talkmagic.co.uk

by **MrCat** » Dec 26th, '22, 13:32

Hey folks, anything new? Someone has a avatar gif thing saying “in memory of mandrake”? What the…

by **Blaab** » Dec 26th, '22, 15:44

That would be me... Mandrake was a close family friend, so my avatar is in memory of him.

Sadly Mandrake passed away a few weeks back, there is a post from Bananafish about his passing within the Magic News boards area

by **MrCat** » Dec 27th, '22, 12:22

Omg! What a fantastic lovely man he was! I’m so sorry to hear that. He will sorely missed by me and all I’m sure. :cry:

by **Renato** » Dec 27th, '22, 22:34

Blaab wrote:That would be me... Mandrake was a close family friend, so my avatar is in memory of him.

Sadly Mandrake passed away a few weeks back, there is a post from Bananafish about his passing within the Magic News boards area

It's been a long time since I posted here; I was active back in the mid-noughties, but like so many regulars of that time gradually drifted away. But I occasionally still check in, and was shocked - and devastated - to see this news. I'm so sorry for your loss Blaab.

Mandrake's contribution to TM was immense. I was always impressed by his commitment to the forums, and how he continued to breathe life into them in their quieter years. He has done so much to offer advice and encouragement to budding magicians over the last twenty years. And though I didn't know Paul personally, I will always remember with fondness the messages we exchanged here.

by **magicofthemind** » Dec 28th, '22, 10:00

Oh, I missed that. Sad. RIP.

by **FRK** » Dec 31st, '22, 22:35

I missed it as been away... sad news...

by **moonbeam** » Jan 1st, '23, 19:35

So sorry to hear this.
I met him once at the Blackpool Magic convention in 2009 - seemed like a really nice chap.
His contributions on here were huge and he'll be greatly missed .... will TM be able to carry on?? Who's going to step up and fill them boots, with the same dedication and devotion as Mandrake??

by **Blaab** » Jan 3rd, '23, 09:59

moonbeam wrote:His contributions on here were huge and he'll be greatly missed .... will TM be able to carry on?? Who's going to step up and fill them boots, with the same dedication and devotion as Mandrake??

His contribution and dedication to this forum was huge, he mentioned a few times over the past few years how quiet this forum had become but he always kept at it and tried to keep the board going. The only active moderator seems to be Bananafish, the Support administrator hasn't responded to my PM and hasn't posted since 2020 so guessing they are also no longer using this board. Sadly this might be the end for the TalkMagic forum and it will just become a repository for all the historical posts.

by **Barry Allen** » Jan 3rd, '23, 19:55

It would be a shame to see the forum cease; particularly given the many years of work that it contains.

I wonder whether there is any hands-on support that existing posters can give, in order to keep the forum alive?

I'm relatively new to this place and not exactly a techno-wiz. However, if there is anything that I could do to help, then please let me know.

At the end of the day, not all of us bother with Facebook; and other types of godforesaken (un)social media.

by **magicofthemind** » Jan 3rd, '23, 21:11

Who maintains the website?

by **Blaab** » Jan 4th, '23, 10:59

Barry Allen wrote:It would be a shame to see the forum cease; particularly given the many years of work that it contains.

I wonder whether there is any hands-on support that existing posters can give, in order to keep the forum alive?

I'm relatively new to this place and not exactly a techno-wiz. However, if there is anything that I could do to help, then please let me know.

At the end of the day, not all of us bother with Facebook; and other types of godforesaken (un)social media.

I know, Mandrake worked hard to keep this board going, would be a shame for it to be left to go to ruin.

magicofthemind wrote:Who maintains the website?

From what I can tell the only other admin was 'Support' who I think might be the owner of TalkMagic, though they don't appear to be active in terms of posts. Though recently some things have changed so they might be working on the board behind the scenes.

by **MrCat** » Jan 10th, '23, 13:14

Barry Allen wrote:It would be a shame to see the forum cease; particularly given the many years of work that it contains.

I wonder whether there is any hands-on support that existing posters can give, in order to keep the forum alive?

I'm relatively new to this place and not exactly a techno-wiz. However, if there is anything that I could do to help, then please let me know.

At the end of the day, not all of us bother with Facebook; and other types of godforesaken (un)social media.

I have very extensive experience of setting up and running forums. Ive done a few and would be delighted to step in. I heard from mandrake that the creator had taken a back seat and still nor sure who that is. All that needs to be maintained is the hosting space to be paid for and of course moderators although it’s not the most likely place for spam…

Anyhow more than delighted to keep this place alive. It’s so inspirational and full of gems.

It’s powered by PhpBB which I am familiar with. Just need some admin access and a few people to step in as mod’s

Anyone know who set it up and hosts it?

by **Pistol** » Jan 11th, '23, 14:55

Hi all
This is Mandrake's son, Pete.
Thank you for all your kind words. It's wonderful to read how influencial Mandrake/Dad was. He dedicated so much time here over the last 20 years and he was passionate that the forum contiues.

bananafish did publish a Broken Wand post in 'Magic News' after it happened a few weeks ago but frustratingly it was automatically deleted after a few days (forum settings for that section). I started a new thread with more details about Mandrake (Paul/Dad), with the reading I gave at his funeral and some photos so you can find out a little more about him. Please feel free to also add comments/stories to this thread: https://www.talkmagic.co.uk/sutra485290.php

Dad and I talked about TalkMagic a few days before he died and he wants it to continue. There is a wealth of information here so it must be kept online for current and future magicians. The main thing is for us all to continue to use it and to encourage members, who may not have visited in a while, to come back and use TalkMagic.

As you can see from the "Who's Who?" thread Mandrake wrote back in 2006, the forum was created by Laurence Jones https://www.talkmagic.co.uk/ftopic10435.php. I believe it is still hosted on his server, and he renews the domain each year. Dad tried to contact him a few days before he died to update him and tell him that he had turned off new registrations (to protect the forum from spam users, which was a regular problem he dealt with). I will chat to bananafish, the other moderator who is still active, and I will try to contact Laurence again. Thanks MrCat and others for your offers of help, I have noted it. I am sure that between us all we can keep TalkMagic going and inject new life into it. That would be best legacy for Mandrake.

So let's continue, as Mandrake wanted us to. If any of you are in Blackpool this year, I will be there. Perhaps we can raise a glass to Mandrake.

by **MrCat** » Jan 12th, '23, 13:14

That sounds good, I’m more than happy to help any way I can, as ling as the hosting and domain remains paid gor it’s just a case of moderation really I guess