I.B.M. British Ring 1st Annual Convention 1931

The 1st Annual Convention of I.B.M. British Ring No.25 takes place 26th–28th June 1931 at Westmon House, Ryeworth Road, Charlton Kings, Cheltenham, with the Saturday entertainments at the Town Hall, Cheltenham — the first British Convention of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Organised by a Convention Committee under the chairmanship of Prof. L. Bofeys, Vice-President of the Ring, and opened by the Ring President, Oswald Rae, the weekend brings together members of Ring 25 and visitors for Friday’s Magical Entertainment, Tea and Cold Luncheon, ten Original Trick competitions with prizes donated by magicians and dealers in Britain, the U.S.A. and Canada, Saturday’s Morning Session of Magical Informalities, a Grand Magical Entertainment for the Kiddies in aid of the local Children’s Hospital and an evening Grand Public Entertainment compèred by Walter Kemp, closing on Sunday with the finish of the competitions, the General Meeting, and Tea and General Departure.

The British Ring welcomes members and visitors to its First Annual Convention. Under the presidency of Oswald Rae — ‘The Bewildering Humorist’, British Representative of the I.B.M. — and with Prof. L. Bofeys, the Ring’s Vice-President, as Chairman of the Convention Committee, the three days of 26th–28th June 1931 are the first British Convention of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Prof. Bofeys began organising the Convention while Mr. Rae was attending the American Convention at Fort Wayne, Indiana, giving time and money to the task, and with the loyal support of Mrs. Bofeys he has been joined by the Convention Committee (D. Bellman, W. Jeffries, Harry Kaye and W. Stickland), the Ring’s officers and many members. The Convention Committee thanks the gentlemen who have generously donated prizes, the advertisers who have taken space in the Souvenir Programme and the members who have produced posters for the Convention.

Convention Headquarters is Westmon House, Ryeworth Road, Charlton Kings, Cheltenham. The Convention opens on Friday 26th June at 3.0pm with the Official Opening by Mr. Oswald Rae, followed by Tea at 4.30pm. At 6.0pm comes a Magical Entertainment: Oswald Rae with ‘Something Different’, Stanley Marne with ‘A few words’, W. Jeffries with ‘Lichfield Spasms’, Bofeys as ‘Conjartisan’, Clifton in Magic and Donald G. Crombie with ‘Magical Tit-Bits’. A Cold Luncheon is served at 7.30pm.

At 8.30pm on Friday the Competitions begin, judged by Mr. F. E. Walker, Mr. Stanley Collins, Mr. Ellis Stanyon and Mr. Oswald Rae. There are ten classes — Best Original Trick with Silks, Ribbons, etc.; Best Original Trick with Balls; Best Original Trick using Miscellaneous Objects; Best Original Impromptu Trick without Apparatus; Best Original Patter used with any Trick; Best Presentation of any Trick; Best Original Liquid Trick; Best Original Effect; Best Original Mental Effect; and Best Original Card Trick — with prizes presented by magicians and dealers from Britain, the U.S.A. and Canada, among them Max Holden, Blair L. Gilbert, Thayers, Reilly & Co., R. E. Powell, Ellis Stanyon, Will Blyth, Eric F. Impey, Edward Bagshawe, the Princess Magic Shop, Stewart James, Stanley Collins, John Booth, R. W. Hull, Nelson Denys, Elmer Eckam, S. W. Reilly, Jimmy Saunders and Ovette of Ontario, together with Oswald Rae, Wm. G. Stickland, Harry Kaye and Archie Byford. The evening ends with Music, Impromptu Entertainment, and Talk.

Saturday 27th June begins at 10.0am with a Morning Session of Magical Informalities. At 3.0pm the Town Hall, Cheltenham, hosts a Grand Magical Entertainment for the Kiddies, the proceeds in aid of the local Children’s Hospital: Archie Byford and the Children, O. Paulsen with Magical Novelties, George Blake in a Ventriloquial Sketch, Wm. G. Stickland’s Tiny-Tots Circus, Oswald Rae with Bewildering Magic, Alleyne Deane’s Punch and Judy and J. Gambling with Magic Delight, with Stage Direction by Harry Kaye. At 7.30pm the Town Hall presents the Grand Public Entertainment, with Walter Kemp as Announcer and Master of Ceremonies and an Overture by George Maisey’s Orchestra: Leslie Vincent (Magic and Humour), Ellis Stanyon (Special Magic), The Byfords (Problems in Telepathy & Mental Phenomena), Donald G. Crombie (Magical Tit-Bits), Frank R. Squire (Chatter and Chicanery), T. H. Chislett (Seeing is Believing) and George Davenport (the man who swallows Razor Blades); after an interval of ten minutes, Armour assisted by Vonetta (Chinese Magic), Roberta (The Dainty Miss of Mystery), Mr. and Miss Tree (Royal Command Telepathists, in amazing Thought Transference and Musical Thought Transmission), Oswald Rae (Bewildering Humorist), Dalban (The Magician) and Wm. G. Stickland, The Wessex Wizard, in Amusement and Amazement. Harry Kaye directs the stage for both Saturday entertainments.

The Convention closes on Sunday 28th June. At 11.0am the Competitions are finished (if not completed on Friday), with Impromptu Entertainments and Talk; the General Meeting is held at 2.30pm; and Tea and General Departure follow at 4.30pm. The Souvenir Programme was printed by Archie Byford.

The Ring’s own story is told in the Souvenir Programme. The International Brotherhood of Magicians grew from the habit of conjurers in England, the Colonies and the United States corresponding with each other; a keen Canadian, Mr. Len Vintus, first formed the Brotherhood in 1922, its duplicated monthly magazine soon became the printed Linking Ring, Mr. W. W. Durbin of Kenton, Ohio became President and later editor, and the first Convention was held at Kenton in 1926; the order is now 4,000 strong, with members in all parts of the world, and conventions have been held in America every year since. In 1928 Mr. Oswald Rae conceived the idea of a British Ring and placed a paragraph in the Linking Ring inviting British members to write to him; only six replied, and with Mr. Rae these seven members formed a sort of unofficial Ring until the required ten members were found and headquarters granted a Charter to Mr. Rae — British Ring No. 25 was born. The seven foundation members are Oswald Rae, Prof. Bofeys of Cheltenham, W. W. Kemp (organiser of the first London Show, held in 1930), Nelson Denys of Luton, Joe Rendell of Wellington, Somerset (the ‘Silk Wizard’), C. Ducarel of Leeds and G. H. Turner of Kettering. The Ring has an annual dinner, its own duplicated monthly budget and a present strength of 50 members, and is still growing.

The Ring’s officers are Oswald Rae (President), L. Bofeys (Vice-President), a Committee of Laurance Glen, Walter W. Kemp and Nelson Denys, and ‘Dleisfen’ (Hon. Secretary, Bridlington). The Convention Committee is Prof. L. Bofeys (Chairman), D. Bellman, W. Jeffries, Harry Kaye and W. Stickland. Other members of the Ring listed in the programme are Richard Armour, Walter Back, Edward Bagshawe, William Bates, George Blake, G. E. Brighting, Basil Baxter, Archie Byford, Dan Bellman, Charles Baker, T. H. Chislett, Donald G. Crombie, M. Crossland, Chris Charlton, S. V. Davidson, R. FitzGerald, J. Gambling, W. Geary, W. Gould, R. T. Hedger, T. S. C. Hope, J. Haigh, Percy James, W. Jeffries, Finlay Jackson, Eric Lewis, T. Morley, C. E. Pearson, Arthur Parr, Joe Rendell, W. G. A. Robertson, Gus Ryde, Henry Sara, Ellis Stanyon, W. Sutton, A. V. Simpson, G. H. Turner, Leslie Vincent, F. E. Walker and Frank Squire.