New Thinking: Hey Presto!
Arts & Ideas
BBC
4.2 • 599 Ratings
🗓️ 9 December 2020
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Magic in medicine, surgery, and business; cross-dressing on the panto stage; and the history of pantomime and magic. Lisa Mullen is joined by Kate Newey, Will Houston, and Naomi Paxton.
Naomi Paxton is a researcher at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, a magician and performer as Ada Campe, and is a member of the Magic Circle and their first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Officer. Her research includes popular entertainment and the suffragettes, and she has performed as a magician's assistant. Her recent book is Stage rights! The Actresses’ Franchise League, activism and politics 1908–58, and she is a BBC/AHRC New Generation Thinker - http://www.naomipaxton.co.uk/
Will Houston of Imperial College London is a magician and historian of magic, who looks at how magic can be used in medicine, surgery, business and accountancy. He is Honorary Research Associate in the Faculty of Medicine at Imperial College London, and is the Imperial College London/Royal College of Music Centre for Performance Science's Magician in Residence. He is also a member of the Magic Circle - http://drhoustoun.co.uk/
Kate Newey is Professor in Drama at the University of Exeter who has been researching pantomime and is also involved in a project looking at theatre and visual culture in the nineteenth century - https://theatreandvisualculture19.wordpress.com/
You can find more conversations about New Research in this playlist - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03zws90
And this playlist, focused on discussions, essays, and features involving New Generation Thinkers, including Naomi Paxton's exploration of Suffragette Punch and Judy - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08zhs35
A Free Thinking discussion about Playing God in medieval drama - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0000v24
A Free Thinking discussion about Ice, including the use of stage effects in seventeenth century drama - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0001jzq
This episode was made in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council, part of UKRI.
Producer: Emma Wallace
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Can I just say? |
| 0:01.5 | You're about to listen to a BBC podcast. |
| 0:04.0 | It's such a wonderful listen. |
| 0:05.6 | So nice. |
| 0:06.5 | There are loads more like it on BBC sounds. |
| 0:08.8 | Different paces, different heights. |
| 0:10.6 | The roof is buckling. |
| 0:11.9 | Where you can also listen to live sports commentary. |
| 0:14.2 | It's right foot goes for goal. |
| 0:16.7 | And then enjoy even more podcasts full of analysis and reaction to the big stories. |
| 0:21.6 | The stat that is astonishing is they ended with the lowest amount of possession. |
| 0:25.2 | And she's had to live with that. |
| 0:26.8 | So if you love sport, a passion, it's almost like a religion. |
| 0:29.7 | Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:31.7 | Sort of expecting that every week now. |
| 0:34.6 | I'm Lisa Mullen and welcome to an episode of the Arts and Ideas podcast in our new thinking |
| 0:39.1 | strand which showcases the latest academic research. So let me invite you to listen on. |
| 0:45.1 | Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, it's time to take your seats in the free thinking |
| 0:49.0 | playhouse for the most magical show of the year. Outside all is darkness. |
| 0:55.0 | Some theatres remain closed. |
| 0:57.0 | Sugar plum fairies are rooted to the ground |
| 0:59.0 | and rabbits remain firmly in hats. |
... |
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