A magician who fooled the Magic Circle by pretending to be a man so she could be admitted was kicked out for ‘deception’ – but now the prestigious group is trying to track her down to say sorry.
Sophie Lloyd revealed she was not really called Raymond Lloyd when the magicians’ association voted to allow women to join in 1991.
She thought they would appreciate the ruse now women could formally be part of the gang, but the society didn’t look kindly on being tricked itself, and expelled her for ‘masquerading as a male’.
Laura London, the first female chair of the organisation, is now trying to track her down to readmit her, and apologise for past wrongs.
But, perhaps fittingly, she has pulled a disappearing act and nobody knows where she is now.
‘It’s almost as if they just made her vanish from thin air, tried to brush it under the carpet, but obviously now the story has come out and we’re so desperate to right this wrong,’ London told the Guardian.
‘I think just to even sit down with her and find out her side of the story would be wonderful for us. But more than that, we could invite her back into the society, which would be the most incredible thing.’
She said the story of her heist is so daring it could even be made into a film, and she is in talks about potentially making one.
Lloyd is thought to have been an actor at the time, and was roped in for the ruse by magician Jenny Winstanley, who had hoped to pull it off herself but thought she would not succeed.
She coached Lloyd, 28, in which tricks to attempt for the 20-minute entrance exam.
Afterwards, she even went for a drink with one of the three judges without him suspecting.
Finding her again is proving difficult, with Winstanley unable to give any clues as she died in a car accident in 2004.
Lloyd’s name is thought to have been a stage name, too, with her real name potentially Sue rather than Sophie.
After being kicked out, she continued to do magic in a stage show about bullying, CNN reported, but her public profile tailed off.
‘I have a feeling she was very hurt by this and I really hope that it didn’t affect her ability to continue in the entertainment industry,’ London said.
Marvin Berglas, president of the society, said it had been a ‘faux pas’ to eject her.
‘We really do hope that Sophie can be found so that we can welcome her back into our society,’ he said.
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