Hosted by Jden Redden and Andrew Lymn-Penning, Reading Minds offers up a whole new take on magic shows. Using a variety of props from mobile phones to McDonald’s, the duo exhibit their skills at mind reading while involving the audience in a series of interactive demonstrations of their skill.

Andrew was late, wearing a stained shirt and laden with a big bag of McDonald’s. He was quite happy to talk about the new ‘Create Your Taste’ range and, with the help of the audience, put together a request for a burger. This, miraculously, was the burger inside the bag.

Before the show, audience members were approached to be a part of a later ‘Guess Who’ game. The staff organising the photographs were friendly, assisting with the photography and providing detailed instructions for audience participation. The later game used painting and a mobile phone, with the audience members as game pieces. Andrew was able to not only guess who, but paint a reasonably accurate portrait as well.

At times, it was clear that the audience didn’t know how to react. Were we supposed to notice that wire suspending the lightbulb midair? Were we supposed to see behind some of their tricks or was that all just by chance? Admittedly, not all their tricks were easy to decipher. The eye tests were downright confusing and the lightbulb remains a mystery. But what about the bullet catch? Well, that was certainly impressive – who wouldn’t want to see a live bullet catch? However, the event seemed almost anti-climactic and could have be improved with a little more showmanship.

Overall the magic and mind reading was excellent. Unfortunately, despite the exciting and original content, the show was a let down as the hosts appeared much too casual for their role as magicians.