This page and the next lists some of the comments I have received from audiences, TV producers, scientists, skeptics, believers, executives, housewives, students, senior citizens, fellow magicians and mindreaders and others who have seen me work.
See also > What People Say (2)

"Ian Rowland is... a cross between David Copperfield and the X-Files... frankly amazing displays of dexterity and skill and outright illusion" - 'The Smoke' magazine, Westminster Students Union

"As a magician among, for example, a crowd of party go-ers, Ian is a subtle yet commanding performer mesmerising his crowd with his wit and finely honed skills. His stature, grace and genuine interest in everything and everyone around him make him an inspiring addition to any gathering and if, and when he can be persuaded to perform he will take everyone home with him in his pocket." - Isabel Losada, author

"On the stage the psychic energy is crackling. Two bemused members of the audience have seen the spoons they were lightly stroking turn floppy and break. Another has been told the contents of an envelope she had sealed before the show and kept carefully ever since. Finally trumpets, playing cards and other paraphernalia come hurling over a screen while the man behind it is tied to a chair with 50 feet of rope. The man orchestrating this display of the paranormal is Ian Rowland, a self-confessed fraud" - 'Focus' magazine

"You delivered us such a wonderful show! Thank you again for all your hard work!" - Marilyn Zielinski, 'Leeza' producer, Paramount Television

"Hot Ticket of the Day... Ian Rowland's Psychic Show is not a magic show. All Mr. Rowland's routines are based on genuine psychic research, but accomplished by 'fakery, cheating and similar naughtiness'. There are no card tricks and no pretty assistants climbing into brightly coloured boxes. So indulge, instead, in a little spoon-bending and ESP, all taped together with healthy amounts of humour" - London Evening Standard

"Opening the show was Ian Rowland with a demonstration of his own unique brand of psychic magic. Ian's routine - powerful effects deftly undercut by a self-mocking manner - was peppered with jokes and gags." - Magic Circular

"Cutlery mysteriously bends when he's around, he can tell you things about your past that even you'd forgotten, and your future is an open book. Just when you're about to beg him for some tips for share prices, he'll reveal how he did it and you discover that psychic power has more to do with psychology and human nature than mysterious forces or mystic vision" - 'New Woman' magazine

"I just wanted to thank you for all your good work on our 'Talking to the Dead' segment at the end of October. We got a tremendous response from the piece. It was a pleasure working with you. You're a true professional - increasingly rare to find these days - easy to work with. As well as being an informed and articulate interviewee. Looking forwards to working with you again." - Muriel Pearson, producer, ABC Television

"Ian Rowland has got his own franchise on modern, sophisticated mental magic. By combining seeming miracles with blistering honesty, his results are unexpected and fascinating: none of the nineteenth-century hoodoo and all of the puzzling mystery. Best of all, he's smart, and he treats his audience as if they're smart, too." - Jim Steinmeyer, magician and noted magical inventor and author

"Ian - Just a note to thank you again for your extraordinary performances during our Los Angeles taping of 'Unmasked Deception'. Thanks to your captivating presentations and technical expertise we anticipate these portions of the 'Unmasked!' special to be extremely well-received. We truly appreciate your participation and look forward to working with you again in the future. " - David Hirsch & Brad Kreisberg, producers, NBC television

"Not many Americans have had the good fortune to see Mr. Rowland doing magic tricks, rather than mentalism, for the general public; "in the trenches" as they say. I have, and can say without reservation that Ian's natural charm serves him equally well with a deck of cards in his hands or in pondering a vintner's latest offering. It is his engaging personality which everyone remembers when his journey takes him to elsewhere. One of those rare breed who seem to be at home in, and finding the best in, every situation.” - Tom Cutts, magician and publisher

"We thoroughly enjoyed your performances of spoon bending and mind reading and can honestly say that it opened our eyes, particularly in the area of psychological game-playing" - Clare Jones, BBC Radio

"Everyone (students, staff) really enjoyed your presentation. It did go down very well, and was just right for the occasion." - Birkbeck College, University of London

"If I'd been willing to believe that astrology had anything going for it at all, I'd have believed Rowland to be the most gifted of practitioners... try to catch his stage show". - 'Times' columnist John Diamond, writing in 'She' magazine

"It is very difficult to deliver a sceptical message on the paranormal to audiences. No one wants to listen to a sceptic dumping on every bit of magic they hold dear. But Ian has managed to create a unique show in which he blends scepticism and mentalism, two fields often at odds with each other, and delivers it with plenty of sarcastic humour. Humour? That’s an understatement. It is very funny indeed." - David Britland, noted author and authority on magic

"I met Ian when he visited the L.A. area and did a great show at Cal Tech for the Skeptics Society. He is so likeable and powerfully charismatic as a performer that he could probably have made some converts. That is, had his presentation not been so scrupulously honest about the kind of Mind Power he was demonstrating. And from a technical standpoint, even knowing something about magic, I have to confess that he left me far behind more than once.

Since one of Ian’s many enthusiasms is movie visual effects, it was a nice coincidence that the Visual Effects Society’s annual Festival was on during his visit. Since I co-chair the Society, I invited Ian to the festival. He came to several events, and we had a memorable lunch during which he was kind enough to perform some mind-boggling material for my wife, who is not easily impressed. She was impressed. - Bill Taylor, magician and special FX producer

"Ian shared with us the many ways in which a skilled Psychic can obtain information and repackage it to sound fresh and convincing. We were treated to techniques which had the audience laughing and applauding throughout Ian's talk. Ian's lecture was a goldmine of tested, solid ideas… ideas you can use. The applause at the end of a wonderful evening was long and loud - and the comments in the clubroom were 100% enthusiastic. Please can we have him back?" - Graham Reed, Magic Circular

"He can bend spoons, read thoughts, and with a look at his magic crystal ball or his tarot cards he can tell you things you thought you'd forgotten and what you want for the future. Those whose fortune Ian has told have been impressed by the accuracy of his hits. He claims that when it comes to reading personality, it's only a matter of reasoning, intuition, and a knowledge of people's psychology - not of a sixth sense or powers from above." - Monika Agorelius KK Magazine, Norway

"Ian Rowland can read your tarot cards with spooky accuracy. He can summon the spirits of the dead, perform psychic surgery and bend spoons without opening your cutlery drawer. Impressed? Then he has a message for you: Don't be. Seeing shouldn't be believing. For Ian is a magic man with a difference. Unlike others in the business who revel in their so-called mystical powers, he doesn't. He comes straight out with it and admits most of his predictions and illusions rely on nothing more psychic than a smooth line in patter and a worryingly astute knowledge of human nature. His show is lighthearted and entertaining, but he does have serious points to make." - Susannah Richmond, Daily Mirror, 'Mirror Woman'

"Ian Rowland is unique in that he not only knows how the flim-flam is done, he also does it very well, himself. I suspect that it's his constant appearance before audiences all over the world, that hones his skill and knowledge of this most complicated and subtle art; experience is always the best teacher. Rowland has no peer in what he does. I'm not often in awe of a friend; I make an exception in this case.” - James Randi

"Ian's brain is an amazing thing, take a look at his Wow cards and FLink Cards, to think this way one has to be extremely flexible and versatile and this is the same versatility and flexibility that comes through in his performance style. Ian can't be explained in a few sentences, he is just way too complex but his manner can, Ian is a gentleman's gentleman" - Banachek, world's leading mentalist

> What people say (2)