As illusions go, it should be out of this world.
David Copperfield, who has staged some of the most jaw- dropping tricks in the history of magic, has announced plans to ‘make the moon disappear’.
The 67-year-old star, who is the world’s highest-paid magician with an estimated net worth of $1 billion, has been working on the stunt for the past three decades.
In an interview with the Today show in the US, Copperfield, below, said the moon trick, which he hopes to stage in February, would shed light on one of the world’s most enduring problems.
David Copperfield, pictured, is the world’s highest-paid magician with an estimated net worth of $1 billion
He said: ‘It’s taken 30 years of work, that’s literally 30 years of our lives, to develop it.
‘There’s multiple methods to make it work and I’m collaborating with Save The Children, an amazing organisation, to show the world the difference one person can make.’
‘If one person can make the moon disappear from the sky, imagine how together we can make poverty and hunger and danger disappear for our children on Earth.’ Copperfield is already deep in rehearsals for the stunt.
He said: ‘They’re going well. In fact, I’ve been testing them the past few months and people have reported seeing strange things in the sky at night all around the country.
David Copperfield posted on his Twitter (X) page about the stunt that he has been working on for three decades
‘If anybody sees anything weird up in the sky, please let me know by tagging me on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook.’
The star also revealed he would be launching a competition to allow a lucky few to watch the stunt live.
Few doubt the illusionist will be able to pull off the trick. In 1983 he invited an audience of tourists to the Statue of Liberty.
He lowered a screen that was in place in front of the statue to reveal that it had seemingly vanished.
Copperfield raised the screen again, and then dropped it to show the statue back in its original place. In the past, he has also staged the disappearance of a Lear jet and an Orient Express dining car, as well as an escape from Alcatraz Prison.