11 Banachek
and I would have talked to him because it ’ s a dangerous stunt . If he had said ‘ I ’ m going to do it ’ I would have tried to talk him out of it . And if he said ‘ I ’ m going to do it anyway ’ I would have said ‘ OK , this is what you need to know .”
Banachek explains that Joe ’ s downfall was that he lacked any effective method . “ His coffin was way too thin . People think it ’ s because of the cement that went on top – no . I don ’ t want to give too much of the method away but you should not be in that coffin at that point anyway ,” he alludes .
“ After I started reading all the Houdini material , I realised there was very little that Houdini did that was actually dangerous . Don ’ t get me wrong , there ’ s always an X factor . When you go in a crate underwater , something can get
“ I ’ ve lived the lives of 10 or 12 human beings .” stuck and things can happen , sure . But really , the method was simple yet deceptive . It just just looked dangerous .”
No wonder Banachek , the most in-demand consultant by the world ’ s top magicians and mentalists , doesn ’ t get stressed in water torture-esque style escapes . Quite the opposite : Banachek actually thrives under pressure .
“ I ’ m dyslexic . So I think backwards and I work best under pressure . I ’ m a troubleshooter ,” he shares , reflecting on the consulting work for Criss Angel ’ s TV show Mindfreak . “ If you have an idea of something you want to do , I will find a way to make it happen .
When he consulted on Mindfreak , his creativity and resourcefulness was catapulted by demand . “ The first season we were only supposed to do seven shows . They said ‘ We have good news and bad news . The good news is they want another 16 episodes . The bad news is they want it now .’ Put that in to perspective . Blaine would take six months to a year to do a one-hour special , and we were shooting one and a half shows a week and we had to deliver , because each show was being aired .”
Uri Geller and Banachek