A great deal of information regarding theory, psychological subtleties and methods in this almost 3 hours lecture.

Brook Test - Uses two books with two excellent psychological subtleties, one of which adds an extra layer of deception and fairness and one of which may or may not work. Can be done impromptu with borrowed books and some very small preparation, no gimmicks required.

Pen Game - Great effect for those who enjoy the premise shared by Paul and have the gimmick.

Imp-Ossible - Paul doesn't go through the working of the Imp part of this effect but does give the full details about the rest of the effect, while I won't use it, the thinking behind may be used for other types of effects. As a side note in the lecture it didn't work as intended.

Dog-Eared Switch - Great for the effect he mentioned by Kenton. Definitely can give you a great impromptu way of doing some effects in your repertoire.

Locked In Thought - NOT a completely normal lock, can only be used with a lock that looks and acts completely normally for the most part but needs to be specifically located and bought. Paul sells these on his site as well. Great effect for those who will take the plunge and buy it though.

Juxtapose - Great effect, assumed knowledge of a certain streamlined version of a classic effect in mentalism along with a way of getting information, can be done on the spot with some preparation.

One in the Hand - Amazing effect for those in the UK, could be amazing for other parts of the world after enough thorough testing and experimenting. Doesn't work 100% but it doesn't look like a miss if it doesn't hit.

I really liked Paul's approach to claims, and there were some nice and funny stories that every performer can learn from.

The lecture does feel a little short but that may be because everything shown was simple or already building on previous assumed knowledge, for beginners it may not be the best lecture around since he doesn't take the time to fill you in but for those with some knowledge and experience looking for some great psychological subtleties and new combinations of methods and gimmicks this lecture can provide some great additions for your working material as well as great advice from a working pro’s experience.

Having worked with Paul Brook over the years I've had the pleasure of seeing him in action a few times, but never a lecture like this before. It contains high-impact, fun mentalism that requires hardly any skill and no sleight of hand at all. It's all do-able, and there will definitely be something in here for everybody. Within the first 5 minutes of his lecture I had learned something that, as a working professional, was gold dust. There are no 'pipe dreams' here - you can tell he's worked this 1,000's of times (because he really has!!). He's a fun, relaxed performer and gives fantastic advice throughout the lecture and tells a few funny stories to boot. Some prior knowledge of mentalism would be very beneficial, as well as one or two utilities that you might own as well. All in all, this is a top class lecture, from a top class guy. Add to basket right now!

I was really looking forward to this lecture as I have a lot of respect for Paul Brook and have been following him for years. Unfortunately I thought this lecture could have been better.

Not many effects are taught and I felt like he rushed through the explanations. The best effect taught, in my opinion, was Juxtapose, which I already own (I bought the pdf from Paul years ago). Even with Juxtapose, I was hoping he would give some new insights that perhaps he discovered since he released it years ago, but to be honest he explains it better and in more detail in the pdf than he does in the lecture.

At least four of the seven effects taught require some kind of gimmick or something extra, which is funny because at one point in the lecture he says only one of the effects he teaches in the lecture requires a gimmick.

The pen game gimmick costs $25.

For Juxtapose, you need something (granted, which many serious mentalists already own, and that I also already own) that generally costs about $50 or more.

For Locked in Thought you need a special kind of lock that you will be very hard pressed to find unless you buy hundreds of locks (he sells the locks on his site for 45 GBP, and says he buys thousands of locks in order to find ones that will work properly for this effect).

Imp-Ossible requires a large size imp pad to employ his contribution to the drawing duplication effect, and such a large imp pad will probably run about $100 or more if you don't have one already.

The other three gimmick-less effects he taught were all pretty weak and obvious imho.

In short, I am giving this three stars because of Juxtapose and the Pen Game, which are both strong although you need gimmicks for them. I think the choice of effects taught could have been far better, and he could have taught more effects and included a higher percentage of effects that don't require extra expensive or hard to find gimmicks to perform. Also wish he would have spent more time on the explanations vs. rushing through and glazing over everything.

If you're looking for some cutting edge, entertaining and overall hard hitting mentalism then you've started investigating the right lecture!

Paul is one of the best working pros in mentalism and speaking, which really shines through in his lecture! You'll learn fascinating psychological principles that are backed up with sound traditional methods, new uses of the gimmicks you love and wonders that are organized to give you an excellently stagecrafted finish.

Find out why Paul Brook is one of mentalism's best kept secrets, as well as my spirit animal, today!

I've not seen Paul perform before but I have heard great things about him.  I was looking forward to watching this lecture and it didn't disappoint!

In this lecture Paul aimed to give easy, practical ideas that could be easily incorporated into your mentalism set - sharing ideas for both stage and close up.

Whilst a couple of the subtleties didn't play out quite as intended the effects were still very strong - highlighting the rewards that you can strive for without putting a routine at risk.

Highlights for me were the Brook Test, the Pen Game and also some gems from the interview section of the lecture.

There are definitely some ideas from here that I'll be looking to put in to practice very soon! :)

Paul has a refreshing & down-to-earth approach to mentalism. Like Paul Voodini, the story of his introduction to the World of Magic is both fascinating & amusing.

His effect, Juxtapose was a highlight. I also think that his improvement on the old, Hoy Book Test is very good. If you use his psychological word force, together with Richard Osterlind's & Ross Johnson's subtleties, you considerably strengthen the disconnect to Hoy's bold method.

NO PIPE DREAMS OR MATERIAL THAT MIGHT NOT WORK

While its not a five hours long lecture (a lot of lectures go on so long because they are filled with CRAP) This lecture is shorter because everything taught is workable and well thought out.

There are many elements from this lecture I will be molding to fit my character.

Great job

I have a lot of Paul Brook material, but have never had the chance to see him lecture, so this was a real treat. Paul is thoughtful, clever, and entertaining. It's great to hear the details and thinks behind his material. I can't imagine someone not learning something valuable from this lecture.

This is now in my Top 5 lectures on mentalism, Paul was amazing. If you haven't read any of Paul's stuff, start with Alchemical Tools

I've seen "more than a few" Penguin Live lectures in-person as I live within a 2 hour drive of the studio. I've waited to leave any reviews as I wanted to be able to selectively comment on the best that I had seen in the context of having seen many in-person and also having a Penguin Live subscription. At this time, I've selected 3 that were superior, while still respecting/appreciating the talent in other lectures and taking nothing away from them. One of those 3 crazy awesome lectures, in my opinion, is the Paul Brook lecture. Paul is pure "professional with passion." Paul is sold-out to excellence and sold out to the art. The intersection of those elements results in absolute entertainment where the spectator ends up in a place of amazement while having no idea how they got there. The psychology and "intentionality" of Paul's performances results in in "impossible" outcomes that are accompanied by absolute entertainment. Paul is equally sold-out to sharing with others. He not only is an elite entertainer himself, but he is equally interested in making others around him better. Simply awesome.