Forever grateful to the medical profession and realizing I nearly lost it all, I thought the best way to demonstrate my gratitude was to develop a new manipulative(sleight of hand) act that was fit for the professional circuit.

At that time, Drew Masters & Tess were the only Scottish magic act who dressed in the tartan but simply wearing the tartan to perform magic, held no appeal for Jim Cook. It had to be different!

With much foresight, a complete special highland costume(with ‘Top-it’ vanisher & dove pockets) was designed and ordered from a kilt maker in Edinburgh. After one refit and a few adjustments here and there, it was ready for ‘Campbell McRae - The Magician’.

Before selling the new act professionally, it was tested in competition and won the Harold McMillan shield, presented by the Scottish Association of Magical Societies, for the best ten-minute act in Scotland.. The Duncan Fletcher Cup had been laid upon me the previous year - for whatever reason the donor had in mind.

As a full time professional, I toured with the 'Kensitas Show' for seventeen weeks on the South and East coasts of England and earned a three week tour with the late Frankie Vaughan show at the Tivoli theatre in Aberdeen and Theatre Royal, Dundee. The late Jimmy Shand also had me on his show several times.

Other theatre engagements were appearing for full weeks at the Gaiety Theatre in Ayr with Moira Anderson, the City Varieties in Leeds (Old Time Music Hall) and on two occasions at the Continental Palace Theatre in Hull. I was the last Scottish act to appear at the Palace in Hull before it was demolished in 1965. The brilliant ‘manipulator’ Ron McMillan was the last magician to appear at the Palace - the following and final week.

Theatres were becoming few and far between and Night Clubs, Hotels, Gambling Casinos and Working Men’s Clubs were more often the places of work.Television appearances were also acquired in the days when coloured TV was just a distant dream.  Recording every show was not economically viable and any mistakes in the live broadcasts were seen by millions of TV viewers - there was no place to hide! My magic was also appreciated in Holland, Russia and the USA.

It was also in 1965, that Campbell McRae was invited to perform his act at the Annual Convention of the International Brotherhood of Magicians in Llandudno,Wales. To perform before some of the world’s best magicians, was undoubtedly my proudest moment in magic.  

Compliments don't come easy in Show Business but here are two that I remember. Peter Warlock of the Inner Magic Circle, London, was not only a perfectionist with his magic but a respected gentleman in magic circles. So when he wrote in ‘The Linking Ring’, October 1968, and described yours truly as  “one of the world’s natural magicians”,  I knew I must have got something  right.  It had only taken me about twenty years from ‘Magic Made Easy’ to “make magic look easy”. The other compliment was offered by Reg Hallam who introduced me to his friends from England as “the finest magician that Scotland ever produced”. God bless you Reg - you’re an honest man!

My last performance as Campbell McRae was in 1969. In that year I designed and helped prepare Magic Sets for Thomas Salter Ltd. of Fife. Archie Orr of the ‘Edinburgh Tatler’ magazine, who visited the Brighton Toy Fair in 1970, described the instruction manual as “the first completely comprehensive and professionally written manual ever supplied with a magic set”. Sorry! ... that makes it three compliments I remember.

Twice I held the office of President of Kirkcaldy Magic Circle and twice won their ‘Magician of the Year’ award. However, I failed to gain honorary membership, when proposed by Jack Hogan, for being the only full-time professional member in the club. That's when I knew I had done something wrong!. Nevertheless, I still think Kirkcaldy Magic Circle was the best in Scotland. We even wrenched the Alexander Cannon Trophy, for highest contributions to magic, from the Scottish Conjurors Association in 1959 and 1963 ... thanks to Jimmy Hynd, Tom Johnston and Stewart Murray who pushed us all the way.                                                   Back

My Magic...              MyStory...               MyLife!                                      Campbell McRae.