This Is Your Life: David Nixon

David NIXON (1919-1978)

David Nixon presented an edition of This Is Your Life in May 1974

THIS IS YOUR LIFE - David Nixon, magician and television personality, was surprised by Eamonn Andrews while demonstrating a magic trick at the London headquarters of The Magic Circle.

David became interested in magic as a child and joined the Magic Circle in 1938. His first taste of show business was during the Second World War when he entertained the troops with his magic act as a member of ENSA. In 1946, after joining the touring variety troupe, the Fol de Rois, he met the comedian Norman Wisdom, with whom he later formed a successful partnership.

His television career began in 1954 when he joined the panel of the BBC television game show What's My Line? which made him a nationwide celebrity almost overnight. He later became the UK's best-known magician, presenting various television programmes, including several series of his own magic shows.

David was chosen to present an edition of This Is Your Life when the production team surprised Eamonn Andrews for the second time. His daughter Mandy worked as a researcher on several editions of the programme between 1989 and 1995.

"You're joking! You are joking! Oh my god! I swore it would never happen! Oh, come on!"

programme details...

Edition No: 366
Subject No: 367
Broadcast date: Wed 26 Dec 1973
Broadcast time: 7.00-7.30pm
Recorded: Tue 27 Nov 1973
Repeated: Wed 22 May 1974 7.00pm
Venue: Euston Road Studios
Series: 14
Edition: 6

on the guest list...

Ali Bongo
Penny Meredith
Vivienne - wife
Anita Harris
Basil Brush
Jim - brother
Marjorie - sister
Gus Westoby
Ralph Symons
Robert Harbin
Arthur Askey
Isobel Barnett
Barbara Kelly
Eric Robinson - father-in-law
Nicky Robinson - mother-in-law
George Martin
George Elrick
Ted Ray
Charlie Chester
Joe Church
Leslie Crowther
Henry Cooper
Billy Dainty
Freddie Davies
Jon Pertwee
Tommy Cooper
Amanda - daughter
Nicholas - son
Norman Wisdom

production team...

Researcher: Sarah Manwaring-White
Writer: Jack Crawshaw
Director: Peter Webb
Producer: Malcolm Morris

names above in bold indicate subjects of This Is Your Life

related pages...

That's Entertainment

there's no business like it

Eamonn Andrews

a brief biography

Birth of Life

the genesis of the programme

A Life Remembered

tributes to the original presenter

Timeline

the show's fifty year history

These Are My Lines...

Radio Times previews the third series

This is his life...

Irish magazine RTE Guide reveals some behind-the-scenes secrets

Andrews's death casts doubt on his show

The Guardian reports the death of Eamonn Andrews

BBC harks back to a previous life

The Guardian reports on the return to the BBC

This Is Your Life

The Daily Mail profiles the programme's history

Screenshots of David Nixon This Is Your Life

Edwin A Dawes and Stephen Short recall this edition of This Is Your Life in their book, David Nixon: Entertainer with the Magic Touch...

ON WEDNESDAY 21 November 1973 David Nixon was the subject of the popular TV programme This Is Your Life, in which celebrities were surprised in the midst of some legitimate activity by the appearance of a presenter holding a big red book that contained a suitably edited version of the story of their lives. They were then whisked away to the TV studios where the contents of the book were disclosed and brought to life by the sequential appearance of family and friends to greet them as the story unfolded. As with What's My Line? the show was an import from America; it had started in 1948 as a radio programme although initially not confined to celebrities, alternating between ordinary people who had contributed to their communities and the inevitable film stars. It commenced as a BBC TV show in Britain in 1952, significantly with Eamonn Andrews, who was already the chairman of What's My Line?, as the host. [Bigredbook.info editor: the programme launched in Britain in 1955] The programme had a much longer life than What's My Line? during which it passed from the BBC to Thames TV and back again before finally being axed in 2003 when the BBC decided it was outdated. Their decision was doubtless accelerated by the notorious occasion when Noel Gallagher, lead songwriter and guitarist of the English rock band Oasis, confronted by presenter Michael Aspel brandishing the famous volume, told him to 'Stuff your red book!'. In 1973 however the programme was exceptionally well received by everyone.

The underlying premise, namely that the 'victim' should be completely surprised, was a requirement that placed the researchers and their sources of information, especially members of the immediate family, under considerable strain to avoid accidentally revealing what was afoot. In the case of David Nixon there were some close calls and plenty of chicanery had to be practised by the participants. For example, for the day of filming, Vivienne Nixon slipped her suitcase to a neighbour's home where the car to ferry her to the studio would call. She also wrote a letter marked 'Not to be opened until 21st November' to daughter Mandy, who was at boarding school, telling her that a car would collect her from schoo! during the afternoon to take her to the TV studio for a big surprise for Daddy. Her headmistress had, of course, been alerted to the arrangement. On arrival at Teddington Mandy was given the script for her role in the proceedings.

It had all begun when director Royston Mayoh invited Vivienne to lunch at the White House to discuss the possibility of David being a subject for the programme. Approval having been received, the machinery was set in motion, the initial subterfuge coming about seven weeks before the day planned for filming. David received a telephone call from Thames TV asking him to record a three-minute insert for a special Christmas show, a request he could not easily deny his principal employer. A planning committee met at the Nixon home at which David suggested some tricks that might be suitable; one met with great approval - the production of Ali Bongo from Santa Claus's sack. Several possible venues were discussed, such as a West End store, Madame Tussaud's and the Post Office Tower, before David had the bright idea that he might to able to persuade The Magic Circle to allow them to use its club room. 'Great!' was the universal response, as that had already been secretly arranged!

The headquarters of The Magic Circle at that time was in Chenies Mews, just behind University College Hospital, and embraced a club room and contiguous theatre, library and museum. The opening sequence was to involve Nixon in the clubroom welcoming Ali Bongo in the role of Alistair dressed as Santa Claus and hauling a sledge laden with presents. Unbeknown to David, next door on the stage of the theatre, Eamonn Andrews had been filmed appearing in a puff of smoke and holding the red book. He explained to viewers that he was located at the home of magic, the world famous Magic Circle, and was about to attempt something they had never done before on This Is Your Life! - to out-magic a magician. He hoped to be able to pull off a trick of his won with a little help from Father Christmas, who entered on cue from the wings and obligingly removed his whiskers to be identified as Ali Bongo. The plan was for Eamonn to change places with Ali and surprise the recipient of the red book who, next door, was rehearsing a trick for television which would now go slightly wrong.

The scene then switched to the clubroom where David was found seated on a stool in the middle of the room and Ali in the guise of Santa entered pulling a sledge of presents, amongst which was a bulging sack. The insert, as arranged for David by George Martin and Ali, was deliberately wrong magically and, as anticipated, David rose to the bait, the ensuing discussion providing the distraction that allowed Eamonn Andrews to get into position without David seeing him. But Eamonn suffered quite severely as a consequence of the length of this unscripted discussion, sweating it out inside a sack tailored to suit Penny Meredith's shapely form rather than his masculine bulk, and under the hot TV lights. He subsequently wrote in his autobiography Surprise of Your Life that, as the discussion lengthened, 'the nearer I got to the next world. My legs were numb with cramp and I was gasping for air as I felt the sleigh being gently moved beneath me.'

The trick as understood by David was that, following his initial banter with Santa Ali Bongo, the sack would be opened with the surprise revelation of Ali now being inside the sack and the discovery of Penny Meredith wearing Ali's Santa outfit. All went according to plan up to the scheduled point where Santa Ali endeavoured to lift the sack containing David's presents and found it incredibly heavy; at this juncture the switch with Santa Penny was to take place and she, with back to camera and accompanied by Ali's pre-recorded voice, would assist in opening the sack to discover Ali therein.

'What have you got in here that makes it so heavy?' asked David, 'Let's have a look inside.' The sack was opened, out came a bedraggled, breathless Eamonn bearing the book and just managing to declaim, 'This isn't Ali and this isn't an illusion! Master of magic and all-round entertainer, David Nixon, This is your life!' And a nonplussed David could only say, 'You're joking,' and bury his face in his hands. It was an emotional moment that afterwards he said was one of total disbelief, and Eamonn was later to comment, 'I can't remember when I've seen a man so shattered.' With a car waiting outside, David was quickly whisked to the Thames TV Studios where the programme was recorded for transmission on 26 December.

First to be reunited with David were his magical associates from whom he had just been so surprisingly transported, Ali Bongo and actress Penny Meredith. Eamonn Andrews then introduced David as Britain's best known, best loved man of magic - an all-round entertainer and family favourite in homes throughout the country. 'But there's just one person who knows all the secrets behind your success. And she's here too - your wife Vivienne.' The doors opened and Vivienne joined her husband, with the comment, 'Yes, you see he's got this lovely habit of throwing surprise birthday parties for me. The last time he did it I told him that one of these days I'd spring a surprise on him... he laughed and said I could never keep a secret!'

Next to join them was his television co-star Anita Harris, who recalled the occasion when they did a send-up with him in the role of the silent film lover Rudolph Valentino to her Theda Bara, and viewers were treated to David resplendent in a luxuriant wig in a clip of this humorous episode.

To follow, David was re-united with that 'twentieth century Fox', Basil Brush, who first made his name in television alongside Nixon in Now for Nixon on 24 May 1967. With his inimitable trade-mark laugh Basil greeted Nixon and they reprised a comedy item with a balloon which, after being inflated, was placed in Basil's mouth for him to hold. 'Have you got it?' 'Yes,' replied Basil, and the balloon flew away. 'Did you see that? I made it vanish! I'm a magician!'

Now was the time to revisit David's childhood with a photograph of him looking angelic with a mop of curly hair, prompting Eamonn Andrews to observe that it took him a while to recognise who it was. A voice-over remarked, 'And it was hard to recognise him after I set about those curls with a pair of nail scissors,' which heralded the appearance of brother Jim and sister Marjorie, who recalled the subsequent incident with glue previously described and commented it was a pity that they hadn't preserved some of the curls in a drawer, 'I think he would be glad of them now.'

Mention of Aunt Gertie's gift of the box of conjuring tricks that set him on the road to fame led to a reconstruction of the nocturnal trick he pulled with a friend on the streets of Westcliff-on-Sea. Researchers had tracked down that friend, Gus Westoby, whom David had lost track of during the war and had not seen for thirty-seven years. Now living in New Zealand, Gus had been flown in for the programme and described precisely how the trick was done.

David's life story continued with Marjorie's role as rabbit carer when he fell ill and his first job at the cable factory on leaving school. The outbreak of war and his failed medical for active service, leading to his Oxford friend Ralph Symons's advice to go to war as an entertainer, was the cue for Ralph's entry and elaboration of David's successful audition for ENSA. His wartime experiences were outlined including his coincidental meeting at Kirkuk, Iraq, in 1944 with the famous magician Robert Harbin, then serving as Major Ned Williams. This brought as next guest Harbin himself who recalled how during the war he had received glowing reports of this promising young magician who, a few years later, was introducing him to a television audience as the star of his own show.

Post-war, David's concert party work with the Fol de Rols was recounted and his teaming up in Scarborough with a partner who, twenty-five years later, still remembered the suggestion Nixon made which led to his own famous props - the Norman Wisdom tight suit and cap. Norman was appearing in Sydney at the time and had recorded his glowing tribute to David.

Next to appear was the diminutive in size, but giant in personality, 'Big Hearted' Arthur Askey, a former member of the Fol de Rols, who first met Nixon when he went backstage to compliment him on his performance as magician-compere in the show at the St Martin's Lane Theatre in January 1951. As the tiny comedian joined them, David extended his left arm horizontally and Arthur fitted neatly beneath it. He looked up and asked if David could recall the witty thing he said when they first worked together. David could: 'How tall are you, David? And I said, 'Six foot three,' and he said, 'It must be terrible being deformed!' Arthur went on: 'Do you know he was the first man to saw me in half? What did he do with the other half? I know - Ronnie Corbett!'

The narrative continued with David's marriage in 1952 to actress Paula Marshall and the tragedy of her death in a car crash in 1956 which shook the nation. But David carried on because he had a one-year-old baby son to care for and happily pulled through. Eamonn related that son Nicholas Nixon was now a Merchant Navy Cadet serving aboard the Shell tanker Hyria in the Far East and he had recorded a message for his father when the ship called at Hong Kong. Eamonn also recalled that he had joined in the celebrations for Nicholas's birth in 1955. because at the time David was his associate, appearing in What's My Line?, and to join them now were the other two surviving members of that show, Barbara Kelly and Lady Isobel Barnett.

Barbara told that she was an admirer of David before he had joined the team and not just as a magician - as a baby sitter - a male Mary Poppins! She had first heard of David from her son Chris, who had been to Manchester where her husband Bernard Braden and David had been appearing together in a show. On the way back to London there were no bunks available on the sleeper train, so while Bernie snored away in the corner David kept Chris amused throughout the journey by teaching him card tricks.

Isobel then told of another train journey when David kept someone awake, when the What's My Line? team were travelling to Glasgow for a recording. David and Isobel were to catch the train at Leicester, David was late and the train was pulling out when Isobel's husband spotted him dashing down the platform, and called for the guard to halt the train. The train halted with such a jerk that one of the passengers who was asleep was thrown out of his bunk. At this point Eamonn interjected, 'And just in case you need reminding, David, that passenger who went flying was me!' He went on to relate how David had joined the show for six weeks and stayed for eight years.

By 1962 Nixon was an established star of stage, radio and television and in his private life he had found happiness by meeting and marrying Vivienne. She now told of the circumstances of that first occasion, the matchmakers being two people who knew her extremely well, her mother Nicky and her step-father, band leader Eric Robinson, who were very good friends of David. They now joined the party to complete the story of that first encounter.

Next, tribute was paid to David's charitable work and his delight when three years previously he had been invited to join the Grand Order of Water Rats, the exclusive band of fellow professionals who dedicate their spare time to charity. And the man who had nominated him now entered, his close friend and scriptwriter George Martin, a former King Rat of the Order. George spoke in glowing terms of his friend, 'a gentleman who is a gentle man', and of his selfless work for others, an opinion that he noted was also held by a group of people who were present to add their own congratulations, whereupon a troupe of Water Rats led by current King Rat George Elrick joined the party. Their ranks included Prince Rat Joe Church, Leslie Crowther, Henry Cooper, Bill Martin, Billy Dainty, Freddie Davis, Jon Pertwee, Ted Ray, Charlie Chester and finally Tommy Cooper, who made a big show of not going on at the last moment, because he said he was going to sue David for doing all his tricks! He had, in fact, left a sick bed in order to join his fellow Rats but was not wearing his Rat lapel insignia and David threatened to fine him! In passing, it may be noted that Tommy steadfastly resisted any attempt to secure him as the subiect of This is Your Life!

The focus now turned on someone who had brought tremendous happiness to David and Vivienne during the past twelve years and, in a voice-off, their daughter Amanda said 'Eamonn is talking about me, Daddy', and she tripped on to the scene and into her father's arms. Eamonn then added, 'And you've got a special surprise for Daddy, haven't you Amanda?' 'Yes', she chimed, 'Nicholas isn't as far away as you think, Daddy', which Eamonn confirmed, explaining that after sending his message from Hong Kong Nicholas had got special leave to fly home and he'd done just that, and so 'From the Far East to complete the family - here's your eighteen-year-old son Nicholas.' With the family reunited it only remained for Eamonn to hand over to David the emblematic red book and pronounce This is Your Life! and for the participants to crowd around the Nixons to bring the televised programme to a triumphant conclusion. Afterwards there was a happy party with sandwiches and drink and the statutory 'fiver' was pressed into the hands of each of the supporting cast. Apparently David's only sorrow concerning the programme was that Michael Denison, who had been his commanding officer during the war, had not been included.

As a final sidelight on the dilemmas of maintaining secrecy, David revealed afterwards an episode that almost spelt disaster only a few hours before the 'pick-up'. A letter that he had addressed to his son in Hong Kong was returned by Shell Tankers marked 'Left Ship'. In his innocence he telephoned Shell to discover what had happened and only the quick thinking of their personnel officer saved the day. He apologised for the 'clerical error' and said Nicholas wasn't due home for another two weeks, whereas he was already at the TV studios waiting for the programme to commence and preparing to give his father a marvellous ultimate surprise.

AS IT WAS: THE VICTIM'S INSIDE STORY

IT IS NOT often that the 'victim' of This Is Your Life records in any detail the emotions experienced when suddenly confronted by Eamonn Andrews or Michael Aspel wielding the Big Red Book. We are extremely fortunate therefore that David Nixon did do so, thus in his own words affording this intimate insider's view.

THE SURPRISE OF MY 'LIFE'

Have you ever wondered how much the victim knows before Eamonn Andrews confronts him with the big red book and the famous words 'This is Your Life'? I can tell you. Nothing.

Some years ago my wife asked: 'If they ever did one on you, would you want to be told?' 'Yes', I said 'because the best ad libs are written on the cuff, and it would be awful to be tongue-tied.' Then I rashly added, 'Darling, I would know anyway. You've never been able to keep a secret. I bet you five pounds that, if it ever happens, Eamonn will not take me by surprise.'

Well, it did happen, and I paid up with pleasure. I was never more astonished in my life!

This is how it happened. About seven weeks before my big day Thames Television phoned and asked me to record a three-minute insert for a special Christmas show. It's a busy time of year, but you don't refuse that sort of request from your Kind Employer! So we had a planning meeting at my home to fix it. Of the ten people sitting round the table, I was the only one who didn't know that what we were really planning was to be the biggest shock of my life.

I suggested several tricks that we might do. I learned later that when I said 'Let's produce Ali Bongo out of Santa Claus's sack', Ali looked at Royston Mayoh, the producer, and nodded. 'Where shall we do it?' said Roy. We discussed a West End store, Madam Tussaud's, the Post Office Tower, and then I had an inspiration. Suppose we could persuade The Magic Circle to lend us the Club Room? 'Great,' they said.

So off I went to my phone to arrange things - without knowing it had already been fixed, and that while I was phoning Ali was explaining to the team how they would smuggle Eamonn into the sack for the 'confrontation'. Everyone played the deception along for the next few weeks.

Looking back, I can think of a dozen times I should have been suspicious. There were strange phone calls - a researcher wanting to speak to Vivienne, and the line would go dead when I answered... there seemed to be more people around than would normally be involved in a three minute insert... Viv was going up to Town much more than usual (to help with the research). But the thing that nearly blew it happened just a few hours before the 'pick-up'...

A letter I'd addressed to my son in Hong Kong was returned by Shell Tankers marked 'Left Ship'. I telephoned Shell without knowing they had arranged for Nick to be flown home for the programme, and he was already waiting in the studios! The quick thinking of the personnel officer saved the day. He apologised for the 'clerical error' and said Nick would be home for Christmas as arranged, so his appearance at the end of the show was a most beautiful surprise for me.

I was in my Surrey home alone that day, putting up a copper hood in the kitchen, while eighteen miles away dozens of friends and relations. crews and technicians were rehearsing my Great Event. I left home at 4 p.m. to drive to a radio recording of Many a Slip. David Clark, my good friend from Thames met me there to watch the recording. (Actually, of course, to make sure that I got to the 'pick-up' on time.)

When we got to The Magic Circle they sent me to make-up while they smuggled Eamonn into the sack. I was doubtful about the way George Martin and Ali Bongo had arranged the insert. I thought it was magically wrong and said so. In fact they knew this, but it had been done that way to get Eamonn in position without my seeing. I stood on the floor under those hot lights discussing the script utterly oblivious to the fact that the poor fellow was sweating it out tied up in a sack, right beside me.

Whenever I watch the confrontation at the start of This Is Your Life I feel very emotional for the subject. This goes back to the time of the very first showing in this country, when Ralph Edwards swung it on Eamonn himself - to his obvious astonishment. I had always imagined I would break down in their place. For me, I can tell you, it was a moment of total disbelief. Eamonn is a friend and we see each other fairly often. I just couldn't believe that he was being serious until we were in the car on the five-minute drive to the studio.

I remember saying to him, 'Tell me who will be there.' He said, 'David, never mind who will be there. This is one night when you don't have to work. My advice to you is - just sit back and enjoy it. I can promise you some beautiful surprises.' How right he was!

The programme itself was dream-like. I look forward to seeing the recording when I've got over some of the emotion. I remember a procession of close friends and relations. They had even found my great school friend and flown him from New Zealand! There was Norman Wisdom greeting me from the Sydney Opera House. One after another they came, from my family and the world of magic and show business. They all have my heartfelt gratitude because they had taken the trouble to come and honour me - and they kept the secret.

At the party afterwards there was Gus Westoby, the school friend I hadn't seen for thirty-seven years. We talked of the time we conducted our own experiments in the chemistry lab and nearly blew it up. And how we tied black cotton (there was no telly in those days and you had to make your own amusement) across the pavement at just the right time to take old ladies' hats off. And how we ran the day we got a policeman's helmet.

And there was Ralph Symons, my old friend now retired in Dorset, who is the man who convinced me that I ought to try and get into show business, all those years ago.

What a party!

Anita Harris, Leslie Crowther, Joe Church, Jon Pertwee, George Elrick, Robert Harbin, Henry Cooper, Charlie Chester, Freddie Davies, and many others there to back me up. I remember climbing on a chair (not easy at that stage of the evening) and reading a telegram from Les Dawson. It read:

'YOUR STORY MAKES FANNY HILL LOOK LIKE RUPERT THE BEAR. I'VE ALWAYS SUSPECTED THAT UNDER YOUR BALD WIG AND PLASTIC DANDRUFF YOU ARE REALLY MARTIN BORMAN. BEST CONGRATULATIONS AND KEEP YOUR CHINS UP PREFERABLY WITH A PLASTIC SHOVEL.'

Then I heard of some funny things that had happened during rehearsals. Not surprising with all those comics around. I'm told the conversation at the first meeting went like this:

Peter Webb: 'Hello, I'm the producer. My name is Webb.'

Ted Ray: 'I hope your feet get better soon.'

Arthur Askey: 'Don't be rude - that's Rita's father.'

Peter: 'I know we have a lot of stars here, but I'm afraid there won't be time for all of you to speak.'

Billy Dainty: 'If we are running on time, can I get a nod in?'

...and so on. Viv says it was hilarious.

Basil Brush's man, Ivan Owen, said 'How do you know that David will remember the balloon trick when he sees Basil?'

George Martin (who knows me very well) said: 'I've written it to give you all the cue lines, and David will pick it up.' Thank heaven he was right.

Tommy Cooper made a big show of not going on at the last moment, because he said he was going to sue me for doing all his tricks!

And there they all were. Crowding round me at the most fantastic surprise party a man ever had. I tried to make a speech of thanks, and that's when it happened. I was suddenly quite choked for words.

I am writing this a week later, and just beginning to come back to Earth. How do I thank the Research Team for their weeks of cloak-and-dagger work on My Life?... or Eamonn for his brilliant and sympathetic handling?... or Vivienne for living with me and the secret for all that time?

I'm told that the subject's wife is always brought in to sit next to him as early in the programme as possible, because he's usually suffering from mild shock. That's how it was for me. Without a doubt - my Magic Moment.

David Nixon

Presenter Eamonn Andrews and producer Jack Crawshaw recall this edition of This Is Your Life in their book, Surprise Of Your Life...

Among the mementoes housed in the headquarters of the Magic Circle is the jacket once worn by the incredible escapologist Harry Houdini. And I really could have used old Harry's skills the night I found myself trussed in a sack unable to breathe. That night I almost did think that I was on my way to the next life.

It was all part of the surprise for David Nixon, and when I got out of the sack to come face to face with him we were both as white as ghosts and on the verge of collapse – if for different reasons.

It all began when we decided to try to achieve the impossible by beating David at one of his own tricks. For master magician Nixon had been up to his tricks ever since he received his first conjuring set as a present when he was a boy in Westcliff-on-Sea.

Even as a teenager, he had the neighbours scratching their heads with a trick he performed by gaslight in a back street of the seaside resort. As the neighbours walked by a lamp post, they would see shiny coins on the ground. But as they bent to pick them up they were flabbergasted to see them disappear. The trick, we learned from an old school pal of his, was one of the simplest he ever pulled. You see, the coins were attached to a piece of cotton which he had draped over the lamp post and over a wall behind which he hid. When he heard someone investigating he would give the cotton a tug, and the coins vanished into thin air.

But from those impromptu street performances David had gone on to become a first class magician. During the war he was with ENSA, travelling to the world's battlefronts and visiting no less than twenty-seven countries. His magic brought welcome light relief to the battle-weary troops.

Later, his skill, dedication and charm took him right to the top of his profession. And he became a nationwide celebrity almost overnight when he joined the team on television's What's My Line? And I discovered he had a way with words as well as magic.

One thing was for sure as we sat around the conference table: it would need a very clever trick to pull the wool over David's eyes.

We were fortunate to have, in Royston Mayoh, our own resident man of magic. Royston had produced and directed many of David's television shows and, like me, knew him as a friend. His first suggestion was to call on David's associate in magic, Ali Bongo.

It was easy enough to convince David that he was wanted to perform a televised trick as part of a Christmas programme. But the difficult bit was to decide which trick?

We eventually agreed on the broad principle that it should be an illusion that would enable me to make a switch with someone. What made it doubly difficult was that Ali had a rule that he only talked about the intricacies of magic with David present.

So Ali and Royston went along to try to get David to agree to a trick without his knowing that it was the one they actually wanted him to do.

Knowing that David always improved on an idea by personalising it, they had to present him with just a half a trick so that in the privacy of his own office he would unwittingly improve it into what we wanted. If you see what I mean...

What none of us foresaw, of course, was that David would decide to improve the trick even more – after the cameras had started recording.

Obviously I cannot break the confidences of the Magic Circle, but the idea was for David to make Ali disappear and then re-appear out of a sack in the form of actress Penny Meredith.

On the day in question I took the short drive from the studios to the headquarters of the Magic Circle and crept in through a back door, having been given a signal that David was busy inside. He was perfecting the trick. And I was busy thinking about mine because, as you might have guessed, I was planning to do a switch with Penny.

All seemed fairly straightforward from my point of view as I clambered into a sack which was due to be loaded on to Santa's sleigh and pushed into the room where David was performing in front of camera. The sack, designed, dare I say it, to take the less bulky body of the shapely Miss Meredith, was a tight fit for me. But I wasn't too worried about that, knowing that I would only be in there for less than a minute.

Never in the history of This Is Your Life surprises can a minute have lasted so long. It was now, of all times, that Mr Nixon decided to make another addition to the trick. As I lay there on the sleigh trussed up like something fried not only in a Southern state of America, I could hear a frantic debate going on featuring Messrs. Nixon, Mayoh and Ali Bongo.

David's "improvement" meant lengthening the trick. And the longer it got the nearer I got to the next world. My legs were numb with cramp and I was gasping for air as I felt the sleigh being gently moved beneath me.

I didn't dare breathe as we entered the studio in case David heard me. But had he not opened the sack when he did I think I would have exploded. I leapt out like a jack-in-the-box and I got as big a shock as he did when I saw him turn white and begin to shake.

I am delighted to say that within the hour David was still shaking, but not with shock – with delight. This time the shakes were caused by another of our surprises that nearly went wrong in a way that had threatened the show even before we had set out on the pick-up, although we didn't know a thing about it until afterwards.

Having known David for many years I knew that the show would not be complete for him without his 18-year-old son Nicholas. But right from the outset we knew that Nicholas, who was training to be a Merchant Navy Officer, was miles away at sea.

When researcher Suzie Manwaring-White managed to contact him he was aboard an oil tanker in the Indian Ocean. But when she told his company just why she was making her confidential enquiries they generously agreed to give him special permission to leave the ship in Hong Kong so that we could fly him to London.

What we didn't realise was that David regularly wrote to Nicholas while he was away and, just days before the show, one of his letters was returned with a statement saying Nicholas had left the ship. David, naturally worried, telephoned the oil company. And by a fluke the official he spoke to was the one Suzie had let in on the secret. He assured David that Nicholas was on the ship. A mistake must have been made, he said, apologising for the error.

It was an error that had both David and his seafaring son roaring with laughter as Nicholas read his Dad's letter after the show before he clambered into bed at the family home in Surrey. He was home for Christmas and that night an oil tanker steamed through a Far Eastern Sea with at least one empty bunk on board.

Producer Malcolm Morris recalls this edition of This Is Your Life in his book, This Is My Life...

One of our more 'dangerous' surprises nearly caused the end of Eamonn. It was our Christmas programme and the subject was Eamonn's old friend and What's My Line? co-star, David Nixon.

Eamonn wanted to give David a very big surprise and since David was a member of the Magic Circle we arranged for him to unwittingly give a secretly filmed demonstration of a trick involving a small cabinet disappearing inside a medium sized Christmas parcel. It provided the perfect opportunity for us and we involved a close colleague of David's to make sure that Eamonn would emerge from the box.

Eamonn was over six feet tall, but he could just about squeeze into the cabinet. We put Eamonn into the box but David forgot something that he wanted to get just right and started to look for it.

Meanwhile Eamonn was beginning to get claustrophobic. He was in fact suffocating! David eventually opened the box just as Eamonn was about to pass out!

Scriptwriter Roy Bottomley recalls this edition of This Is Your Life in his book, This Is Your Life: The Story of Television's Famous Big Red Book...

David, that great magician, was a good friend from the earliest days of What's My Line? at the BBC, and had been a Life subject himself.

In fact, on that pick-up Eamonn had thought it was the end of his own life - literally. The idea was a trick in which David's magic associate Ali Bongo climbed into a sack, and, hey presto, out of the same sack came magician's assistant Penny Meredith.

It being a Christmas Show, it was Santa's sack. Without giving away Magic Circle confidences, Eamonn switched places with Penny, for whom the sack had been a comfortable fit. Not so for Eamonn. Not only was he like a trussed chicken in there, but David Nixon decided he would ad-lib a bit (as he often did), with Eamonn rapidly running out of air. 'Had David not opened the sack when he did I think it would have exploded,' said Eamonn, who just about managed to summon the wind to say the four magic words.

TV Times article: David Nixon This Is Your Life

TV Times 26 November 1974

Welcome back!

Any doubts about the genuineness of This Is Your Life must surely have been dispelled by the look of surprise on David Nixon's face when Eamonn Andrews spoke that famous phrase.

But the crowning moment for me was the entrance of Mrs Nixon's stepfather, Eric Robinson. Not only did it do my heart good just to see him, it really made my Christmas.

What pleasure over the years Eric has given with his delightful music – and, oh, that all-encompassing smile.

Mrs Esme Lyon, Doncaster, Yorks

Series 14 subjects