Channel 4 orders hypnotic prank show pilot Look Into My Eyes
Channel 4 has ordered Look Into My Eyes, a comedic prank show pilot starring 21 year-old magician and hypnotist Archie Manners.
The channel explains: "Hypnosis has the power to release latent abilities, unlock frustrations, cure addiction and remove chronic pain. Much better than that it can also be harnessed to make people do very funny things.
"This warm and devilishly funny pilot episode will showcase Archie's extraordinary skills to twist the minds of young Brits so they act in extraordinary ways; like hypnotise total strangers to only tell the truth on a first date; or cure peoples fear of heights through hypnosis, and to prove it's worked, bring them out of their trance at the top of a mountain... on a high wire!
"Sometimes Archie's team of helpful actors are in on it, sometimes those they interact with have no idea what's going on, but the fun will all be captured for viewers at home through a series of pranks and stunts filmed both overtly and using hidden cameras."
The show will be produced by Objective Productions, the company which has a comedy background via the likes of Peep Show, but also has created many previous magic shows for television and worked with Derren Brown on his TV stunts.
Archie Manners, who styles himself as 'The Society Magician' and is a member of the Magic Circle, has performed in front of the likes of David Cameron, Prince Edward and Alex Ferguson at private events.
This pilot commission follows You're Back In The Room, an ITV comedy series in which hypnotist Keith Barry influenced the actions of contestants playing along with the Phillip Schofield hosted gameshow.
The pilot episode of Look Into My Eyes will be shown on Channel 4 later this year.