RADIO

15 July 1932: Jasper's first radio broadcast. 'There’s Magic in the Air' was a 60-minute show broadcast on the BBC. Magic is not a natural medium for radio but Jasper attempted to bridge the gap with a novel type of programme.

“Jasper Maskelyne, prince of visible wizardry, has been captured by the spell of the invisible magic of wireless. Thought of it conjures up for him not rabbits or evanescent ladies, but a vision of the magic in broadcasting, in music, and in the human voice, tossed across continents and centuries, and above all in listening. With John McDonnell’s aid, he has translated his vision into a Radio Revue of a most unusual kind. To conclude, Jasper Maskelyne promises to produce one or two Big Tricks from the Hat. ‘Hold Everything,’ everybody!”⁠

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Image Credit: BBC Radio Times.

3 December 1937: Jasper appeared as a talking head on a BBC radio broadcast titled 'Entertainment at St. George’s Hall, 1867-1937'. A celebration of St. George’s Hall in its 70th anniversary year, the programme took listeners on a journey through the history of St. George's, including its 28-years as the home of Maskelyne and Devant's Mysteries and Maskelyne’s Theatre of Mystery.

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Image credit: BBC Radio Times.

In late summer 1941, while deployed to North Africa as an Army officer, Jasper took part in a radio programme recorded there and broadcast back in the UK. Another personality on the broadcast was Bill Bowes, a famous cricketer-turned-army officer (who was an amateur magician).

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Image credit: Public domain.