Banachek

Banachek (born Steven Shaw; 30 November 1960) is an English mentalist and magician.

He first came to public attention as a teenager for his role in James Randi's Project Alpha experiment, which exposed the lack of objectivity in parapsychology research.

Banachek is currently a fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, a program of the Center for Inquiry, and the president of JREF.

Early life Banachek was born in England and raised in South Africa and Australia. He was abandoned at the age of nine in South Africa with his two brothers, aged one and three, and raised them by himself until he was 16.

Deciding that his given name did not sound memorable enough for a stage performer, Shaw adopted the stage name Banachek from the American detective television series Banacek. He was inspired to take up magic after reading The Truth About Uri Geller, From 1979 to 1982, Banachek and Edwards replicated numerous mentalist effects, so thoroughly convincing researchers of the authenticity of their alleged paranormal abilities that some could not later be persuaded that they had in fact been deceived. The revelation that a pair of untrained teenagers had succeeded in hoodwinking a well-funded team of scientists exposed the lax methodology and lack of scientific control rife in the field of parapsychological research

Professional accomplishments

On the television special The Search for Houdini (1987), hosted by William Shatner, Banachek performed an escape stunt in which he successfully dug his way out after being chained, handcuffed, locked in a coffin, and buried six feet underground.

In addition to touring internationally, Banachek serves as a consultant for numerous other entertainers and shows. Among the many tricks he has developed is a version of the bullet catch, a stage magic illusion in which a magician appears to catch a bullet fired directly at him. Although the bullet catch has earned a reputation for being the most dangerous magic trick, Banachek claims that his version is completely safe. Since purchasing the trick from him in 1995, Penn & Teller have developed several variations they use in their show at times. Since 2021, he has presented mentalism and magic in his show Mind Games, a multi-sensory, interactive experience at The Strat in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Media appearances

Banachek has appeared as himself and produced several television programs and shows, including An Honest Liar, Criss Angel BeLIEve, and Criss Angel Mindfreak. He toured with the stage show Hoodwinked in 2008. During his appearance on The Alpha Project show (2012), he successfully predicted newspaper headlines ten days in advance of publication. He launched the Banachek: Telepathy tour in 2017.

Debunking efforts Banachek served as director of the JREF Million Dollar Challenge, overseeing numerous tests of supposed psychics, until it was suspended in 2015.

When engaging in mentalism, Banachek provides the disclaimer that his show is "simply entertainment" and that he is not in fact a psychic, Elected as a fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, a program of the Center for Inquiry in 2017. Psychic Entertainers Association Dan Blackwood Memorial Award (for Outstanding Contribution to the Art of Mentalism), 2006.

Books and videos