AMAR is an award-winning charity working in the Middle East. They improve the lives of some of the world's poorest and most disadvantaged people. The Patron of the charity is Prince Charles (also a Member of The Magic Circle!).
I was hired to perform at their Gala Dinner at The Savoy in London. The event raised thousands of pounds for the charity, and was an absolute pleasure to be part of.
You can read more about the work that AMAR do at www.amarfoundation.org
Last weekend I was flown off to Stavanger in Norway for a corporate event. I was performing close up magic for the 500 guests in the newly-opened and amazing Clarion Hotel Air (conveniently located just minutes from the Airport!) The audience were fantastically responsive, and the event was a real pleasure to be a part of.
Yesterday saw the Capital One Cup Final between Liverpool and Manchester City. I was performing close-up magic at the pre-match dinner in the Bobby Moore Room. Here's a few pictures of some guests enjoying the table magic.
I was hired as magic consultant for a promo video for Umbro which required a couple of illusions. The video, featuring Ben Hanlin winding up sports shop customers, was to promote Umbro's new Medusae Football Boot.
Watch the video below to see a couple of boot-related magic tricks.
Tonight I had the pleasure of performing before a very special match at Wembley Stadium. It was the England v France International friendly, just days after the attacks on Paris.
As a capacity crowd sang La Marseillaise, the French national anthem, the atmosphere was incredible.
The Royal Variety Performance returned to the Royal Albert Hall this year and was attended by HRH Prince Harry for the very first time.
Along with a team of Magic Circle magicians, I performed at the After-Show party at the Hilton, Park Lane, London. This is the 4th year I've performed at this event, and despite the late finish, it's always a pleasure.
After watching the show, the guests are always really keen to see magic up close, and it always gets a great response.
I’ve just signed a contract with ITV Studios to co-write and magic produce the third series of ITV2′s Tricked. Along with Nigel Mead, we’ll be creating another 6x1hr episodes to be shown later in 2015. This will be keeping be pretty busy until June!
Below is a clip from the second series showing an illusion we created to lead Joey Essex to believe he'd witnessed Ben travelling through time.
Last night I attended a glamorous awards ceremony at The Brewery, where Tricked Series 1 picked up the award for ‘Best Entertainment Show’. Beating competition from Made In Chelsea, Release The Hounds, The Revolution Will Be Televised, Sexy Beasts and magic show, Troy. Renowned within the industry, the Broadcast Digital Channel Awards have been recognising innovation and creativity for the past ten years.
Judges said: ‘Tricked boosted Thursday night on ITV2 and provided a strong inheritance for Keith Lemon’s Celebrity Juice’, they described Ben as a ‘fresh, engaging new talent’ and said the show ‘brought panache and innovation to a familiar genre’.
We’ve nearly finished series 2 which will be on in September.
This morning I received a letter from the president of The Magic Circle telling me that I’ve been promoted! I’m now a member of The Inner Magic Circle with Gold Star.
Membership of The Inner Magic Circle is the Society’s highest Degree and is limited to a maximum of 300 Members at any time. Current holders include David Copperfield, Paul Daniels, Lance Burton, Andy Nyman, Hans Klok and James Randi.
I’m delighted to be honoured in this way, and makes a great start to 2013!
The Sealife London Aquarium and Sternberg Clarke recently created a promotional video featuring me performing some fishy magic. Have a look at the video below.