CELEBRITY marriages are not known for their longevity. Many a seemingly perfect couple's relationship crumbles before it has finished being built.
But magician Geoffrey Durham, best known as his alter ego, The Great Suprendo, and comedienne Victoria Wood's marriage has firm foundations.
"We met on the fourth of July 1976.
" I was in a musical in Leicester, it was the worst musical in the world, and she came in as the relief musical director," says Durham.
Since then, their careers have followed very different paths, but their marriage has remained as strong as ever.
"I think if you are in showbusiness, it helps to be married to someone else who's in showbusiness.
"The fact that we've both been successful in our own fields is a bonus but it's not essential."
Victoria Wood is the better known of the two - she holds the record for the largest number of performances as a solo artiste at the Royal Albert Hall, whereas Durham says: "I'm just happy to be employed."
But Durham has carved out a successful niche for himself as both a magician and a panellist.
He is the celebrity who most regularly graces 'dictionary corner' on Countdown, where he has gained a cult following thanks to the magic tricks he performs.
But his one-man show, coming to the New Theatre Royal in Portsmouth on October 12, is his great love.
"It is actually the great thing in my life, I mean, obviously apart from family and all that.
"The one-man show is terrific, I really enjoy it.
"It carries me through the year - it's my life's work," he says.
In the show, Durham reveals some of the secrets of his trade and shares his experiences as a magician with the audience.
"I tried to work out when I was devising the show, what kind of things people would want to know about magic from a magician," he says.
He also performs lots of new tricks, mingling with the audience during the interval, performing magic under their noses.
Durham's journey to becoming a professional magician has been a colourful one.
At one stage, he was working as a busker on the streets of Liverpool, swallowing razorblades and eating fire, which proved to be hazardous work.
"It's not easy to stop the razorblades from cutting the inside of your mouth and sometimes they do.
"I learnt fire-eating on my own, which is a terrible thing to do.
"I remember doing it in front of the mirror and shaking with fear, because you really can hurt yourself," says Durham.
"I had a moustache and I used to set fire to it by accident!"
While he was working as a busker, Durham was offered a job as a stage magician.
He was reluctant to do it, as he had done similar work before, so he decided to do something to make it more interesting.
"Because I've got a degree in Spanish and Portuguese, I decided to do it in Spanish, and created The Great Suprendo.
It proved to be a persona that was hard to shake.
Come on, everybody, say the magic words: piff, paff, pouff.
What's On has got together with the New Theatre Royal to offer one reader a pair of tickets for One Man's Intrepid Journey Up His Sleeve.
To be in with a chance of winning, answer the following question: What was The Great Suprendo's catch phrase?
Send you answer to: Geoffrey Durham Comp, Promotions Dept, PO Box 543, SO16 9ZQ, by next Friday
* For more information, call 023 9264 9000.
