Hello Wizards and congratulations to Steve on winning the Close-up Competition again. Mark should be very pleased with being placed second and I thought Michael did really well on his first time out as a competitor. It was nice to have a guest in the competition as well and Andy Fields seemed to enjoy the evening tremendously. I know there is a poetic report from the competition elsewhere in the Billet and Alison did such a fine job (with a little help from Paul) that she has sorted out a job for herself once in a while. There wasn’t a volunteer to report on the Questions Time part of the evening but so that it is acknowledged, thanks are extended to Ivan Robinson, Nick Mohammed, Andy Fields and Philip Partridge who also seemed to enjoy the whole evening. Another acknowledgement that needs to be expressed is to Jon ‘Jonty’ Harris who has been forced to resign from the committee due to other commitments. Thanks are recorded here for the time he gave to the committee. The Dinner is almost upon us with at the time of writing 105 people attending! Compared to the 70 – 80 we usually get, this is a tremendous amount and suggests there will be many lay people amongst us. This of course presents a great opportunity for our close-uppers to show off their skills and demonstrate what a tremendous society we have. It would also give us the chance to sow seeds for the Hey Presto Show. Speaking of which, as Ivan mentioned at the last meeting, we will be having a lecture presented by Greg Wilson from the USA the night before and he will be closing the first half of the show. With Nick Mohammed compering and Visage again presenting their dazzling artistic illusions, Ross Risdon and Godfrey Shackleton will be in very good company. There will also be on the bill the Spotlight Dancers and a juggler to bring in a little bit of variety. Make sure you get your tickets at the earliest opportunity to avoid being disappointed. We had the recent show at Altofts and Peter did a super write-up from it for the previous Billet. He had also, as mentioned last time, recorded it and having seen the DVD (sneak preview) I can say that while he may disagree, it is of a very high quality and will be a fine addition to the Library. He has also very kindly produced copies of the show for all its performers. There is coming up the show at Harrogate Society of Magicians on the Monday immediately after the Dinner. A couple more acts would be appreciated to help make it a great show. It is already on its way with Colin Gough, Ken Mitchell and Ray Roberts joining Henry and me. Other things now. The next meeting would be the December Show. It still is in essence but takes place on the last Friday of November. For the benefit of the newer members or the forgetful ones, you can bring down greeting cards for the festive season, put the cards on the appropriate piles and please make sure you take home your pile of cards. The January meeting follows where we all bring some bits to eat and drink and it is all put together to make a fuddle. You also have the chance to take home a new trick. All you need to do is bring down a trick you don’t use, wrapped up in gift-wrap, and put it with the other gifts. At the end of the evening, you take home a different trick. Please remember though that a pack of cards is not a trick. The meeting after that is the AGM, and now is the time to start thinking about that meeting; in many ways the most important of the year. It is your night to have a say in the how the Circle is run. Would you like to contribute as a committee member? Would you like to run for an office or do you have someone in mind to take on an office? Please note that you cannot put forward a nomination for any office, from President Elect to Auditors as it reads on the back cover of the Billet, without their consent. Thinking caps on. A lot to get through so I’ll leave it there. Thanks for reading. | 
