This year's series of Britain's Got Talent has been a tough one for magicians. And the grand final was no exception, as contestant Ben Hart discovered.
Despite impressing the judges and audience members on the night, he eventually lost out to Army veteran Colin Thacker.
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But if that wasn't enough, his shrinking cards trick was then 'exposed' by some eagle-eyed viewers. Because, apparently, magic isn't real.
For those of you that missed it, during his act Ben told the judges the story of how his grandfather got him into magic, recalling a trick he had been shown while growing up in India.
The entertainer then performed the exact same trick live on air, shrinking a regular deck of cards all the way down until it was nothing but dust.
He showed that he was making the deck smaller by comparing it to a separate regular sized card he had in his pocket.
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But rather than this being an innocent demonstration, some disbelieving viewers at home claimed he was using this moment to switch the deck for a slightly smaller one.
One person, who appeared to believe Ben was auditioning for the role of Merlin rather than a variety show, slammed the trick, writing: "Not really magic if you keep going into your pocket for smaller cards."
A second critic said: "He kept retrieving the 'big card' to hide the previous set back into his pocket."
Another piled in with a back-handed compliment: "Great sleight of hand Ben with hands in pockets to change decks. But really not the best #bgt." Ouch.
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This isn't the first time Ben has been called out for his tricks. Viewers also claimed to have rumbled the contestant during his semi-final act.
But speaking to The Sun, Ben said he would never reveal the secrets to his magic.
He said: "Magic helps to remind us that there are mysteries in the world and that not everything has or needs an answer.
"In a world of answers, it's nice to have a mystery.
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"I'm not personally worried about people trying to work things out, because if they're trying to work things out, they're already denying themselves the feeling of amazement and that's the bit that I find interesting.
"All that matters for me is that they feel that initial moment of wonder - whether they choose to protect that or to destroy it is up to them, all I have to do is make sure that they feel it."
So, in short, magic isn't real and Ben is not a sorcerer.
Who knew?
Featured Image Credit: ITVTopics: magic, TV and Film, Interesting, Britain's Got Talent, UK Entertainment