Stephen Mulhern’s rise from performing on street to UK’s busiest TV host – and why he plans to reveal magic secrets
HE is mates with Holly Willoughby and has known Fearne Cotton since they appeared as teens together on kids’ TV.
Stephen Mulhern also almost melted the internet when he was pictured holding hands with Josie Gibson last month.
This week he was forced to deny they were anything more than friends to pals Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard on This Morning.
Because behind all the showbiz connections and razzle-dazzle jackets, Stephen, 47, is a private man.
In fact, he is so protective of his “off-screen” persona, even his Wikipedia page does not have a Personal Life section.
That is surprising for someone who has appeared on more than 50 TV shows since 1997.
But there is a simple way of discovering more about the presenter — by reading his Max Magic trilogy book to your kids.
Almost every aspect is modelled on his own childhood, right down to using his family’s real names and parents’ occupations. He even includes his gran, who inspired a love of magic.
‘Tricky situations’
“We’re a market-trading family, from Petticoat Lane,” he said in an exclusive chat.
“We were never destined to be in books. So when I got this opportunity, I used their exact names so they can show all their friends and family.
“I don’t know why you’d shroud it in mystery, I’m writing it about what I know — magic, entertainment and my family. My brothers and sister, Vince, Chris and Susie, are all there.
“There’s even a character called Willow Holloughby, which was a nice surprise for Holly. I didn’t even tell her I was doing it.
“Max, without question, is me and I wanted to include everything I’ve done in terms of ups and downs and tricky situations and happiness — and just overall things that people can take something from.
“There’s a bully in it, that really happened at my school. One of the things he did to me, he made me stand in the middle of West Ham Park.
‘Golden nugget’
“He said if you move before I walk outside this park, I’m going to beat you up. It was just horrific and I stayed there until nightfall.
“I put that in the book as well, as I’m sure some kid will experience something that’s not too good, whether it’s at school or home.
“And when you can read about it and see how it can be dealt with, you can relate to some of it.
“My mum’s really into spirituality, like Max’s mum in the book. She loved Mystic Meg in The Sun.
“And my dad sold novelties on Petticoat Lane. From the age of 12 we’d get up at 3.30am to do a shift.
“I think that’s what gave me my bug for entertainment. You’d see every person from every nationality from all over the world and the way you’d get them to buy stuff would be to perform.
“I was instilled with the ‘Three P’s’: Perform, Patter and Practice.
“Chris Evans taught me a very early lesson. He said, ‘Always see the autocue as a gift’ and it’s true. What happens if it breaks?
“You’ll never see me holding a card. I try to learn it inside out.”
“In For A Penny, there’s no script, it’s all as it is. We can talk to 50 people and only use one.
“We hit a lot of people to get the golden nugget.
I’ve always said that I’d prefer to have on TV members of the public than celebrities
“I’ve always said that I’d prefer to have on TV members of the public than celebrities. If you’ve got Helen from Hull or Celine Dion, I’d always pick Helen as I know we’ll get more value in terms of entertainment.
“Helen from Hull will deliver more. She’s got nothing to hide, nothing to worry about and will just go with the fun.
“That’s why I love Deal Or No Deal. You’re dealing with members of the public.”
Stephen has got to be the busiest man in showbiz after Bradley Walsh.
In fact, the public often mistake him for The Chase host, and he says that Bradley’s rung him up fuming after yet another fan has asked if Stephen is his son.
But how did he cope with filming Catchphrase, In For A Penny, Saturday Night Takeaway, Dancing On Ice and Deal Or No Deal?
“I fit it all in because I love it,” he says.
‘Cherry on top’
“David Jason once did an interview with Michael Parkinson, where he said: “It’s funny, the harder I work, the luckier I get,” and that’s how I feel.
“Deal Or No Deal is like the cherry on top of the cake. It’s my favourite.
“I get to talk to people and hear their stories and work with them for a large amount of time. And then they get that moment to win a large amount of money.
“You never know where it’s going to go. I met up with Noel Edmonds and he said, ‘This is the show that’s going to change everything in terms of presenting’ and he’s right, as it’s like no other show.”
It is more than 20 years since Stephen was suspended by the Magic Circle for revealing how a trick was done on live TV.
He was allowed back in but is now willing to incur its wrath again with his latest Magic Max book, The Incredible Holiday Hideout.
There is a QR code at the back which, if scanned, takes the readers to a video from inside Stephen’s home, where he shows how ten different magic tricks are done.
He said: “I do believe that unless you show a younger audience how to do tricks, we will never find a new breed of magician.
“I would love a female magician to be a star, there just aren’t any.
“The magicians are not going to like it where I show the readers how to port a card. If you know how to do that, then you can do the most incredible tricks.
“Imagine how excited a young kid is going to feel, seeing it all explained.”
It was in the early 2000s when Stephen first got into trouble. He was teamed with Fearne Cotton presenting Finger Tips, an arts and crafts show.
He said: “It was all about everything you can make from your fingertips.
“If you ever Google Fearne’s art, it’s incredible — and all I was good at was sticking things down.
I do believe that unless you show a younger audience how to do tricks, we will never find a new breed of magician
“I said in one of the producer meetings, ‘Why don’t we reveal a magic trick, I’ll do the trick on Fearne and then we’ll show the kids how to do it.
“It was called the Head Twister. Then I get a letter when it goes on air from the Magic Circle — ‘We deem this trick too good to be revealed on television, you are now suspended for six months’.
“Every time they repeated the show, I got banned again.
“And they’re still repeating it today!”
- Max Magic: The Incredible Holiday Hideout by Stephen Mulhern and Tom Easton, and illustrated by Begona Fernandez Corbalan, is published by Piccadilly Press and out today.
