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Scottish Sun
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
I thought Derren Brown was fake until I copied him and made someone pass out, says albino hypnotist
HYPNOTIST Fraser Penman thought Derren Brown was faking it - until he had a hairy moment when he copied the TV sensation's techniques and made someone pass out in a barber shop. The 30-year-old from East Kilbride, was training to be a primary school teacher when he became 'fascinated' with the Londoner's mind control techniques. 3 Fraser Penman, who is known as The Imaginator. Credit: ANDY BARR 3 Fraser as a youngster growing up in East Kilbride with his big brother and poster for his new Edinburgh Fringe show. 3 Fraser puts Scottish Sun man Harry in a trance to help him get over his fear of spiders. Credit: ANDY BARR And after becoming hooked on Derren's Channel 4 shows, including The Experiments and The Specials, he would discover first hand that the telly mentalist was the real deal. He says: 'I've always been fascinated by Derren Brown - he has been a massive inspiration. 'I had no idea how he could influence the mind or change people's perception or the use of autogenics, which is a fancy way of saying a shift in mindset. 'He could make people believe or see or do the most incredible things simply by talking to them or looking at them.' He adds: 'So I got intrigued and discovered that there was this thing called hypnosis. And like everybody else, I thought, there's no way this is true. 'That was until I took a deep dive into the neuroscience behind it and I fell in love with it and taught myself about hypnosis through books and DVDs, which I watched a thousand times. 'Then one day I was in the barber shop getting a haircut and they were speaking about hypnosis and I piped up 'I'm a hypnotist' even though I'd never hypnotised a person in my life. 'I repeated what I'd learned from the DVD and this person dropped like a fly, unconscious, right in front of me. 'Inside my head, I'm thinking, 'oh my goodness, this crap works'. 'I quickly counted to three and woke that person straight back up. But that was the turning point for me.' Fraser now calls himself a psychological influencer and goes by the stage name Penman - The Imaginator, playing to audiences across the UK, US and beyond, while he will also be staging a special performance on Thursday May 29 at Alona Hotel by M&D's Theme Park in Lanarkshire. But not only did hypnotism change his career path, he also credits it with saving his life. Fraser, who grew up in the new town with folks Christne and Brian, both 63, and big brother Ross, 33, endured years of vicious bullying as a kid after being born with oculocutaneous albinism, which means he has no pigment in his skin and eyes. He explains: 'As you can tell by the bright white hair, I am albino, but I have the most severe level of albinism which means I'm visually impaired and cannot see enough to drive. 'Growing up, kids can be cruel. I experienced both physical and mental bullying from the age of eight 'Then when I was 14 I was attacked by a group of youths and kicked down a flight of stairs. 'It was at that point I didn't want to be part of society anymore. I put on fake tan and dyed my hair jet black - basically, I wanted to be anyone but me. 'Being bullied for something that was outwith my control was really hard to accept. It never left me.' He added: 'The reason I wanted to go into education was to make a difference for any other kids who were different. 'But then I was diagnosed dyslexic. It left me questioning, where do I belong in this life? 'I actually got so anxious and depressed that I was three days away from wanting to take my own life. 'But it was through the use of self-hypnosis that I gave myself one suggestion, which was 'you are enough.' 'The next day, I woke up, shaved off all my black hair, binned all my make-up and fake tan, walked to the shop in shorts, not caring how pale I looked. 'Fast forward six years, I'm now a certified clinical hypnotherapist, have performed in America and about to do a full run at the Edinburgh Fringe.' It's unlikely Fraser would ever be bullied now as he has sprouted into a lean, 6ft 5in, fighting machine as he's also a black belt in Taekwondo. Although he insists he's never had to use martial arts in self-defence, joking: 'There's no need to lift my hands. All I have to do is just click my fingers and put someone to sleep.' So can he hypnotise anyone? He replies: 'Yes, everybody can be hypnotized, it's just to what degree. 'They say younger people are more susceptible to it, but I've had 70 year old women giving it laldy on the stage. THE IMAGINATOR PUTS SUN MAN HARRY UNDER HIS SPELL HARRY is more of a Marv when it comes to spiders - emitting a piercing scream like the Home Alone villain during his close encounter with a tarantula. Actually he ends up turning the air blue when asked to get up close to a hairy arachnid at Amazonia in the M&D's theme park. Scottish Sun reporter Harry Williamson, 25, says: 'My normal stress level when it comes to spiders is around seven out of 10. 'The closer I got to the tarantula I would say that shot up to about nine out of 10.' But with a snap of Fraser's fingers, and some words of encouragement, Harry was then asked to pretend he was tickling the eight legged beastie like it was his bestie. Suddenly he is no more afraid of the Mexican Fireleg Tarantula than a domestic moggy. Fraser asks: 'And how do you feel now?' Harry beams: 'I feel fine. No fear at all.' But all that was about to change in an instant, with another click of the fingers, Harry is back in Marv mode again, jumping out of his skin, while screeching: 'Ya b*****d!' So what did it really feel like to be under the spell of Penman - The Imaginator? Harry explains: 'It was weird but everything that was done felt like instinct, as if it was the right thing to do.' Fraser adds: 'You never do something under hypnosis that you don't want to. But Harry will feel very relaxed now. Put it this way, he will sleep well tonight.' Unless he dreams about big hairy spiders. 'Being hypnotised feels like the air that you breathe. There's no pixie dust, magic potions or lotions. It's different for everybody. But the best way to describe it is like you're almost daydreaming.' Fraser is glad he embraced his albinism as it also means with his build and shock of white hair, he really stands out amongst other stage hypnotists. He says: 'Someone once told me, to be successful, you either have to be the first to do something or do something different. So why not be the most unique? 'Long gone are the days of fitting in society. I've decided standing out is pretty cool.' Fraser is now determined to follow in Derren's footsteps, as he continues to grow his fanbase and reputation. He says: 'Of course, I would love to be headlining in Vegas like Derren, but my main ambition is to put a modern twist on an age-old art. 'I want to make hypnosis and the psychology elements of what I do, approachable for all. DO you have a fear of spiders or snakes? If you do and want to beat it, then you can win a place at an EXCLUSIVE Scottish Sun event with Fraser Penman on May 29, from 10am to noon. Fraser uses innovative visualisation techniques to change your mindset in just a matter of minutes. By speaking to your subconscious on a deeper level, the certified hypnotherapist and mind reader can help you face your fears head on. To be in with a chance of winning one of 25 pairs of tickets to the show, at the Alona Hotel, next door to Amazonia at M&Ds, Strathclyde Country Park, simply answer the following question and tell us what you are afraid of. What is the full name of the 2006 movie starring Samuel L Jackson? A. SNAKES ON A PLANE B. SNAKES ON A CHAIN C. SNAKES ON A DRAIN Email your answer – along with the thing you are afraid of – and your name, address and daytime contact number to win@ Please put FRASER PENMAN in the email subject header. *Competition closes at midnight tonight. UK residents only, excluding any employees and their families or anyone professionally connected with this promotion. One entry per person. 25 winners will be selected at random from all entries received after the closing date. The prize is a pair of tickets to the Fraser Penman event on May 29, 10am-noon, at the Alona Hotel. Entrants must be over 18. No cash alternative will be offered. Prize is non-transferable. The Scottish Sun is under no liability whatsoever in connection with any loss, damage or injury which is suffered as a direct or indirect result of the prize. Usual rules apply. Editor's decision is final. 'The days of swinging a watch in someone's face while wearing a three piece suit are gone. I want to inspire people to believe in themselves and their dreams - to unleash the superhero within you.' And his new show called You is all about that. He says: 'This is something that's never been done before. It will be the biggest summer anthem party, without the drugs or alcohol, and taking hypnosis and mentalism and completely flipping it on its head. 'I wouldn't say I'm a poster boy for albinism, but I definitely want to inspire anybody who faced barriers in life as I did.' *Penman – The Imaginator – YOU is on at The Gilded Balloon from July 30 to August 24.
The National
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Charting protest pop: How music can bring about change
Decrying the effects of deindustrialisation and mass unemployment, Ghost Town by The Specials from Coventry spent three weeks at No 1 in the singles chart in June 1981, just months after the first widespread rioting in inner cities for many decades. The lead singer from The Specials, Terry Hall, then left with two other members of the band, Neville Staple and Lynval Golding, to set up a new group called Fun Boy Three. Later that same year, Fun Boy Three had a Top 20 chart hit with The Lunatics (Have Taken Over the Asylum) about Thatcher, the Tories and nuclear war. The Specials continued as the Special AKA, led by its co-founder, Jerry Dammers. In 1984, the band released the single Free Nelson Mandela, written by Dammers. The single entered the Top 10, spending two weeks at No 9. It was, The Guardian, commented 30 years later, 'one of the most effective protest songs in history'. READ MORE: Scottish musician releases single condemning Israel's war crimes in Gaza The Specials and their offspring are just some of the many examples of not just pop becoming patently political but also being prolifically popular, judged by record sales, chart success and airplay. Such songs and others were played on daytime radio like Radio 1 and not just on its specialist late-nights 'ghetto' slots like those of John Peel. The Housemartins from Hull are another obvious example of popular political pop. Both the band's albums – London 0 Hull 4 (1986) and The People Who Grinned Themselves To Death (1987) – made it into the Top 10 of the album charts, and they had two Top 10 singles and four Top 20 singles. On the inner sleeve of the first album, the band declared: 'For too long the ruling class have enjoyed an extended New Year's Eve Party, whilst we can only watch, faces pressed up against the glass. [We] say: 'Don't try gate crashing a party full of bankers. Burn the house down!'.' Along the way, there was The Beat's single, Stand Down Margaret, in 1980, Morrissey's Margaret On The Guillotine in 1988, Elvis Costello's Tramp The Dirt Down in 1989, all about wanting to see Thatcher terminated. The Clash with its lyricist and leader singer, Joe Strummer, was still around, releasing a triple album in 1980 called Sandinista! in tribute to the successful Nicaraguan revolution and which contained tracks like Washington Bullets that condemned American and Russian imperialism. This was followed up by the likes of Know Your Rights (1982) and This Is England (1985) about human rights and deindustrialisation respectively. Of course, the politics of all these political pop lyrics were wide-ranging and left-wing, ranging from radical through to revolutionary. But later the same year as Free Nelson Mandela was in the charts, Midge Ure, of Ultravox fame and from Cambuslang, and Bob Geldof, from Belfast's Boomtown Rats, organised Band Aid, the one-off pop supergroup, which released Do They Know It's Christmas?' Bob Geldof and Midge Ure (Image: Getty Images) It was a desperate attempt to raise money to end the horrendous scenes of mass starvation taking place in Ethiopia at the time. The single made the Christmas No 1 that year, staying there for five weeks, becoming the fastest-selling single of all time in Britain and then went on to sell some three million copies. Band Aid then led to Live Aid, two mass simultaneous hours-long concerts in London and Philadelphia, again to raise money to alleviate the starvation in Ethiopia. In the US, Band Aid and Do They Know It's Christmas? inspired Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie to write and release the single We Are the World in 1985 with an American cast of super-group singers and musicians. With sales in excess of 20 million, it became the eighth-bestselling single of all time, again raising money for the victims of famine in Ethiopia. In 1985, Chris Dean, lyricist and lead singer of the left-wing band The Redskins (more about them later), branded Live Aid – and by implication Band Aid as well – as 'Egos for Ethiopia'' In 1986, anarchist band Chumbawamba released their album, Pictures Of Starving Children Sell Records. The Redskins and Chumbawamba argued such charity initiatives were thoroughly liberal and not left-wing as they not only masked the true causes of the starvation – that is, not a lack of rain – but also were sticking plasters on a gaping, open wound. Indeed, that Do They Know It's Christmas? was deemed to be needed to be released twice again in the next two decades illustrated the point that the effort had not ended hunger and starvation in Africa, nor even looked at its actual underlying causes. Band Aid was, indeed, a Band-Aid (brand) plaster. READ MORE: Israel 'sending soldiers to commit war crimes in Gaza', says former army chief By contrast, and though he'd been part of Band Aid and Live Aid, Paul Weller, previously of The Jam and then The Style Council, put together a group of musicians in late 1984 to raise money for the striking miners so they would not be starved back to work. Called the Council Collective, they released the Soul Deep single, which reached No 24 on the singles chart. This was a more radical move than Band Aid because it meant tackling the Tories on home turf. Weller had form here, whether with calling for a general strike in Trans-Global Express on The Jam's last album, The Gift album of 1982 and pronouncing on Walls Come Tumbling Down from The Style Council's 1985 album, Our Favourite Shop, that 'The class war's real and not mythologised'. During the year-long miners' strike, many bands and artists such as Billy Bragg, The Housemartins, New Model Army, Newtown Neurotics, The Men They Couldn't Hang, The Three Johns as well as The Redskins and Easterhouse played countless benefit gigs to raise money and spirits for the striking miners and their families. Bragg released Between The Wars about the miners' strike in 1985, reaching No 15 in the charts – followed by the likes of There Is Power In A Union from his 1986 album, Talking With The Taxman About Poetry. After the devastating defeat of the miners' strike in March 1985, Bragg and Weller together took the initiative to form Red Wedge, a collective of mainly musicians in support of the Labour Party in the run-up to the 1987 General Election. They organised gigs and meetings. Labour's loss to the Tories again was something of a death knell for popular political pop, with even Bragg mournfully opining on his song, Waiting For The Great Leap Forwards, from his 1988 Workers' Playtime album: 'Mixing pop and politics, he asks me what the use is/I offer him embarrassment and my usual excuses'. Red Wedge (Image: Getty Images) The economic, political and social stimulants to the rise of radical music in the 1980s were not hard to find. High youth unemployment combined with the existing traditions of folk and punk music plus a personalised hatred of Margaret Thatcher were the wellsprings. Punk's DIY ethic also encouraged anyone to pick up a guitar and form a band. This expression through music was facilitated not just by music being the quintessential component of youth culture and youthful rebellion but also by the emergence of independent, progressive record labels like Go! Discs and Rough Trade. There were then far less stringent rules for receiving housing and unemployment benefits which allowed budding musicians to hone their craft without having to undertake paid work. Of course, an unfortunate but equally forceful – if not more forceful – movement in music was the escapism of the 'New Romantics' such as Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet. Surprisingly, the Scottish supply of political pop was slight even though working-class communities in the central belt were equally badly affected by Thatcherism and deindustrialisation. None of the big and medium-sized hitters like Altered Images, The Associates, Aztec Camera, Big Country, Bluebells, Blue Nile, Deacon Blue, Del Amitri, Hipsway, Hue and Cry, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Lloyd Cole and The Commotions, Orange Juice, Primal Scream, Texas, and Wet Wet Wet were known for anything approximating to political pop. This was even though Sharleen Spiteri of Texas said she was inspired by Joe Strummer of The Clash and wanted to do what he did. Where Scotland did contribute was through The Proclaimers with their single Letter From America in 1987 from the This Is The Story album. It reached No 3 with its telling outro refrain about deindustrialisation: 'Bathgate no more/Linwood no more/Methil no more/Irvine no more'. On their next album in 1988, Sunshine On Leith, there was the song Cap In Hand with its key line: 'I can't understand why we let someone else rule our land; cap in hand'. READ MORE: Scottish Labour 'blocking left-wing MSPs from standing' for election The various songs like Belfast Child and Mandela Day from Simple Minds' 1989 album called Street Fighting Years seemed to lack authenticity given the band's previous songs. Though Dick Gaughan, a communist folk singer from Edinburgh, never troubled the charts, his anti-war song, Think Again, of 1983 became well known in the peace movement. There was also anarchist leaning, The Exploited, from Edinburgh whose first two albums – Punks Not Dead and Troops Of Tomorrow – went Top 20. Scotland's only other connection was through UB40 from Birmingham. Taking its name from the Unemployment Benefit, Form 40 needed for signing on for the dole, the band was fronted by the three Campbell brothers. Their hits included Food For Thought (1980) about starvation which reached No 4 and One In Ten (1981) about unemployment which reached No 7. The Scottish connection is that the Campbell brothers' father was communist folk singer Ian Campbell. He helped with the initial lyrical direction of the band. There was, however, no Scottish connection to Easterhouse. The band from Manchester, led by two brothers associated with the Revolutionary Communist Party, took their name from the Glasgow housing scheme as an act of solidarity with the community there. Even though most of the aforementioned bands also wrote love songs, almost all of their political songs only dealt with what was wrong and not how to resolve the situation. The exception was The Redskins. Led by a member of the Trotskyist Socialist Workers Party, their lyrics made clear that they believed unequivocally there was one solution, namely, revolution. Their single, Bring It Down (This Insane Thing), reached No 33 in 1985, and the next year, their album, Neither Washington Nor Moscow, reached No 31. Turning to today, is this 40-odd-year-old past all but a foreign country now? There are some songs that still have a resonance today. One, for example, is The The's Heartland from 1986 with its lines, 'Let the poor drink the milk while the rich eat the honey/Let the bums count their blessings while they count their money' and its outro of, 'As the pound in our pocket turns into a dollar/This is the 51st state of the USA'. But what about new and up and coming bands? While there are still some longstanding political bands around making new music like the Manic Street Preachers from Wales, there is a deadly dearth of the new. Bob Vylan, The Idles, Kneecap and Sleaford Mods are four of the relatively more well-known ones, though they are not exactly new. The likes of Joe Solo and Grace Petrie have kept the folk-based tradition of protests songs alive. Of course, existing bands have the potential to produce political music. Billy Bragg puts the dearth of the new down to younger people expressing themselves through other means now like social media. But this is only half the story at best as the reduction in the costs of technology means that it is much cheaper to make and distribute music now (even if it is difficult to make a living from it). There was no great revival of left-wing music under Blair and Brown from 1997 to 2010 because until the tail end of those Labour governments, there was economic growth, increased public spending and some hope. Now with a Starmer-led Labour government, we find ourselves in an altogether different situation. So, with Labour's loveless landslide turning into despair and destitution for many, the tyranny of Trump as well as endless war in Gaza and Ukraine, there's definitely an audience for music that not just attacks what's wrong but also points to the alternatives. Capitalist companies call that a 'gap in market'. We have to hope that we'll soon see an array of new Billy Braggs, Joe Strummers and Paul Wellers for the late 2020s, fired up by the dashed expectations of a Labour government and the mounting anger it is causing. Music cannot change the world in and of itself but it certainly can help change people's consciousness, giving expression to beliefs that provide hope and inspiration. Music that expresses this can reflect a popular mood for radical, left-wing change as well as spurring on those that are organising for that very change.
