John Doe: Who is the most famous person you have performed for?

Who was your favourite famous person?

Pete Firman: I guess the most famous would be Johnny Depp and Tim Burton at the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Premiere party when I was working the VIP lounge. They both like magic and were really charming.

My fave person?????? Um?????? I once met June Whitfield. I loved Terry and June when I was young.

JUNE!!!!!!!!

John Doe: Paul (Daniels) is one of my favourite magicians. You were born in the same place and both (unfathomably) migrated down south. You have been compared to him before, I believe one review said you were the b*****d love child of Paul and Jackass.

How do you feel about these comparisons?

Pete Firman: Comparisons to Paul are flattering, I have a lot of respect for him.

I met him once as a kid but would like to meet up with him at some point now and chew the fat.

I think there must be something in the water in Middlesbrough. The very funny John Archer comes from there too, as do Vic and Bob.

I just need to find my Debbie McGee!

Magic Paul: What are your thoughts on the older generation of magicians out there who frown on the style of magic you, and other TV magicians perform? Do you feel they have a valid point or that they are just having trouble realising that magic isn't what it was 100 years ago?

Dale Shrimpton: Its worth remembering that magic was in many ways much worse 100 years ago, than it is now.

All those " happy negro" references," chinky chinaman" tricks, and a plethora of other highly non-pc tricks. Magic often was violent too.

It was the heyday of the bullet catch, and bloody decapitations. Audiences were often shocked at the brevity of the lady’s costumes, conjurers would, with little regard for animal well-fare, catch live birds in the tips of swords...In short, Little has changed, save the conjurers dress.

Pete Firman: Ahhh, the good old days! To be brutally honest, and don’t take this the wrong way, I don’t really care what magicians think of the TV shows I make.

I'm making them for the layman. If I wanted to entertain magic guys I'd spend my time inventing peek wallets, packet tricks and doing lecture tours! I'm happy to listen to magicians but entertaining them is not really part of my job.

Joel Dickinson: One thing I like about your productions is the fact you don’t have the TV Magic Cheese Factor and the magic you guys do is always raw.

When I say raw what I mean is: you don’t jump into a shop and then buy yourself the Bitten Ten Pence, Cig through Coin, and make a ten minute episode of peoples reactions, instead you perform raw and raw is real!

Hey guys, I’m not knocking other TV magicians who do this its still nice, Magic is nice (full stop) right!!

I'm just rambling so credit to you Pete for the Rawness if that’s a word!

(The red line hasn't appeared under the word so I presume it is!)

Anyway, to the point: Have you got any jobs going?

On a serious note here is my question: have you always intended to break into Television?

Good luck with the future and keep it Raw for the Magicians who Magish.

Pete Firman: Raw eh, I prefer to think of myself as medium rare.

My aim was never to break into television per se, but I did daydream about it. I got the MM job in a bit of a whirlwind. I responded to a wanted ad on Magic Week that Objective had put up. I made the show-reel the day I saw the ad and sent it off. Within 3 weeks I had the job and was living in London. I've been very lucky and been working with them ever since. Keep it raw!

Jonathan Goodwin: I have misplaced my bottle opener...are you busy tonight?

Pete Firman: Baldy t**t!

(see Brainstorming post)

John Doe: [My wife] wants to know if you have a girlfriend.

She believes that magicians are 'sad' and 'geeks' which in my experience isn't generally true. However she reckons that any magicians that have made it on to TV must be height of geeky sadness and is prepared to bet a weeks worth of ironing against a weeks of pub trips that you haven't got a girlfriend (or boyfriend would count as well as long as it isn't Ali or another magician).

Pete Firman: Congrats, you just won the trips to the pub!

I have a girlfriend. I bought that DVD on how to use magic to pick up girls.

I think magicians are 'sad' and 'geeks', I know I am. Isn’t that our charm?

Mntlst: Can I ask, are we going to see a female magician or two in this series of Dirty Tricks?

Pete Firman: Girls cant do magic!

I'm joking. No women magicians in the show I'm afraid. Did you see Secret World with the Showgirls of magic? They were great!