A magician walks into a classroom, introduces themselves as the day’s supply teacher, then makes the lesson vanish into a string of illusions. That is the entire conceit of Help! My Supply Teacher’s Magic, a CBBC entertainment show that planted James Went, Katherine Mills, Fergus Flannigan and John Archer in real schools while hidden cameras captured 11-year-olds trying to work out why their chemistry set had just exploded into doves. Iain Stirling links proceedings from a neon-lit booth and referees the segments that spill out of the stunt: viewers submit home-shot magic clips for the Wannabe Wizards slot, and an Up, Close and Magical roving unit ambushes shoppers, queue-bored theme-park guests or club-goers with close-up card miracles.
Objective Productions built the format around creator Anthony Owen’s hunch that children are the toughest audience a conjurer can face. The first run (Jan–Apr 2012) kept the performers in plain sight, trusting the kids had never heard of them. By the second run (Jan 2013) the show had become Help! My Supply Teacher’s Still Magic and the team now wore prosthetics and false identities after CBBC repeats made their faces too familiar. A third variation, Help! My School Trip is Magic, transplanted the pranks to museums, the Royal Opera House and outward-bound centres. The format won the Children’s BAFTA for Entertainment in 2013, beating perennial favourite Blue Peter and sealing its place as the channel’s slickest mix of playground anarchy and sleight-of-hand craft.
Production Details
CBBC / 2 Seasons / 26 Episodes / 2012
Main Cast
