Dynamo the Magician, the superstar who suddenly disappeared

The world learned about Dynamo the Magician after seeing him levitate on a skyscraper, stand in the air on stage, or walk on water. His rise to global fame was on par with Copperfield or Houdini.

He was world famous in magic, had his show, and people adored him. However, in 2015, he suddenly disappeared. What had happened? Why didn't he appear again like he used to in his magic tricks? This time, there was no magic trick, but an incurable disease.

Dynamo, whose real name is Steven Frayne, was born in the United Kingdom in 1982. He was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease in 1997. It's an incurable and paralyzing illness that led him to take 23 pills a day, as he told 'The Mirror' in 2016.

Since then, the illusionist has had to carefully monitor his life's pace and his diet. Even so, he wakes up with unbearable pain every day, he told 'The Sun' in 2018.

However, Crohn's disease was there before his fame, and Steven Frayne learned to turn it into something motivational. However, in parallel, there was a family tragedy that destroyed the magician: the death of his grandmother.

As he told 'Metro': "My mum had me really young, and my nana was my second mum. When she died, I felt like the magic in me died with her. I felt like I didn’t have a reason to live."

"My grandpa taught me magic and got me into it, but my nana was the one who took me to the magic shop, nurtured me, and took me to magic conferences and magic competitions," he recalled.

Between his weakness due to his illness and the irreparable loss of his Nana, Dynamo spent several years away from public life and entertainment.

In the podcast 'The Diary of a CEO', he confirmed that this emotional and physical setback took its toll on him mentally. The magician even revealed that he had thought about taking his life in November 2020. Fortunately, his partner found him in his bed right before he could go through with it.

Kelly, his partner since 2011, forced him to go to therapy. "You can feel it's a sign of weakness to ask for help but one thing I've realized on this journey is that by accepting weakness, you’re giving yourself the strength to overcome something," he said.

The artist's efforts have helped him resurface and return to television with a program called 'Dynamo is Dead' (2023). The show's title is a metaphor for his situation as a magician.

"I am physically incapable of performing some magic myself and so I was inspired to create magic for other people to do it," he tells 'Metro'.

On his show, there is always a famous guest who inspires Dynamo to improve himself in some way. People like Kate Beckinsale, Pete Davidson, Tony Hawk, Kesha, Bugzy Malone, Cara Delevingne, Tyson Fury, and Demi Lovato have been through 'Dynamo is Dead'.

In the image: Dynamo with Eva Longoria

"A lot of the magic isn't performed by me, it's performed by the guests," the (former) magician told 'Metro.' "Kate and Tyson both create magic, but they don't know how they've done it."

He told Metro, "I've never been comfortable walking onto a stage but when I start performing magic, something inside me comes alive. I realised that's what I live for, but all the other things that come with it, I find overwhelming."

Regardless of where he might go next, it is crystal clear that Dynamo has been one of the greatest magicians of the 21st century.

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