Firstly welcome back to the blog!
Apologies for the down time on the site over the weekend. Seems as though a large number of sites all got hit (including a few government ones). Should all be fine now, we are just waiting for google to take the remaining malware messages off (they say it can take a day or so).
In case you haven’t heard, Derren’s new series starts Tonight 10pm.
We’ve created a new section on the blog especially for the series so you have a place to discuss it during and after each show.
Click here to head over to the Derren Brown Investigates page. (Or find it in the menus at the top under “TV Shows”)
Enjoy!
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Can’t wait!
Can’t wait! It’s like ‘Messiah’… but the other way round. I wonder what the chances are of these people admitting they’re fakes if confronted ouright?
I really enjoyed the Enigma show last night at the BIC Bournemouth.
I was left spell bound by the whole experience.
Am looking forward to channel 4 show tonight.
Thank you Derren for the hard work you put in to all your projects to keep us glued to our seats and addicted to all you know.
Will absolutely, totally, definitely, certainly, unquestionably, 100% be watching!
Hello to Derren, not very often a performance merits it but saw the show in the BIC in Bournemouth last night, absolutely fantastic. Left buzzing about the show. Ours is not to work out how, but just to enjoy!
this is going to be great…But I have to say…I have been sceptical in my old age but one thing that has always intrigued me is EVP I have heard some tapes that are just plain weird. Can anyone give me a rational explanation? It cant just be wanting to hear what you want to hear because some tapes are very very clear and specific. Its kind of annoying!
do all our minds still belong to you?
Absolutely cannot wait.
Plus, it’s only like a month and 10 days until I go to see the Enigma show in Sunderland.
Fun times!
(first comment, by the way
)
wow, hacker attack! welcome to the bigtime, youse guys!
Can’t wait. Been hoping you would do something like this.
Keep an open mind and stay on the ethical high ground.
Wouldn’t it be great if they tricked you, just for a minute or two? Not very likely though.
Am so glad the blog is back up and running now. I miss it so much when it’s down. Abeo & Phillis…..my heartfelt thanks for all you’ve done!
And I shall definitely be tuning in tonight at 10pm on Channel 4….. Derren on TV is always an event never to be missed.
LC x
Can’t wait to see Derren make those frauds look foolish!
cant wait! should be awsome
Can you get them to play this on BBC America? please!
awww… I wana see this…
why don’t we get British television here in Canada!
argh!
D:
oh well… will have to find some other way to watch it.
This programme is reminding me of when my partner & I saw Mr.Acora – he was pleasingly camp & unconvincing. Soon I started to become aware of the lady next to me with her husband, every now and then murmuring that it could be her father Derek was speaking to, until someone else spoke up. After referring to a heart attack victim that no one responded to, he moved on. She became convinced it must have been her father trying to come through & she’d missed him. She approached Derek afterwards, saying she thought he’d been talking to her father, but she’d not spoken up. Smiling & distracted he told her to come back, because if he wanted to talk to her he’d come through again. She was clearly distressed by missing her dad & he’d basically told her to buy another ticket. It was horrible to see.
As an addition to my previous comment (it’s waiting to be checked for rudenesses & spam, so I’m not sure if this one will turn up next to it): I was SO unimpressed with Derek’s response – having sat next to this nice lady, who’d been hoping each spirit would be her dad, I thought the very *least* Derek could have done was said “Don’t worry, it wasn’t your dad, because if it was he’d be here with you now” or something along those lines. It would have been the kind & humane thing to do.
Incidentally, his best hit of the night, when he got some very specific details right first time, was less impressive when the cheerful lady he was talking to mentioned that she was part of a psychic group he’d met before, which we got the very strong impression he’d rather she’d not have said
Good man!! Cracking programme, can’t wait for the rest of the series
Haha! Derren, your show has completely opened my eyes to the world of ‘mediums’, so thank you! Brilliant as always!! =D
Great show, enjoyed it thoroughly. Either the guy had major bowel problems, or he was using the time going to the toilet to see if he could gain any extra info en route.
Derren, you missed something EXTREMELY important in the last show! At every private reading, he went upstairs to the toilet, alone, free to explore, to get a quick look at any family photos, number of bedrooms, etc.
Just finished watching your show on E4.. and seriously, how did you resist punching that guy in the face? What an absolute tool! I wanted to punch him in the face so bad. The fact he was so rude, defensive, argumentative goes to show how much of a fake he is. Well done Derren. That’s one fake that hopefully won’t be making anymore money from people’s vulnerability.
Great show! One observation which may mean nothing: For each one-to-one reading he insisted on entering each house that he use the toilet. I imagine that people keep photos of loved ones on walls and on bedside tables, and a quick trip to the toilet might afford a peek inside a bedroom. I would be interested to know if any photos were available to the ‘psychic’ in those houses.
Looking forward to next week.
Well done sir
I noticed that the first thing the medium would do upon entering a house is use the toilet. I think it would have been interesting to rig other rooms with cameras, as i think he was probably snooping for information…..
A fantastic show. Can’t believe how aggressive Joe Power was! Here’s hoping his “clients” saw the show, and think twice before throwing their money away!
Also, I can’t believe the woman lived next to his sister, and he didn’t even know. Come on, what a complete con!
nice show darren
u made a fool of that medium guy….was funny …he got so annoyed and u kept the cool 
…hope the next shows are as good !!
The best of Derren Brown. Great to see Derren’s true strength of feeling on the subject of “mediums” and psychic ability. This program stripped away the showmanship aspect of Derrens shows that usually works well but was coming almost a cliche and presented an intriguing and insightful documentary on a thought-provoking subject. Well done Derren, didn’t think it was possible but you’ve just topped yourself- AGAIN.
Derren, congratulations on “Derren Brown Investigates” !!!!!!! I couldn’t wait to see it, but I didn’t expect such a brilliant effect !!! Good Work
:) ps. you’re just unbelievable – how could you ruin Joe’s medium career ? 
jokkes 
DARREN U ARE BRILLIANT MATE, U TORE HIM TO SHREDS, U PROVED HIM ROND AT EVERY ANGLE, ANYONE WHO WATCHED THAT COULD SEE HE WAS A FAKE, BUT I THINK THE PROBLEM WITH THAT GUY HE PROBERBLY BELEIVES HE CAN CONTACT WITH THE DEAD, REALLY HE;S JUST AN INSECURE PERSON AND THIS IS WHAT HE DOSE.
First doc was brilliant; really interesting. Not at all convinced by that guy, even though I do think it’s possible that real mediums could exist. Surprised DB didn’t mention that Joe Power always seemed to have to ‘go to the loo’ before he did the private readings in people’s houses. My dad mentioned that he could easily have been looking around at family photos etc.
Just finished watching the prog and was very impressed.
It was clear that Jo Power wasnt up to answering ANY probing, specific or closed questions. He was very quick to make claims that he was being set up, but most importantly offered no evidence to back his claims.
What Derren said about fake medium treading on the dignity of the deceased is spot on. I personally don’t think that fake comfort is a good enough reason to let these people off the hook. The more exposure of these techniques on general TV the better. I found Jo Power actually a very unlikeable person. He was rude to those in his audience who failed to give him a hit and got very short tempered when he had no answer. Great to see Richard Wiseman on it as well, the more he is on TV the better. The Derren and Ricahrd show?
Great show tonite Derren ( Investigates) ! Many things came to mind when watching – Having a reasonable interest in Harry Houdini, u will prob be aware of him investigating similar subjects here in the UK pre 1926. The interesting thing is Houdini ended up in court having `exposed` many mediums ! I did find it startling that it was your very first seance though – even ppl who are sceptics like myself go and `find out` what they are missing ? You must continue this line of entertainment / documentary – its not only impulsive viewing especially from someone in ur field, but is also exposing the sharlatans out there !
Oh Joe, so nearly had us convinced except for the slip up with your sister’s proximity to Ronda. That, and the crack of your behind that was on show, most unprofessional. Great stuff Derren.
“rong”
This programme made my day thank you to everyone involved! Some of my family say they saw someone very convincing as a psychic I will promptly show them your argument. Thanks Again!
A thorough debunking that the likes of Penn&Teller would have been proud of. He exhibited so many classic traits associated with psuedo-science and the paranormal, I struggled to keep count.
I applaud Derren for being so passive and calm, which only highlighted the alleged psychic’s dumbfounded and often aggressive responses to very fair and important questions
Massive thumbs up, I will be watching more.
Interestingly if you try to post a message on Joe powers Guestbook you get the message
“Thank you for your entry, message will be displayed after the Administrator has reviewed it”
And all the messages seem to be surprisingly positive. So it seems he has to rely on censorship to protect his reputation.
I am watching the new show tonight with Joe Power and I think it’s clear that he is completely bogus, like with all psychics. I have noticed that every time he went into someones house he just happened to ‘need the loo’. I wonder why? It seemed odd, was he trying to make a last attempt at gathering information?
Great show I think somebody needs to expose these crooks. I am deeply disturbed when I hear of stories when psychics really over step the mark and ask audience members if they have had a miscarriage and proceed to say that their baby is in the same room and is happy in the after life! Outrageous and an absolute disgrace!
These ‘psychics’ may feel that they are helping people to let go and move on but they have no idea of how their words can deeply scar people! ‘psychics’ prey on vulnerable people who desperately want to beleive what they say, it’s wrong!
Twas incredible to say the Least Derren
x
I take my hat off to you, for not jumpin on him; Actin like a huffy child in my opinion! I would’ve made a go for him without a doubt!
Can’t wait till next week
Just tried to post a comment on Joe’s guestbook and it has to be approved by an admin before it’s posted..any other site you’d assume if the message contained no abusive language or spam it would be posted (mine didn’t contain these things) however I don’t hold too much hope for my reasonable anti-medium message being published.
Anyone interested in how I get on feel free to twitter me 
Also, I will be visiting a medium in a few weeks and plan to stay quiet and give nothing away, then agree with something completely false and go along with it. Then tell them at the end
Cring!!!!!!!! At times uncomfortable viewing; poor people having their loved one’s memories exploited for financial gain. great show Derren Brown and lovely to see you all “normal”.
I notice he says “I believe I can communicate with the spirits and am genuine,or words like it. If he was genuine wouldn’t he say “he can communicate and is genuine”. It was almost like he was trying to convince himself as well as Derren. In fact he had a way of trying to do a deep stare as if that made him genuine but I felt it another manipulative trick to intimidate.
I don’t think this is harmless even if it helps people with bereavement as it states he charges at least £40 for a reading.An expensive rip off. Creepy!
As a great fan of yours, I eagerly looked forward to seeing your programme on channel 4 this evening. What a pity that you chose to use such an arrogant, untrained medium (I use the terms very loosely). As a member of the London College of Psychic Studies in South Kensington, I am so disappointed that you didn\’t select someone, whose gift for spirit connection, has been trained to a high a professional standard
.We are trained to give physical descriptions of spirits that come through as well as how they \”pass over\”. We are also, when giving a demonstration, ask to speak individually to the person, whose spirit has come through rather than just throwing names out to an extremely willing audience in a public house. I do hope that your give us another chance! (By the way…we all have psychic abilities, your sitting with the girl was great. Not all psychics are mediums, but all mediums are psychic!)
After watching the show “Darren Brown Investigates it is quite obvious to see that the “psychic” uses the same techniques as every other cold reader but has other tricks up his sleeve.
This person is known to come into the premises in which he carries out his reading and requests he goes around the house to pick up any “vibes” or even straight to the bathroom in most circumstances.
This may seem innocent enough but is merely his little way carrying out some final research on the person, their background or even on their home. A bit like a Scouse Columbo if you will.
This way he sees pictures on walls, clothes on the floor, how many toothbrushes and even what colour hinting as to lack of a male presence in the house.
If he come into your home… put a picture of a pig on the wall!!! lol
Hi Derren thanks for exposing this con man. Sadly there will still be a load of people going to his shows all over the counry and thinking he is the real deal. As the guy who was getting all info fed to him which was wrong then he heard about his “grandmother” who then thought he was the best. This is what dupes most people who just want to believe and this sicko makes money out off it. I would love nothing more if people stopped frequenting his shows. These mediums make me sick to the stomach. How can they honestly sleep at night I don’t know but I believe that they will convince themselves that what they are doing is ok and making money out of people who want to believe anything at all that there loved ones can still be in contact. Thanks again for this program
Fantastic first show ! What a fckng charlaton than guy was. Love the fact he didn’t know his sister lived there !
hi Derren, enjoyed the show tonight & was pleased with the outcome. Im marrying a real medium later in the year who really can contact the spirit world (well they contact her she has no choice ) she loves your shows too x
Mr Brown,
I watched your show with a little interest, despite the fact that I know for a fact that the those who are dead go into none existence – as the Bible reveals.
What I though was that this so called ‘medium’ either was sincere in his belief, this is because I am pretty sure he has seen your own ‘talent’ on T.V, or was overconfident in his own abilities to fool others, including one so ‘skilled’ as you.How much of a clown would a fake have to be to invite you along with them for several days having seen you in action?
Perhaps then, this guy was fairly sincere in his belief that he could communicat with what realy are ‘wicked spirit forces’. Enquiring of the dead is detestable to God – Deuteronomy 18:11. If people heeded God’s word it would save a lot of pain and suffering
Absolutely conclusive – without a doubt that medium DID possess psyhic powers……Well maybe not. But he did try. And completely failed. But its the comfort that counts people! C’mon! Give the guy a break. He’s only digging up facts about your dead relatives to go round to houses take 40 quid from sobbing bereavers and chat about magnets and energies, and numbers and stuff.
Well its on par with drug dealing really.
I have to say that from the adverts I was expecting the theme to be far more scary. It was actually quite jaunty what with the old music in there. I suppose if you had presented it in a more scary, mosthaunted-ish, way you’d be playing into the psychics hands…i hope there is a EVP one coming up….:great show anyhow. Best television show of this year so far. ):):)
Brilliant first show Mr B
lots of comments about how he had to use the loo each time before a reading, what’s the bet if you cameras in the room you would see him sniffing around looking for photos of family to peg onto.
This “art” is the oldest profession in the book much the same as prostitution in both existance and also preying on the weak with one person gaining from another’s misery
Did anyone else notice the crack on his arse on show and the weird nose ?
Good one Derren. The medium was quite aggressive ,and too much ego.
You were really proffessional and humble x
Let this show be a lesson: anybody that is contemplating being a phychic be warned, speaking to spirits obviously plays havoc with your bowels. WHOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH
I really enjoyed the show tonight.
I went to see Joe Power live in Belfast, back in October – I reckoned it would be a nice experience to see some cold reading live in action. And indeed it was; I can understand why grieving people believe in his psychic ability, as for the most part he did come across as very accurate. Shockingly so. Almost believable. However, from a skeptic’s point of view, I watched the show and, detached from the emotional turmoil of the truly hopeful around me, his cold reading techniques and use of Barnum statements was evident throughout. Like Professor Wiseman, Derren, and Lee in the show, my company & I picked up on his vague use of seemingly precise numbers. He really was very convincing during the show I went to see, if you wanted to believe. His constant fishing for hits, and moving on quickly from a miss was a dead giveaway though.
Loved that insight, DB & Team. Joe looked like he was going to glass you in the face near the end – did Derren survive the experience alright? Did the crazy clairaudiant Liverpudlian get violent? D:
AC. xx
Thank goodness someone has finally exposed these people for what they are. Thought the show was brilliant and Darren was so factual, he is already a class act and Joe knew that he was in for a hiding. A lesson in Physchology, and Darren proved that. Aggresive medium…….definately not. More like a con who just got exposed …BIG TIME !!!! Great show can’t wait on the next one.
Hi,
I found the programme interesting .I live very near to the Beaufort Hotel and could not see one local person – had the medium brought all his own fans with him from Liverpool I wonder?
watched tonights program, wasnt impressed by the fake \’medium\’. he was cold reading for sure, nothing more than a club act, am quite convinced he was also attempting to dominate your opinion of him with his eyes also…..hope you dont draw a line regarding the authenticity of genuine mediumship based purely on one quack. ive had my own experiences of giving readings which im !00% certain were genuine, id be happy to relate some to you if you are interested. btw i dont do \’clubs\’ and i dont work with mediumship for money.
Derren, does the number 5 mean anything to you?
No?
How about the number 4?
No?
The Number 3?…..
A Great show…. well done Derren! Can’t wait for the next one!
In summary…
Derren Brown = Professional legend & great showman
Joe Power = Dickhead
‘I’m just dealing with facts Derren, just dealing with facts’
Thank you for exposing this sick man for what he is, and doing so with dignity and patience towards a very vile and disgusting human being. My mother committed suicide just over a year ago and i am still very much grieving so when i come across these psychic shows on tv all i see is the same pain etched on those poor people’s faces, willingly letting themselves be fooled so they can have one last moment with the person they loved and ease some of that pain. It helps when i see someone like Derren go anywhere near these ‘psychics’ to show them up for the little moneygrubbing scum they are feeding on the heartbreak of so many people. Thank you !
Best hit of the night was when Derren guessed that the girl had been on holiday in the Maldives.
How on earth did he know that?
What a show! Loved the format and the way it was presented. It truly showed the facts and let the audience to decide what their thoughts are. Look forward to the rest of them. It would be great if it was Derek Acorah but maybe he didn’t want to be challenged! Thanks Derren
Derren, I get the feeling that you are yourself somewhat guilty allbeit to a lesser extent of the same crimes as your medium protagonist. Do you really believe in the possibiilty that people can contact the dead? Doesn’t it just make for more of a show to say well I’m not sure – it could be true but let’s test it if he can really do it? At the end of the day all he’s doing is providing a bit of low-grade entertainment and Derren I know you can do better than him
You really need to test Sally Morgan, she delivers actuate results much more frequently.
I am sceptic, so prove me right!!!!
Amazing. I really loved the show. Why can’t some people see the wood for the trees – young lady from hollyoaks concluded that it must be derren who is psycic, please someone help her out, repeat after me, “he’s not using any psycic ability” and neither is the other feller I don’t suppose. By the way for a small charge I’m thinking of allowing people access to my back garden to see the flying saucer which has landed, it is of course invisible and you can’t feel it so you’ll have to believe me when I tell you it’s there. Great analergy, loved it.
Great viewing as always from Derren and the team. Thank you.
My favourite part was when Derren was doing a reading and providing responses to the Hollyoak’s girl.
*Then cuts to Joe pursing his lips in contempt that Derren was hitting again and again!
I think Derren held back on his reading of her, not wanting to turn Joe’s challenge into manipulation of her.
Joe also shows a more devious nature, attempting to 1up Derren by firing directly at the girl with “oh what about the affair?”. “Oh never mind I wont bring it up” Even though he just did.
And it appeared to land right into the poor girl which made it worse.
Emorional manipulation to serve himself. I was cursing at the TVt!! >(
“Having beliefs can be a bad thing. It’s better to have ideas. At least you can change an idea.”
Some more interesting viewing.
Legendary skeptic James Randi fiery takedown of psychic frauds.
http://www.ted.com/talks/james_randi.html
Fantastic show! I sincerely hope channel 4 (and others) see you don’t have to sensationalise and bend the truth to make entertaining viewing. Don’t stop at three, there are so many other nonsensical things to be blown apart!
Is there any way those of us in Australia can see the docs? Will they be on Youtube?
About that comforting/ closure thing..
Here is a psychiatrist that says that mediums do harm to the graving person whether is is real or not.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx0Pdnppak8
The first episode of DBI was brilliant; not because it exposed the deluded Joe Power for being precisely that (who could reasonably have suspected otherwise?), but for its superb comedic elements.
The intensity with which Mr Power delivered his messages from the spirits was matched only by the inanity of their content: “Did you once drive a Mini?”, “Do you know a Paul?”.
Unfortunately Power by name was weak by bladder and his visits to the toilet upon arrival at the homes of his victims can surely only have served to provide him with thinking time, having had the opportunity to size up his victim in their home environment, which didn’t serve him particularly well when dealing with the control-subject.
It was unfortunate that the spirits did not see fit to tell the hapless seer that his backside was protruding from his pants.
It struck me that the only “numbers that mean anything” to our Joe would be preceded by pound signs.
Derren’s query as to whether providing comfort to the bereaved goes any way towards justifying the method might have elicited a more generous response towards Power, from viewers, if he provided his clareaudiance (the very sound of it -no pun intended) for free, but to charge the grieving a fee to hear that their lost loved one knew a lady called Jean and is very happy now is blatant bloody robbery.
The excruciating embarrassment Derren must have fought to master during filming was worth every minute for the sheer viewing pleasure it gave to many of us. Love it, Derren. Can’t wait for the Eastern European who sees without eyes. No doubt he’d ask Joe to pull his trousers up.
A very good show, and I must admit that this guy looked very convincing until Derren explained how its done. If he had nothing to hide and truly believed he was talking to the dead then he would have done the test. I really felt for the people at the show he did where they had lost there loved ones in a horrible way, although having said that it did seem to bring them comfort thinking they were happy so in a way its a kind of counceling for them and may be a way for them to move on. I am no way a believer of the paranormal and hate the way these people make money out of grief, but i can see how it helps others.
Looking forward to next weeks programme x
Wow. Excellent and very useful, thanks.
Poor man, trapped by his powerful self delusion. Looked like he was in deep trance the whole 5 days? Agree that his effect (comforting) is still more important, even if he’s going to delude himself and abuse it as a cash cow.
Women (predominantly) wouldn’t pay if they didn’t think it was worth it? Which means they believe they benefit positively from the experience. But on the other hand, Women are predisposed to believe in ‘super-natural’ explanations by social conditioning etc. But then again, that’s how many other forms of entertainment work.
I guess for psychics, the question comes down to how important is truth. Another tricky one considering how poorly people understand what truth and belief actually are.
In a way it’s a shame that Joe turned out to be such a thoroughly unpleasant person.
Watched your programme last night Derren and was FUMING what joe the bull@%$&£er Bolster(thats his second name by the way)didnt disclose to you is that he was the ultimate BULLY in school! i was in his year so i am not a ranting loony.I watched first hand the way he intimidated and bullied the weak and vulnerable funny that hes carried on where he left off in school.he didnt disclose he was from a place called Skelmersdale and went to a school called st Richards thats where he made the lives of his fellow pupils HELL!I believe you were bullied at school Derren so multiply your worst case of bullying by about 5 and we are now in JOE THE POWER territory.i didnt allow him to bully me because i could handle myself but just feel i have to set the record straight WHAT A WORTHLESS GOBSHITE!!!!!!!
…it would have been a bit more of a challenge if he’d turned out to be of at least average intelligence and able to put up some kind of reasoned argument. As it was it was like shooting fish in a barrel. Still entertaining though. Go get ‘em Derren!
Kenny
Loved the show last night Derren, and I agree with everyone else about Joe’s toilet tendancies. However, what I’d really like to know is what did your own personal reading skills tell you about Joe. I was interested in the last conversation that was shown where he was looking you in the eyes and telling you that he was genuine. Did you read that he was lying, or do you think that he really believes the stuff that was coming out of his mouth. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s a fake, but does Joe have the belief that he’s real? What do you think??
re the “reading” of the girl I actually think in this day of celebrity blogs and gossip that just basic investigation could have found that info out. She may have mentioned the facts quite innocently in an interview about her pets, or had holiday pictures with a bloke in a magazine, and all someone has to do is work out that she is now single and the rest is easy . No skill involved.
Note is was about 99% women in that hotel? Interesting,maybe it reflects big differences between the different sexes bereavement emotional needs?
Now we should show it to the deluded people who believe in nutters like this, whilst we are at it, to people who believe that the movements of planets billions of miles away somehow effect our daily lives,but dont get me started!. Cant wait till next week.
Absolutely fabulous show, opened my eyes! To be honest if I was one of those people who received a “fake” reading I would be absolutely disgusted, not \”comforted\” in the slightest. Another thing I noticed was whenever he “contacted spirits” all he gave out was specific info, like “I’m getting a male, would that be your father? He wants to say hello.” But he never really told them anything that they didn’t already know. I hope that some mediums are genuine, and not all are fakes, but after watching your show I don’t think I could bring myself to pay to see one of them. Unfortunately the believers will still believe, and try to find ways to justify everything that happened in your show. Can’t wait for the next installment!
loved the programme especially when old joe got jealous and annoyed at your precise ‘reading’ of the hollioaks girl. he couldnt let you get on up on him and had to show that he could throw in some ‘facts’ which included prior knowledge and a good chance guess about the cat. have you noticed that so many mediums express a desire for fame and fortune rather than truly assisting grieving people? he gave great demonstration of cold reading (i need not have bought ian rowlands book!). saw saccharine sally morgan later and saw how many misses she had which turned into hits when the audience provided the correct information. its its an interesting but slightly dispiriting subject (no pun intended). btw looking someone intently in the eye is used by liars, not just truthful people.
Watching this made me wonder whether all these fakes are the charlatans they appear to be. Is it possible (just possible mind you) that they are not consciously cold reading, but are instead unconsciously acting on small clues given by the audience and that in their misguided minds these clues are coming across as “spirits” speaking to them… I can see for example the re-caps being unconscious, if the reader ain’t paying that much attention, then perhaps a flash of memory could be misinterpreted as a voice from the other side.
The man did seem to me to be genuinely convinced that he was psychic, furthermore you would have to be spectacularly stupid to invite someone like Derren to stay with you if you didn’t believe you were genuine…
Wanted to watch the doc again, it was so good, but 4od don’t have it.
I think my favourite bit was during the little individual private readings, where Derren did a brilliant job with that girl, and Joe just looked at him in astonishment and said, “So, you DEFINITELY don’t work with psychic ability?” 
I was very interested in the comments left about Joe being a bully at school – I could imagine him turning very nasty towards anyone who crossed him.
I saw a medium some time ago who made me feel so intimidated in front of a group of people – I found myself agreeing with him that he was correct (when in fact he wasn’t) for fear of him making a total fool of me
I wonder how often this happens to others and of course then onlookers think the medium is marvellous
Great show! The problem to me with people who claim to see these spirits is why do they always seem to get very criptic sometimes vague answers all the time, as if we were trying to solve a Midsummer Murders episode? If I had died and wanted to prove my existance as a spirit to my family, I would say “do you remember the day we had party, and uncle Fred fell over and broke his false teeth” I don’t think this would come out from a psychic in one go, not at least with a lot of probing.
I thought Joe gave an Awesome 1st reading, he hit the spot loads of times with names and numbers etc. I was trully conviced (yeah right lol) and then we learn that joe’s sister lives NEXT DOOR to the lady in question LOL !!!!
When Derren asked him, ” are you fake”, “do you cold read” Derren wud of 100% known if he was lying to him, i wanted Derren to turn to the camara and just mouth “L I A R”
Also it wud of been good, imo, if Derren was read by Joe as Derren wud be awesome at hiding his “signals” to a cold reader.
“Have you ever been in this house before?”, “Yes this morning, briefly”. Some time later, “You never told me you had been in this house before!?!?!?!”
LMAO !!!
Love You Derren, ure Awesome !
@ “all who know him”
I’m not surprised at all by your comment about what he was like at school, he defnitely came across as a bully last night
I totally agree with Jo above… you have exceptional reading skills Derren, and I too was most interested in the final scene when you asked him if he was a fake. I’m sure you know 100% in your own mind from that moment. He looked extremely intent on not blinking, scratching his nose etc.
I found the program difficult to watch, purely because these people make me angry and their victims make me sad.
If the going rate is £40, then could I have a private reading… I’ve got a dead grandma an’ stuff! – I can fit you in Friday at 10 if that’s ok.
So glad you got over your embarrassing little infection (ahem)
Up until the last part, I thought that Joe was doing quite well in defending his position until the part that said his sister lives next door to the woman he had lots of hits on.
So to me, it looks like a double act, and maybe his sister works in a community helping people who have had problems or is actually a good listener and convinces them to see her brother who can help with the psychic world.
After contact of course, it costs money and his sister shares the information with him and that’s how he gets it. The last part was the icing on the cake for me, a nail in the coffin. Well done DB and Crew, great research and can’t wait till the next episode.
Scott
And what about that affair statement to that hollyoaks girl! How awful was that!
Excellent show last night. Roll on the next episode
Did anyone notice any subliminal messaging, I could have sworn i saw the number 58/68 on imprinted on the side of Derren’s head when he was in the taxi but that may just be my rubbish TV…..
Great show, exposed Joe Power for the fraud he appears to be. Although I agree with others that he may have a ‘talent’ for cold reading & truely believes that spirits are telling him this stuff.
Re: the toilet: I noticed Joe Power’s weak bladder with hilarity, especially if you recall the very first thing Derren did on entering Joe’s flat was to go to the toilet. Did Derren know, or was this clever editing?
Can’t wait for next week.
Brill.
Did anyone notice the way that Joe 90, sorry, Joe Power didn’t blink ONCE when rebutting Derren’s ‘are you a fake?’ question. Pop cod psychology says that people blink more often when lying. He did his best not to blink. A pretty good sign of a lie, or of an attempt to prevent Derren from thinking he was lying. He kept his eyes so tightly open, they must have been watering and begging to close!
Nice how Derren alloweed him to save a modicum of dignity. I agree, like Louis Theroux, that it is better to give them the rope to hang themselves, although Derren was less patronising and creepy than mr Theroux. He was remarkably calm. Well done that man! Glad I didn’t have to do what he did…
Really enjoyed last nights show. Can’t wait for next weeks now!
Have to say my fave part was finding out his sister lived next door to the woman – just confirmed what we already know. Fake!
That was a terrific show. It’s a shame that there are people out their that will exploit the bereavement experienced by others.
That guy was incredibly annoying. What a waste of space. When he tapped you on the shoulder ,patronisingly accusing you of poor showmanship, I was impressed yet disappointed to see that you didn’t hit him. I would have!
For anyone interested in the excuses, sorry I meant response by Joe about last night …
http://www.joepower.co.uk/joe-power-news.html
I bet Derren Brown got a phone call from Mr.Power after the show
Great investigative show last night just about said it all but when I discussed it at work today I was informed that there is a very “real phsyic” called Sally morgan on TV. they believe it any way!. My view is that if they really do have powers then they will have no problem doing any test that is put in front of them. I’d like to know what you think of these others who are on TV?
Looking forward to the next programme please do more of this stuff
Loved it – I like the Houdini style expose – I felt inspired by Mr Brown to write this song. I will finish is soon I hope.
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Did anybody else love the fact that Derren outdid Joe\’s reading.
How did you manage to work out where that girl went on holiday?
Then Joe says to Derren \’I give facts\’, even though Derren did.
Well done Derren for keeping your cool
@Russell’s Teapot: Well, it’s possible Derren uses the exact same technique — go to their toilet, get a bit of a profile of then. Makes sense to want to know more about person you’re going up against.
Jeanette, its funny you mention about the “big hitters” taking a “test”
Have you heard of James Randi ?
He has had a 1 Million USD Paranormal Challenge running for a few decades now, you can check it out here… (there is a list of over 1000 ppl who have tried and failed)
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/1m-challenge.html
If you can do what you claim you can do, ie look through walls and remote view (for example) then come look through my walls and do it…….its surely an easy 1 Millions Dollars. No ?
As he once said if you claim to play the Violin, then come play !
All these comments are exactly what I would have had expressed. Fantastic programme – was raving about it all day to anyone who would listen – although was the only one in my group of friends who had watched it!
They’re all crazy to not have seen this incredible programme. I noticed that Twitter’s highest topic at 11pm last night was Derren Brown! And rightly so!
Congrats. x
And here is a link to Joe’s Statement Re last night,
http://www.joepower.co.uk/joe-power-news.html
Bless lol x
Oh dear. Joe is not happy. He has written (badly I might add) a statement on his website concerning the showing of last night’s episode of DBI. Read it here: http://www.joepower.co.uk/joe-power-news/99-joepower-latest-news.html
Clearly he spat a reference to “Lee, Derren Brown’s runner” with a disgruntled flick of the shoulder pad. His comments only serve to highlight his annoyance at his exposure as a fraud. If the statement is a reflection of his writing style, then it does not bode well for his book sales.
The website, like Joe, is crassly presented and certainly worth a look for a good belly laugh.
I would just like to concur with the others on here really, it did seem a bit too convenient to have to use the toilet before each reading, and a control house with hidden cameras would have been interesting to see. Plus, I would like to know if you, Derren read his answers to your final questions as being the truth or not?
Cheers!
The guy just uses the electoral register to find details of the subject. you can find bith and death details of people easily via websites such as http://www.192.com/people/search/ and all you goto do is make up a story. thats the reason he got it all wrong on the second one, as he had researched a diffrent address.
Also as you can buy census details which are registered at your local council every 10 years or so, its can be used to minupulate when someone moved out of that address and what age they were. its similar to what we all know as Identity theft teqniques. with a lot of cold reading old fake psychic methods.
his sister would’ve told him about the soup claim. also he wont admit the mini witness claim.
All fake..
After reading Joe\’s rebuttal, he is quite an intelligent man.
The thing about his sister and what he claims that the Director knew, could the Director of the program comment on this? It is all about credibility in this day and age, so does Joe have some credibility left? Could we get a comment from the Director if this is true or not?
He also mentions his \”act\” and how it comforts people. It is true, as Derren said in the program, if people feel better is it really wrong? (imo – only if you pay) We all like to be comforted and feel good about things. It is Human Nature.
Also on his website I like the fact you can call him for £1.50, as it states \”a minute Live readings are for entertainment purposes only and cost £1.50 per minute\”
The operative words being \”Entertainment Purposes
I have also got some psychic ability’s and i can tell Joe Power’s that i can sense that his career is coming to an end very soon!!!
Oh excuse me i just need to pop to your toilet first so i can go through your room’s and gather some information first!
Honestly…. this guy talks so much crap he could be a car sales man!
Finally got to watch my recording of Derren’s programme. Of course Joe Power’s going to say he’s legit otherwise there’d be a stampede from all his past clients wanting their money back!
Derren, you’re turning into another James Randi but I see that as a good thing. Like you, I’d love proof that there”s an”afterlife” – wish you could’ve done a programme with Doris Stokes – that would have been an interesting one!
To people suggesting that there should have been a camera laden house set up and so forth. I got the feeling watching that, not only would this have been prohibitively expensive for a low budget show, but that Derren was making a real effort to give Joe every chance to succeed. Loading the dice, so to speak, would only have added fuel to the inevitable fire of Joe’s counter claims.
He mentions a letter from March 26th that vindicates his claim to have informed the director. Does anyone have a link to this letter? As Joe did not provide any visible link that I could readily see.
Does Lee work for Lime productions? Is he suggesting a conspiracy with Hollyoaks to frame him? Why would they bother?
He lied on the show about what Derren had earlier said about meeting Pam.
Good job Derren.
Some of the people I work with claim to hear voices from the dead too… unfortunately they’re not psychic but psychotic…
Here’s a thought. These so called mediums often throw out names which someone in the room will connect to. If a group of people from say eastern Europe was asembled where the names of their family members would not be common names, the “medium” would get miss after miss and fail miserably.
I just posted on Joe’s website for the 15th time, all neg messages are being ignored in the most part, yet lots of ppl are comin out from the woodwork sayin “havin seen joe in 13 years but i know he wudnt lie”
Hmmmmm dream on
Joe, cold read my arse and tell me what im thinking =)
I watched the programme and i agree it made Joe look bad. The trips to the toilet looked very suss. I didnt feel he gave anywhere near enough information to the people he was reading, most mediums give a lot more.
A point i would like to make however, as i am a medium myself, is that most mediums enter into this work as a direct result of a powerful personal experience. They do not sit in the schools career office and think its a great way to make money. The majority of us totally believe in everything we say and do. Of course you will always get scammers in any field but do not judge us all by this programme. I have given readings that have astounded myself, not to mention my sitters. If we did not work well and convince people we would not be recommended to others.
I have been watching all of the Derren Brown shows again! They are all fantastic ( Seance proper freaked me out too, it all worked!) but Investigates is brilliant because it brings people the truth, and Derren has such a way with people to try to understand them and listen, and then at the end analyse everything instead of going ‘ this is rubbish’ from the start. Amazing man.
Also I am going to see ‘Enigma’ tomorrow in Salford and I am soooooooooo excited! I hope I get picked to go onstage or he is doing a signing!!!!!!
Love you Derren!