The greatest card magic tricks in history

The ‘ambitious card’, which keeps returning to the top of the deck, the chosen card that turns up somewhere impossible, and mentalism effects are among the most famous card tricks. Magicians such as Robert-Houdin, Houdini, Dai Vernon and Spain’s Juan Tamariz made history with them.

The ambitious card

You put your card in the middle of the deck and, with a snap of the fingers, it returns to the top. Then again. And again. Dai Vernon, one of the great magicians of the 20th century, made it famous, and today almost every magician has their own version.

The card on the wall or in the wallet

You choose a card, sign it, and it ends up stuck to the ceiling, inside an orange or in the magician’s wallet. It’s a classic that each era has adapted in its own way.

Houdini, king of cards

Before he became famous for his escapology, Harry Houdini billed himself as the ‘king of cards’. Handling playing cards was his training ground.

The Spanish school

Spain has one of the most respected card magic traditions in the world. Through his routines and books, Juan Tamariz has influenced magicians around the globe.

One to try at home

If you fancy giving it a go, the 21-card trick works automatically and needs no sleight of hand: we explain it in the 21-card trick, step by step. And if you’d rather play without any tricks, here are our games.