A 15-year-old magician walks down a street in Los Angeles and strangers pull cars over just to have a photo with him and demand a trick. That’s the level of spotlight Harry Merlin Piper is living in after placing as runner-up on Netflix Star Search!

We sit down with Harry to get the real behind-the-scenes story: the Instagram message that kicked it off, the intensity of a competition TV schedule, and the nightmare scenario every illusionist fears, props delayed in transit while directors are waiting. He shares what it takes to rehearse major stage illusions on a ticking clock, how being a kid means mandatory schooling and strict set hours, and why constant live performing at the House of Illusion in Salou, Spain gives him an edge most young performers never get.

Then we dive into the magical island game: Harry drafts the eight tricks he’d keep forever, from his monkey vent routine and high-energy manipulation act to double levitation, suspended animation, Invisible Deck, fire spiker and chop cup. Along the way we get a sharp take on exposure culture, why revealing methods online damages creators and audiences, and why magic matters most when it helps people forget real life for a while.

Harry’s Desert Island Tricks: 

1. Monkey Vent Routine

2. Manipulation Act

3. Double levitation

4. Invisible Deck

5. Suspended Animation

6. Fire Spiker Y

7. Chop Cup 

8. His Dad

Banishment. Magicians who Reveal Magic 

Book. People around him

Item. Black Velvet Material 

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