Comments on: Interview with Derren Brown about his new show, Derren Brown: The Experiments

By: Neilz

Neilz — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 14:00:37 +0000

I will be interested in these shows but of course we already know the greatest manipulator of 21st century minds (and since it’s creation).
Money £££ $$$. The evil acts some will do for it knows no bounds. Look around.

By: Andi Alpers

Andi Alpers — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:59:24 +0000

I have been coerced by my st**id brain to write coherced instead of coerced. It’s embarrasing how it is using it’s situational authority to make me type typos everywhere or heberiwere, can’t tell anymore : ).

By: Andi Alpers

Andi Alpers — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 15:38:12 +0000

Hi Jen, yeap, fair enough. I’m trying to put into words what I’m thinking/feeling…There is something to these experiments in that it’s difficult to tell whether people are being manipulated or coherced/forced to do something.

* If it’s clear cut that participants are being manipulated into doing something then you could argue that they are not aware of the enormity of what they are doing and therefore unable to make a healthy (non evil : ) ) choice? Religion, I think, through repetition, lodges itself at the core and can help discern manipulation perhaps even unconsciously.

* If they are being forced (i.e. peer pressure, a contract) then that’s what makes me uneasy since it keeps confirming that given a choice we would conciously go for the easy way out regardless of consequences.

By: Anna Flint

Anna Flint — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 10:02:28 +0000

Jaja…Just reading these comments…and chuckling at how many people are pretending to be just slightly interested in Derren…when really your all a bunch of stalkers jajaja~:]]

By: James

James — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:11:32 +0000

Yes, completely agree there – the guy has tens thousands of people following him online, so it gives a rough sense of how many people are trying to interact with someone who can only physically interact with a limited number of people both in his professional and personal life (and I imagine his personal life is severely limited being relatively famous). I have a few friends who became famous through various means, and I rarely interact with them now – shows that if they barely interact with friends then what hope do they have to show all of their fans as much interaction . Being famous has its benefits (a large income, comfortable life after the fame disappears, a chance to do something you love and get paid for it), but it also comes with its negatives as shown above!

By: Leanne

Leanne — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 20:10:08 +0000

Shocked that people would do that to Derren! If he really is their hero or role model then surely they shouldn’t disrespect him by being so suffocating all the time. I’m a huge fan but i’d never dream of crossing the line into persistently bugging and hassling him for responses and stuff, if you get one hug or kiss or response from him isn’t that amazing enough?! People have got to respect how cool this guy is just to interact with fans as much as he does when he is already so busy.
I was really hoping to give Derren a pressie and have a chat when i go to see svengali next year, now i’m scared he might be too frightened to come up to me in case i’m one of those crazy, obsessive girls that will haunt him on twitter about it for the next year!
Anyway, lovely interview, he’s such a gent x

By: Jim

Jim — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 19:53:20 +0000

Also (ran out of space above), not to say that I am now turned off from his shows – I love his stuff and will eagerley await the 21st to see the new series. And I can completely see why Derren did the ‘get together’ – it was for *his* benefit in selecting susceptible people showing defined characteristics when under suggestion, and not for *our* benefit for seeing Derren perform an exciting show. Keep up the good work Derren!

By: Jim

Jim — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 19:49:40 +0000

I was one of the ones chosen to be in the ‘get together’ Derren mentioned above – as such I reckon it’s ok for me to now mention this, as I haven’t done so before in case I was chosen. To be honest, it was a bit of a disappointment – not because I wasn’t chosen, but because of what Derren did with his time with us. There were around 250 people there, so the audience was small and I was looking forward to a really good day out, if nothing else . Derren did a group hypnosis session – and that’s why I was disappointed, there was nothing novel/special about it. However, I *did* enjoy the brief Q&A at the end. Derren=great performer and still a fan, and imagine would be amazing to meet in an informal/non-show setting. Nice to see him in person close-up, but left feeling a bit ‘empty.’

By: Jen

Jen — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 18:36:48 +0000

Andi, re:

“Don’t know about you but these experiments make me uneasy. And broadcasting them only make it gradually and instinctively harder to want to help or trust others. As if history or the news aren’t enough of a reminder of what a certain type of individual is capable of”.

That’s why I like Derren’s shows. He demonstrates ways that people can manipulate and trick other people, which we can watch out for. Religion is a great example of that, spiritualism is another and advertising is another. It should make us uneasy to think how people can use techniques to control, influence and manipulate other people. I think it’s really important and valuable that he exposes these things (cold reading, for example, as a way of people making out that they are pyschic.

By: Berber Anna

Berber Anna — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 13:51:26 +0000

Okay, let me just address something here. I’ve noticed that everyone replies to me as Anna. Anna is my middle name, that I use on the internet in lieu of using my last name. My first name is Berber, which is the Frisian form of Barbara. Just thought I’d clear that up.