Abracadabra! How magic is gaining ground with a new generation

Magicians have been blowing audiences away on TV shows once again, and amassing millions of followers on social media.

- Sammy Gecsoyler

With this has come the rise of tutorial videos showing anybody at home how to pull off their own routines. It was not always this way. For one, revealing the secrets behind the world of magic would get you blacklisted.

The magician's cape was also once the preserve of a select few.

So selective was the world of magic that one woman, Sophie Lloyd, posed as a man to join the Magic Circle 30 years ago at a time when women were barred from becoming members. Lloyd, who was expelled in 1991 when her deception was exposed, was readmitted this week.

So how is life for a magician today? The Guardian ventured down to Covent Garden in central London, the public stage where performers can show off their skills.

Cam Clarke, 27, has been interested in magic since he was five years old after his grandparents brought him a magic kit from Las Vegas. "They had the cups and balls, which is what I've gone on to do in my show."

At the end of his routine, Clark pulls out six tennis balls from cups and then a pineapple from a hat.