Help us get to over 8,769 articles in 2026.
If you know of a magician not listed in MagicPedia, start a New Biography for them. Contact us at magicpediahelp@gmail.com
L.H. Branson
Major Lionel Hugh Branson (1879 - 1946) was an English officer that served with the Indian Army from 1899 until 1922 who liked conjuring and practical jokes.
Branson learned magic from reading Hoffmann's Modern Magic and around 1889 he studied under Charles Bertram. In his biography he describes how he used magic methods to ambush enemies, solve crimes, detect malfeasance, and solve bureaucratic dilemmas.
In 1913, as "Lionel Cardac", he played London’s Palace of Varieties for three weeks.
Branson was a Member of the Inner Magic Circle (MIMC) and two of his sons, Tony (b. 1909) and Cyril (b. 1918) also took up magic.
He wrote two books under the pen name of Elbiquet.
Books
- A Text Book of Magic as Elbiquet (1913)
- Supplementary Magic as Elbiquet (1917)
- Indian Conjuring (1922)
- A Lifetime of Deception: Reminiscences of a Magician (1953)
References
- DETECTING DECEPTION: A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF COUNTERDECEPTION ACROSS TIME, CULTURES, AND DISCIPLINES by Barton Whaley (2006)