UV Scanner

The effect

• The viewer picks a card at random and replaces it anywhere in the deck.
• The magician shuffles the cards, replaces them in their box and puts them in their pocket.
• He then produces a blank card and asks the spectator "is this your card?"
• The viewer says no, at which the magician explains it's printed with special UV ink, and takes out his Nokia, claiming "it's got a built-in UV scanner".
• They proceed to pass the mobile over the blank card, and a card appears on the screen. But it's still not the chosen card.
• The magician says "the scanner must be playing up" gives his phone a shake, and the chosen card magically appears on the screen!

How to do it

First you'll need to learn what magicians call a 'card force'. This means that the viewer believes they're picking a card at random, when in fact the magician knows in advance exactly which card will be chosen.

Here's a simple force you can do with a regular deck.

1. First have a sneaky peek at the bottom card.
2. Holding the deck face down, pull this bottom card slightly back towards you.
3. Tell the viewer to say stop when they like, and start dealing the cards from the bottom of the deck face up on the table (or into their hands). Make sure you leave the bottom card in place each time.
4. When the viewer says stop, deal the bottom card and hold it up so only they can see it.
5. They can replace this wherever they like in the deck, but you’ll know the card they’ve chosen.

Now shuffle the cards and replace them in their box.

Produce the blank card from another pocket. When the viewer says it’s not their card, explain it’s printed with UV ink which can be detected by your mobile scanner.

Here's where your Nokia comes in. Thanks to this specially created application, you can pre-select the card you're going to 'force' on the viewer before you begin.

• Click the MENU key and navigate to the APPLICATIONS folder.
• Open the MY OWN folder using the CENTRE BUTTON of the main SCROLL PAD.
• Select the UV SCANNER trick using the CENTRE BUTTON.
• Click the * KEY to select the card you’re going to force.
• Scroll through the card number and suit options using your SCROLL PAD, and make your choice with the CENTRE BUTTON.
• Force the card on the viewer as described above, then place the blank playing card on a dark surface.
• Click the CENTRE BUTTON to start the ‘UV Scanner’ and slowly move your handset lengthways over the blank card.
• The wrong card emerges at first. In what magicians call a ‘sucker trick’ you then give your phone a shake, discretely clicking the CENTRE BUTTON.
• The image magically changes to the chosen card.

Finally, pick your friend's jaw off the floor, and you're done!

* Buy your own blank card (and stuff your sleeves with loads of amazing magic tricks) at International Magic. Or make your own from a piece of white card ;)