Basic Concepts
A shuffle can scramble positions while leaving a count untouched.
The programme
Twenty-two tricks in seven sections
Each trick goes with a performance lecture, but every trick page stands on its own: try it, lift the curtain, then take it to the table. Start anywhere.
Hummer Shuffles
Cut and turn two cards together as often as you like. Something refuses to mix.
- Baby HummerOpposite positions stay matesFour cards, mixed by your own hands. Your card ends up as the one facing the other way.
- Always Five Face UpTwo lanes, one balanceTen cards, cut and turned however you like. Turn over every second card, and exactly five end up face up.
- The Lonely CardA defect that travelsCut and turn two at a time, then secretly turn one card over. It ends up the only one facing the other way.
- Royal HummerFace and position, read togetherTwelve shuffled cards, nine of your leave-or-turn choices, and a royal flush comes out face down.
Order Matters
A deck arranged so that every short run of colours happens exactly once.
- Five Colours, Five CardsA de Bruijn cycleTell me only the colours of five cards. I'll name all five.
- One Rank, One SuitTwo cycles in stepName one card's value and the next card's suit. All three cards are named.
- Your First Colour-Window RoutineEvery four-colour window onceCut sixteen cards, deal four, and say only their colours. All four are named.
- Gold & SilverRelative order as an addressPoint out the highest and the lowest of three cards, and all three are named.
The Gilbreath Principle
One honest riffle shuffle, and the order still survives in blocks.
- Perfectly Mixed PairsGilbreath's first principleDeal some cards into a pile and riffle as messily as you like. Every pair from the top is still one red, one black.
- The Lie DetectorComplementary pilesCall out the colour of each card you look at, truthfully or not. The verdict is right every time.
- Four Suits SurviveGilbreath's general principleCut, deal some, riffle once. Every group of four taken from the top still holds one card of each suit.
- The Spectator Deals PokerEvery prefix is an intervalYou split, riffle and deal twice. Hand 1 is a flush, hand 5 a straight, and the flush wins.
Count Out and Transfer
Deal a few, drop the rest on top. Repeat, and the packet comes home.
- Three Scoop MiracleCount out and transferShuffle, remember the bottom card, and spell an ice-cream flavour three times. Your card rises to the top.
- The Middle CardA preserved centreSpell any three words from the menu, keep the odd pile, and the last card left is the one you chose.
- Nine Cards, One NamedA position every name protectsRemember the third of nine cards, name any card at all, and spell it twice. Your card is third again.
Assorted Tricks
Base three, Fibonacci numbers and clock arithmetic, each hiding in a deal.
- The 27-Card TrickWriting in base threeName a number from 1 to 27 and think of a card. After three deals, your card is at exactly that number.
- Little FibsDistinct pair sumsChoose two of six cards and tell me only their total. I'll name both.
- Last Cards MatchCommon multiples on clocksChoose which packet to rotate, eleven moves a round. Every discarded pair matches, and so do the last two cards.
The Best Card Trick
Four cards, laid in a row, name a fifth that nobody has seen.
- Four Cards Name the FifthA repeated suit, a short arcChoose five cards. My assistant shows four. I name the fifth.
- Hide the Key CardA computed anchorChoose any five cards. Four in a row name the fifth, and no position is special.
- The 124-Card FinaleHall's theorem, made explicit by arithmeticFive cards drawn from a deck of 124. Four shown, the fifth named.