R Paul Wilson

Oct 10, 2025

R. Paul Wilson, a writer, performer, and consultant, is best known for his work on the BBC series The Real Hustle. In this engaging discussion, he emphasizes that there are no shortcuts in magic, highlighting the importance of practice and iteration. Paul shares insights on classic routines like Vernon's Triumph and the transformative Coins Across. He delves into the creative process behind his reconstructions, the influence of music on his craft, and the concept of memorized decks. Lastly, he advocates for positivity in the magic community.

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INSIGHT

Work Is The Point

There are no shortcuts: competence, confidence and comfort come only from sustained work.
Enjoy the journey because the destination is a moving mirage.

ANECDOTE

Why Triumph Still Matters

Paul chose Dai Vernon's Triumph as his island essential because of its clarity and enduring power.
He still performs a variation he developed and calls it possibly the greatest sleight-of-hand card trick.

ADVICE

Consume The Best Version First

Read an author's best published solution first rather than consuming every variation.
Use other performers' real-world versions to inform improvements, not to drown in alternatives.

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The work is the point. That’s the pulse of this candid, wide-ranging session with R. Paul Wilson, creator, consultant, and the mind behind The Real Hustle, where we dig into what actually makes magic land: clear effects, honest timing, and an audience that edits your choices in real time. We open with a hard truth: there are no shortcuts. From Vernon’s Triumph to cups and balls, Paul shows how iteration, not novelty for novelty’s sake, transforms a trick from “doable” to “devastating.”

We trace his path through cornerstone pieces, Coins Across, Cylinder and Coins grounded in Ramsey’s discipline, and the folded card as a perfect state-change convincer. Each routine becomes a lab for tightening language, shifting moments, and cutting clutter so spectators feel the miracle before they hear it. Paul’s story about reconstructing and refining a rare take on René Lavand’s Breadcrumbs reveals what deep study looks like: research, respect, and a poetic frame that makes people care.

Then we zoom out. A guitar shows up, not as a prop, but as cross-training. Learning music sharpened his teaching, exposed the myth of “easy,” and mapped directly onto sleight-of-hand: structure practice, embrace the slog, and aim for competent, confident, and comfortable. We also step into memorised deck thinking, why Simon Aronson’s “Everybody’s Lazy” still feels impossible, and how Tamariz’s mindset unlocks new doors in any stack. Paul rounds it out with cups and balls as an act-in-a-pack and a lifelong workshop, from Elmsley and Williamson to Tommy Wonder.

Along the way, he buries one thing: resentment. We talk about healthier ways to handle influence, invention, and disagreement in a small, connected art form, private conversations over public pile-ons, and effect-first decisions over hype. If you care about building stronger routines, cleaner methods, and a better culture, you’ll feel at home here. Subscribe, share this with a friend who loves real craft, and leave a review telling us which routine or insight you’re taking back to your practice.

R Paul Wilson’s Desert Island Tricks:

Dai Vernon’s Triumph
Coins Across
Cylinder and Coins
Folded Card
Breadcrumbs
Musical Instrument
Memorised Deck
Cups and Balls

Banishment. Resentment

Book. The New Greater Magic

Item. A very good knife

Find out more about the creators of this Podcast at www.alakazam.co.uk