Like a lot of magicians, I had a couple of magic sets when I was a kid. Marvin’s Magic, a Paul Daniels set, those kinds of things. You probably remember them too: plastic props, a wand that didn’t quite stay together, and tricks that almost worked if you got the instructions right (and didn’t lose the secret gimmick down the side of the sofa). They were fun... sort of. But they didn’t light a fire in me. So, what did?

I was performing at a 50th birthday party in a Wimbledon tennis club recently when a ten-year-old boy began shadowing me from group to group. Every time I finished a trick, vanishing coins, card routines, mind-reading flourishes, there he was, eyes wide, with his older brother watching on, clearly hungry to learn more...