Fellowship of Christian Magicians (United Kingdom)
Hoddesdon issue of Herfordshire Mercury 

Richard Maddams has sent in the following short article from the Hoddesdon issue of The Hertfordshire Mercury dated 27th February 2009

Christian illusionists' visit was pure magic

Sleight of hand and magic tricks were up the sleeves of a 75 strong delegation at the High Leigh Christian Conference Centre in Hoddesdon,

Members of the Fellowship of Christian Magicians went along to the Lord Street venue to learn new tricks and hone their skills as well as perform and take part in competitions.

Centre manager Ian Andrews said " They come here every two years.  They are magicians, but there is an awful lot of comedy in their act.  They were here all week to teach each other magic skills and in their shows they tend to preach the gospel through magic and humour.  It's all good clean fun.   They are very well established and the standard is as good as TV magicians.  It is really excellent."

Vice-president of the fellowship, Steve Price, said they alternate their convention between a venue in Derbyshire in the North of England and High Leigh in the South.

"This year we have 75 delegates and, as the name suggests, we are all Christian entertainers,"   he said "We focus on teaching tricks and illusions which we can use that present a Christian message."

On Tuesday, eight magicians took part in a stage competition before a panel of judges.  The following day there was a close-up magic competition, which was also judged , and last night the magicians gave a public performance for about 250 people including local Brownies.

Mr Price added: We are seeking to come up with new tricks and ways of presenting things and entertaining our audience."

Revised: March 12, 2009.