Derren Brown Investigates

The Mad Hatter

The first episode of Derren Brown's new show, where he investigates the claims of people who allege supernatural powers, is up on 4OD for about the next month. It's very good, and winds up with the self-proclaimed psychic Joe Power looking very much like he wants to hit Derren.

It isn't mentioned in the show, but what's interesting to me is:

In both in-the-home readings, Joe goes upstairs to "use the loo" before he does his reading. Is he sneaking around the house to find hidden information? Is that why his reading in the second house sucked?

Daftendirekt

Thanks for the link. I love Derren Brown's nonsense-debunking shows.

Have to go watch this now.

tim_holsters

Really annoyed I missed this Derren is a proper legend.

The Mad Hatter

tim_holsters wrote: »

Really annoyed I missed this Derren is a proper legend.

It's on 4OD Click the link in my first post.

kiffer

Brilliant!
I must say, for a long time I didn't like Derren Brown... but he's really grown on me.
Watch the guys eyes at the end when Derren is asking if he's fake...

The Mad Hatter

kiffer wrote: »

Brilliant!
I must say, for a long time I didn't like Derren Brown... but he's really grown on me.
Watch the guys eyes at the end when Derren is asking if he's fake...

I know, they looked ready to jump out of his skull!

Yeah, I know a lot of people find Derren hard to put up with at first. (I originally thought he was a fraud himself.) He comes off as smug and pretentious. His book, Tricks of the Mind, really changed the way I look at a lot of things, though, and remains one of the very few non-fiction books I've ever really enjoyed.

OhThePenguin

Really enjoyed watchin that myself.

I noticed that about your spoiler as well, creepy...

Busi_Girl08

Huge Derren Brown fan, the show was brilliant, and I really must commend Derren's restraint in not decking Power in his smug head. :mad:
(Looks like someone beat him to it though, did you see that dent?! :eek:)

That second Hollyoaks guy that Joe read, I couldn't help but notice that he got the bike thing wrong, but when he got the grandmother bit right (Early 20s guy, not rocket science that he may have lost a grandparent recently), and he completely forgot about the bike bit, and deemed it a "good reading"

It just goes to show how people like Power prey on the vulnerable. He gets them to fit the rest of it together. While it may be comforting for bereaved, it is grotesquely manipulative, especially if he is charging them £40 a reading :rolleyes:

People like him make me sick.

Dr. Loon

Haven't seen the show yet - I've sky+'d it, but this Joe Power dude has put a statement up on his site;
http://www.joepower.co.uk/joe-power-news.html

Busi_Girl08

Still blaming everyone else, I see. And with the same auld poor grasp of grammar and spelling at we all know him and loath him for.

His solicitor isn't someone to write home about either.

The Mad Hatter

Busi_Girl08 wrote: »

Huge Derren Brown fan, the show was brilliant, and I really must commend Derren's restraint in not decking Power in his smug head. :mad:
(Looks like someone beat him to it though, did you see that dent?! :eek:)

Yeah, nasty. But Joe looked far closer to violence throughout the second half. Interestingly, someone commented on Derren's blog claiming to have gone to school with Joe, and claiming that Joe was a bully in school. Wouldn't surprise me to learn it's true.

Still. I loved Joe's "Not hits, facts." I'd say he'd planned that stunt with the Hollyoaks girl beforehand, and didn't expect Derren to be nearly as accurate as he was.

Pittens

I originally thought he was a fraud himself…

He's a magician! He admits it's a trick.

Of course part of his misdirection is pretending he is playing mind games when he is playing normal magical tricks.

Pittens

Joe Psychic Fraud wrote:

I was aware Derren was a celebrity sceptic but did not for one minute believe the programme makers would undertake underhand tactics like changing clients names and their personal details to prohibit a true reading like they did with “Pam”.

Now why would that make a difference.

The Mad Hatter

Pittens wrote: »

He's a magician! He admits it's a trick.

Of course part of his misdirection is pretending he is playing mind games when he is playing normal magical tricks.

Yup, but until I started to understand his tricks and illusions, I thought he used cheap gimmicks like audience plants and such.

That said, the lottery prediction was a cheap gimmick.

King Mob

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

That said, the lottery prediction was a cheap gimmick.

I wouldn't call it cheap...

ShumanTheHuman

Busi_Girl08 wrote: »

His solicitor isn't someone to write home about either.

He might as well have gotten his milkman's opinion for all his solicitor adds to it.

Busi_Girl08

It probably was his milkman.

tim_holsters

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

It's on 4OD Click the link in my first post.

Thanks for that will do so later.

ShooterSF

What I can't figure out is why none of Joe's dead relatives in the spirit world didnt pop down to warn him he was being had. They must really hate him

King Mob

If people enjoyed watching the psychic squirm when he'd been exposed, you'll love this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OP7v6q5vH1Y

Daftendirekt

And here's another funny one I saw in the related features to King Mob's vid:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKyzBe0CA2Q

King Mob

Daftendirekt wrote: »

And here's another funny one I saw in the

Ugh...
She really makes my skin crawl.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/oct/27/usa.jonronson

Somnus

Definitely gonna watch this.

Did anyone here go to see his live show in the Olympia last year? It was absolutely fantastic.

He's great at what he does. Although the live show is a lot more theatrical.

Highlight of the night: Doing a seance type thing with people in the audience where they have their hands on a table and it starts moving. He told them not to push or anything. It starts moving faster and he goes holds the mic up to each person with their hands on it askign "are you pushing?"
Most say know but he gets to one guy and you just hear him with his big Dub accent going "Yeeah" and laughing

The Mad Hatter

Dr.Poca wrote: »

Definitely gonna watch this.

Did anyone here go to see his live show in the Olympia last year? It was absolutely fantastic.

Enigma? Nope, but I saw it a couple of weeks ago in the Grand Canal Theatre

iBumblebeetuna

There's a great little website called scince of scams that Derren and a Scientist have put together. It basically debunks various paranormal claims such as the ouija board and shows how they are done.

If nothing else it will show you how to set up "Peppers Ghost" for a good scare when the kids come calling next halloween...
http://www.scienceofscams.com/

Daftendirekt

iBumblebeetuna wrote: »

If nothing else it will show you how to set up "Peppers Ghost" for a good scare when the kids come calling next halloween...
http://www.scienceofscams.com/

Saw that a while ago and I've wanted to try it out on someone ever since .

Great illusion and so simple.

GLaDOS

Watched it last night, very interesting. Your man wasn't happy at all

Benny Lava

Wow.

Joe took part in this to enhance his reputation as someone who genuinely contacts the dead, and ended up looking like a fraudulent twat who feeds off the gullible when they are at their most vulnerable.

What an arrogant fool, he always tries to blame everyone else when he can't get his reading right (which just so happens to be whenever he is doing a reading for someone who doesn't live near his sister).

All power to Derren Brown. I hope he exposes all these frauds in this series and if at all possible finally end the career of that other Scouse git, Derek Acorah.

eoin5

joe wrote:

I believed I would be making an informative and constructive debate into the life of a psychic. It soon became aware that this was not going to happen.

Yea, its sucks not being able to see things coming.

amacachi

Probably my favorite part of the show was the fact that he was in Liverpool and twice tried to fall back on James/Jimmy and it didn't work. :pac:

kiffer

eoin5 wrote: »

Yea, its sucks not being able to see things coming.

To be honest you'd have to be a bit dim to think that Derren Brown was going to paint you in a good light...

Somnus

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Enigma? Nope, but I saw it a couple of weeks ago in the Grand Canal Theatre

I can't remember the name of it actually. But the clips at the start of the program were from the same run of shows by the look of it. It was fantastic.

And that was a great program. Derren is an absolute legend. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

The Mad Hatter

Dr.Poca wrote: »

I can't remember the name of it actually. But the clips at the start of the program were from the same run of shows by the look of it. It was fantastic.

And that was a great program. Derren is an absolute legend. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

Ohh! That's Something Wicked This Way Comes! I'd have loved to see that one live!

It and his third one, Evening of Wonders, are both on 4OD's YouTube channel, along with pretty much everything else he's done.

What do you mean "fanboy"?!

The Mad Hatter

Benny Lava wrote: »

Joe took part in this to enhance his reputation as someone who genuinely contacts the dead, and ended up looking like a fraudulent twat who feeds off the gullible when they are at their most vulnerable.

I think he was hoping to show that he could out-psychic Derren. That was probably the point of his little stunt with the Hollyoaks girl - he probably figured "ok, now I'll get Derren to do a reading for her, because I've seen that she drives a Mini, so I can show him up."

Of course, he wouldn't have expected Derren to have done so well (unusual blue cats, Maldives, recent end-of-relationship), so his "Y'see, Derren, I deal in FACTS" came off a bit flat. And the "don't worry about the affair" (or whatever his words were) at the end was just nasty.

strobe

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

And the "don't worry about the affair" (or whatever his words were) at the end was just nasty.

I noticed that aswell. Completely agree. He was pissed off about Derren nailing the fake reading but instead of having a go at him, because he knows where that would have led, he chooses to make a nasty comment to your girl, that he hopes will upset her, to make himself feel better. What a scumbag.

FouxDaFaFa

King Mob wrote: »

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/oct/27/usa.jonronson

That's a really incredible article.On the one hand you can maybe justify the existence of psychics because they offer some form of comfort to those who need it.But then there are people like her who cause an horrific amount of hurt with a shockingly casual attitude.She is purely out for profit and it's clear from the article she doesn't give a crap about her fans.Her proclomations about the fate of missing children made me feel sick.

A girl in her 30s stood up, really young. She said, 'I haven't been feeling well. What do you think is wrong with me?' And Sylvia replied, 'Do you want the truth, honey? You'll be dead in two years.'"

It's just disgusting.

I'm glad Derren is doing a show like this.Really enjoyed ths first one and am looking forward to the second.Thought Science of Scams was very well done as well

Canis Lupus

Finally caught it on 4OD last night. It was excruciating, but enjoyable, to watch Derren politely take him apart piece by piece.

The Mad Hatter

strobe wrote: »

I noticed that aswell. Completely agree. He was pissed off about Derren nailing the fake reading but instead of having a go at him, because he knows where that would have led, he chooses to make a nasty comment to your girl, that he hopes will upset her, to make himself feel better. What a scumbag.

No, I don't think that was it. I think he said it so that if there had been an affair, it would have been a big hit, if she suspected one, it would have confirmed it for her, and if there hadn't, he'd try to pass it off as a joke. He did try to pass it off as a joke, and it's only because Derren wouldn't let it go that it really stood out.

Weidii

I found it funny when he asked the girl about the Mini. I mean, why would spirits of dead people come to tell him what sort of car she has now?

It absolutely infuriates me though, the lies and manipulation. It's disgusting, taking people's money and feeding them with faux-science "spirit world" bs. (A lot like something else we discuss on this forum.) Did anyone else notice that he never actually tells them any messages from the spirits? He just grasps at straws 'til he convinces them that he has contacted someone, then cuts it off. When your wan at the end asked him what the spirit was actually telling him he became really uncomfortable and changed the subject.

It occurred to me that maybe the people who believe this stuff deserve to have their money taken, but in reality no. Nobody deserves to be brainwashed or emotionally manipulated and to have to pay to do it.

Canis Lupus

Weidii wrote: »

I found it funny when he asked the girl about the Mini. I mean, why would spirits of dead people come to tell him what sort of car she has now?

It absolutely infuriates me though, the lies and manipulation. It's disgusting, taking people's money and feeding them with faux-science "spirit world" bs. (A lot like something else we discuss on this forum.) Did anyone else notice that he never actually tells them any messages from the spirits? He just grasps at straws 'til he convinces them that he has contacted someone, then cuts it off. When your wan at the end asked him what the spirit was actually telling him he became really uncomfortable and changed the subject.

It occurred to me that maybe the people who believe this stuff deserve to have their money taken, but in reality no. Nobody deserves to be brainwashed or emotionally manipulated and to have to pay to do it.

Well you're in the right forum to vent about people believing in stupid things

rccaulfield

Just watched it there- Doubt ANY of joes supporters will bother watching it and even if they do they'll think he did well! I learnt a bit about cold reading- Thanks for the link!

DeBunny

You'd think the spirits would have told Joe his arse crack was showing as he was going into the last house.

Hey, maybe he his genuine but every one in the spirit world just think he's a prat :pac:

SoupyNorman

I really liked the fact that the show wasnt left open-ended. Derren had pretty much disproved Joe's claims or found solid evidence to discredit his 'hits'. Vanda being a next door neighbor to Joes sister, this was just the perfect ending to an already great show.

What I couldn't understand was, with all the spirits contacting him and telling him various 'facts', they/he never gave names or if he did he only through out the most popular names like 'Paul'. I mean ask a room full of people, "does anyone know a Paul"...

In my opinion, Derren had to put some effort into not totally tearing his reputation to shreds, Joe was presented with multiple opportunities to prove himself and he either failed of refused to take part.

Joe Power is not a nice person.

DeBunny

Yeah, give someone enough rope..........

Although I do think Derren could have been a bit more opinionated. He kinda took it easy on Joe and his ilk.
He left it up to people to decide for themselves. Those who believe in this nonsense need a lot of convincing.

Daftendirekt

DeBunny wrote: »

Yeah, give someone enough rope..........

Although I do think Derren could have been a bit more opinionated. He kinda took it easy on Joe and his ilk.
He left it up to people to decide for themselves. Those who believe in this nonsense need a lot of convincing.

That's kind of his thing though... He'll never come out and directly say 'it's all bollocks', he'll always take the 'I'm not saying there are no psychics, just that it's possible to do this without actually having supernatural powers' approach.

I always thought it was just an attempt to make his show as inoffensive as possible to people who do believe in this stuff.

MrPudding

Daftendirekt wrote: »

I always thought it was just an attempt to make his show as inoffensive as possible to people who do believe in this stuff.

I prefer to think that it is him simply admitting that it is something we can't know. A bit like atheism.

MrP

Kooli

MrPudding wrote: »

I prefer to think that it is him simply admitting that it is something we can't know. A bit like atheism.

MrP

I don't think it is.

I think it's that he wants to appear open minded, as if his mind isn't made up before the show begins. He's trying not to make it appear that he is prejudiced from the start, thereby making it more convincing at the end when he believes Joe to be a fake.

Dave!

DeBunny wrote: »

Yeah, give someone enough rope..........

Although I do think Derren could have been a bit more opinionated. He kinda took it easy on Joe and his ilk.
He left it up to people to decide for themselves. Those who believe in this nonsense need a lot of convincing.

Well he did confront him towards the end and ask him if he's a fake, etc.! He had to spend the week with him, so I guess he didn't wanna introduce too much hostility on Monday morning

DeBunny

I still think he could have been more outspoken about people who claim to talk to the ''spigot whorled'', as Joe would say.
His focus was on Joe rather than mediums in general and their nasty habit of taking advantage of the bereaved. I was expecting him to be a bit more confrontational in this regard.
Then again people will believe what they want. Going on the offensive can have the opposite effect. I'm sure he's planted plenty of seeds of doubt. I suppose aggressive exposes aren't Derren Brown's style.

The Mad Hatter

Second one's on tonight.

mehfesto

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Second one's on tonight.

Sounds amazing.
Going after Scientology? He nut have balls the size of watermelons. And impressive lawyers too.