Even Real Illusionists make big claims not just some PMs

Illusionist Blaine accused of cheating
09:00 AEST Thu Sep 25 200832 minutes agoDavid Blaine takes a break during day two of his stunt. (Getty)By ninemsn
The world's media have turned on magician David Blaine, accusing him of cheating in his latest death-defying stunt, which was supposed to involve hanging continuously upside down for 60 hours.

Quoting eye witnesses, newspapers in Britain and the US have labelled Blaine's "Dive of Death" a fraud after he was spotted taking hourly breaks for up to 10 minutes by standing upright.

Blaine's latest stunt, in which he was to hang upside down suspended by a wire frame four storeys above New York's Central Park, was billed as his most dangerous ever.

The illusionist stated publicly that he would drink water upside down and urinate through a catheter, while doctors warned he risked a brain haemorrhage and could go blind.

But according to celebrity gossip website Gawker.com, bystanders saw Blaine resting upright on a platform for ten minutes before being hoisted back up.

Blaine's spokesman, Pat Smith, has been forced to defend the stunt, saying the magician would die if he did not take the breaks.

"There has been no claim that David was going to hang upside down for 60 hours without a break," Smith was quoted by the Daily Mail newspaper as saying.

"In all of his discussions with the media, he said he would have to occasionally get his head above his heart and lower his legs to correct circulation," he said.

"About once every hour, David comes upright for about five minutes for a medical and equipment check.

"He has something to drink and he relieves himself, something even David can't do upside down."

Blaine, whose past stunts include spending a week underwater in a "human aquarium", is due to complete his upside-down stint later today.

What a load of old rubbish! I agree it's totally misleading.I will not eat for a week - except for a occasional snack and a bit of water. Look upon my works ye mighty and despair!

NEW YORK (Reuters) - David Blaine's "Dive of Death" wasn't, after all -- the magician and showman ended up alive on Wednesday night after his 60-hour stunt of hanging upside down in Central Park.

Blaine, 35, had dangled from a cable attached to a large scaffold structure built high over the park's Wollman Rink since Monday, except for regular breaks for water and medical checks during which he was upright for periods of a few to several minutes each.

The spectacle ended during a nationally telecast two-hour television special which was filled out with taped footage of Blaine performing and interacting with fans across the country, and several "do not try this at home"-type disclaimers.

But Blaine had one more illusion for his fans. After ending his suspension, he plummeted some 44 feet (13.4 metres) from the top of the scaffold, swinging briefly from an attached cable. He then ascended and seemingly disappeared into the night sky high above the park.

Blaine said the hanging stunt got easier after the initial hours as his body adjusted, and he was strong enough to sign autographs, take pictures and even do card tricks while he was suspended.

The stunt was only the latest in a series of Blaine's public antics in New York. In November 2000 he spent 61 hours inside a block of ice in Times Square, and two years ago he lived for a week underwater in an acrylic sphere in front of Lincoln Centre. In 2002, he stood atop a 90-foot (27 metre) pillar erected behind the New York Public Library for 35 hours.

Blaine also lived for 44 days inside a transparent box suspended over the Thames River in London in fall 2003.