
Brown’s tour, which extends into 2026, is visiting numerous places around the country. “I love touring,” exclaims Brown. “It’s great discovering how the audience in each place thinks and how they express themselves.” Brown also gets to know these different locations through their coffee shops. “One of the big appeals of touring is this gift of spending my days doing what I like, so I often head to a coffee shop and write. Then each night I get to be on stage.”
Brown hopes that Only Humanis richly thought-provoking, as well as “a fun night out. We want to give you something unique that you can’t get from a magic show or and other sort of show. It should give you an emotional ride, food for thought and a real sense of wonder.”
Only Human is written by Derren Brown, Andrew O’Connor and Stephen Long.
It is directed by Andrew O’Connor, with set design by Simon Higlett, video design by Simon Wainwright, lighting design by Charlie Morgan Jones and sound design by Beth Duke. The age recommendation for the show is 12+.
Only Human is Derren Brown’s 11th show. Amongst his many previous productions are Derren Brown Showman, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Enigma, Derren Brown Svengali and Derren Brown Miracle.
His shows have garnered a record-breaking five Olivier Award nominations for Best Entertainment, winning twice – the largest number of nominations and wins for one-person shows in the history of the Awards. His 2017 show, Secret, won the New York Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience and returned for a sell-out run on Broadway in 2019.
For further information on Derren Brown, visit www.derrenbrown.co.uk
Only Human is presented by arrangement with Vaudeville Productions, Michael Vine, Andrew O’Connor, Paul Sandler and Derren Brown for Only Human Productions Ltd.
For tickets, visit Blackpool Grand Theatre online at http://www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk or call 01253 290 190. For Group and School bookings, call 01253 74 32 32.
LISTINGS
Derren Brown: Only Human
Now playing at Blackpool Grand Theatre
Tue 24 Feb – Sat 28 Feb
Tickets from £20
Grand Theatre, 33 Church Street, Blackpool FY1 1HT
Box Office 01253 290 190
blackpoolgrand.co.uk
Facebook – @blackpoolgrand
Twitter – @Grand_Theatre
Instagram – grandtheatrebpl
