Charles W Cameron: Handbook of Horror

Charles Wesley Cameron has often been called the Godfather of Bizarre Magic. He was born on Halloween, 1927, and was one of the founder members of the Edinburgh Magic Circle. He performed on the club circuit with his own magic shows, cabaret spots at home and abroad, tarot readings, TV shows, newspaper and magazine features and numerous interviews. He had a regular slot on Radio Forth offering daily predictions and ghost stories.

Charles was made Curator of the Edinburgh Wax Museum in 1976. For several years in the late 1980s the top floor of the museum became the Castle Dracula Theatre. Charles performed as Count Dracula presenting mind-reading and ghostly seances. His book Castle Dracula Mentalism was published by Martin Breese in 1997.

I first met Charles when he was guest of honour at Keith Hart’s ‘Meeting of the Mages’ (Britain's first bizarre magic convention) in 1996. I remember him as a charming, modest gentleman with a fund of fascinating stories. He died in January 2001. A plaque commemorating Charles Cameron’s life and work can be found by the entrance passageway to the former site of the Wax Museum on Edinburgh’s famous Royal Mile.

Handbook of Horror contains twelve Bizarre Magick effects, most of which can be performed with very little technical skill. Nevertheless, they pack a HUGE punch. Charles Cameron also includes routines and stories for those who would like to create a theatrical séance.

Dedicated to all who love the macabre. A handbook for modern sorcerers and necromancers, a devil’s diary of spells and incantations, for those who like to dabble in the strange and uncanny. Handbook of Horror carries on the tradition of Witches’ Brew but in a rather more horrific manner!

 

Contents

Foreword
Burn Witch Burn
The Power Of Ra Mentaz
Cards Of Chance
The Invisible Visible
Behold... Bewitchment
Call Back The Dead
Beyond The Grave
Through Space and Time
Invocation
The Ghostly Finger Writes
Slide Rule Astrology
Manikin Macabre
Conclusion

2nd edition 1977, 43 pages, wire-stitched paperback. Out of print. Limited quantity available.