Beloved Magician Paul Daniels Dies At 77

TV magician, Paul Daniels' family announced in February that he had been diagnosed with a brain tumour and at the beginning of March, he returned home to spend his last days surrounded by his family. They were uncertain how long Daniels had to live and sadly it transpired it was not more than a couple of weeks. He passed away yesterday surrounded by loved ones. The TV star discovered magic at the tender age of 11 and developed an immediate fascination with performing. He even performed for his fellow servicemen during his national service. He made is television debut in 1070 on talent show Opportunity Knocks. Fellow magician Keith Barry spoke to Ryan Tubridy on RTÉ Radio 1 this morning about the influence of the showbiz stalwart:

"It's about the fun and the patter and his patter was always clean patter. For Paul Daniels, it was all about family and having fun which is where he won the most; you could bring a 2-year-old and a 90-year-old to one of his shows." "This will resonate throughout the world."

Another listener tells of serving Daniels and his wife in a Dublin bar many years ago and reports that the magician did tricks with the money he was trying to retrieve from him. Our thoughts are with his wife and showbiz partner, Debbie McGee and his three sons. Main image via YouTube