Steven Frayne (Dynamo)

Stephen Frayne grew up in Bradford with a love of American urban culture, graffiti and break-dancing. He was particularly inspired by the street hustlers and card sharks, and after learning some basic magic from his grandfather he honed his technical skills, injected hip-hop attitude and created something special.

He became known as Dynamo, and within a few years he was performing in New York and Las Vegas. He progressed from the tough estates of Bradford to hanging out with some of the world’s biggest stars, putting on shows for celebrities like Will Smith and appearing in music videos with Kanye West and The Raconteurs.

Dynamo applied the hip-hop concept of the mix tape to magic, filming his performances on the streets. This led to two hugely successful DVDs, Underground Magic and Concrete Playground, featuring Dynamo with Ian Brown, Mike Skinner (of The Streets), Gwyneth Paltrow and Snoop Dogg. From there, he came to the attention of television where he has become a cult personality and charged with reinventing magic.

The first series of his own show, Magician Impossible, was a huge success and was launched by Dynamo walking across the Thames at Westminster. The stunt provoked huge media attention and he now counts the likes of Richard Branson, Will Smith, Tinie Tempah and Wayne Rooney as fans. With a second series of Magician Impossible and increasing attention from the US, Dynamo looks set to be a new magic superstar.