The Unpleasant World Of Penn And Teller – tape 1653

Over to Channel 4 for The Unpleasant World of Penn & Teller. Jonathan Ross’s production company snapped up the duo when they were virtually unknown over here, for a six episode series, which showcases some of their best illusions, and some new stuff too.

This episode features Stephen Fry losing a much loved watch.

My recording is missing a tiny bit after the ad break, annoyingly, where I paused for the adverts and didn’t restart quickly enough.

This broadcast is from January 7th 1994.

This tape is missing the next episode, which featured John Cleese.

Before the next episode there’s the end of an episode of Nurses.

The next episode has Penn juggling. He does juggling with broken bottles, a feat which has occasionally caused him to cut his hands quite badly.

Guest on this episode is Dawn French.

Penn also does his fire-eating act.

January 21st 1994.

Another snatch of the Nurses before the next episode, which features guest Fiona Fullerton, and teaches the whole audience how to do a trick with a fork, a milk portion, and your eye.

And in “King of Animal Traps” Teller does some trapeze work.

Here’s the whole episode.

From January 28th 1994.

The next episode starts off with some science experiments, including one featuring their pet mouse Billary (named after our president).

Guest on this show is Alexei Sayle.

They do the world’s most expensive card trick, involving (allegedly) Teller using a computer vision system to identify the card missing from a pack, and transmit the name of the card to a large screen in Piccadilly Circus. The ‘MOFO Electronics’ here is a reference to an old bulletin board that they used to run. MOFO was a mind reading gorilla that used to appear in their act, and the BB was named after him. There’s still part of their website referencing MOFO that gives tour dates.

From February 4th 1994.

The final episode of the series features Christopher Reeve as the guest star. They aren’t allowed to do the bullet catch, so they do a ‘lima bean’ catch.

They do their famous cups and balls trick (with see through cups)

There’s a sawing Teller into halves trick.

Then Penn & Teller meet Christopher Reeve and visit the Magic Circle. I still get sad watching Christopher Reeve.

From 11th February 1994.

Finally on this tape is another Penn & Teller show, this time from the US, Don’t Try This At Home. They teach the entire audience how to do the ‘national magic trick’ – vanishing a hankerchief.

Then they do ‘Lift Off to Love’ – a cheesy illusion which they replay with see-through props.

Saturday Night Live cast member Victoria Jackson is one of the guest stars.

There’s a fair amount of overlap between this special and the Channel 4 show, so we get the fire-eating seduction routine, and then ‘King of Animal Traps’.

Then, they do a routine where they produce thousands of bees.

Another guest, Jane Curtin, also from Saturday Night Live, performs a cut and restored ribbon trick while the rest of the audience left the theatre to watch the big finale illusion. She also does ‘The Infected Ear’.

Then, the show’s big climax, where they drive a truck over Teller outside Radio City Music Hall.

Here’s the whole show.

The recording stops right after this programme.

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