He’s tricky but he’s a real TREAT
IT’S the one call that I dread popping up. But would you dare not answer the phone to mentalist Keith Barry? The last time he called me, he subsequently presented me with a plastic container which I kept for two weeks — only to meet him backstage at the Olympia and for the contents to reveal three stories I had written in that day’s paper.
I know he’s not a psychic. If he was, he’d be living on an island off his Lotto winnings. But what he does continues to freak me out.
The call this time around was for me to accompany him to Today FM studios, where he would present Dermot and Dave with two similar clandestine objects; a closed manila envelope — his prediction of the outcome and round for the Conor McGregor-Floyd Mayweather fight encased within, and an old cassette.
Back in 2009, Keith called me up and predicted Ireland would beat Wales by a drop goal in Cardiff — and low and behold, it came true. He also predicted Leinster would beat Leicester by three points in the then Heineken Cup Final — so he has pedigree in this area. You can imagine that both Dermot and Dave were perplexed at why the magician wasn’t nailing his colours to the mast early, allowing the public to know his predictions, for the purposes of betting.’
BUT here’s the deal. I sat in studio and watched as Keith handed over these objects and predictions to the Today FM radio hosts. He’ll return on Monday, August 28, after the fight and his predictions will be revealed for good or bad. I got chatting to him after the event to see if I could gauge which way he was leaning or how he made his predictions. Don’t forget, this is a man who was asked to leave a Las Vegas Casino last year for card counting, so there’s always method to his madness.
He said that in order to come up with what he believes will be an accurate prediction of who’ll win and which round, he’s been studying pugilists, their family members, social media accounts and interviews.
‘I haven’t made a prediction like this in a couple of years,’ he says. ‘I love creating mystery, people wondering what’s in the envelope. Because I’ve been watching it and following all the press conferences, I feel knowledgeable on it. And there were things that happened where I went, “Oh, wait a minute,” and that influenced my decision.
‘I don’t think it’s going to go a lot of the way people are thinking.
‘We all follow patterns, so my job is to identify McGregor’s and Mayweather’s and turn them into what I believe is an accurate prediction. I also study the people around them.
‘I was looking at McGregor’s dad at the waxwork museum this week and how he was behaving. He will affect the outcome of the fight. He’s his dad, end of story. If my parents come to one of my gigs, I perform way differently to if they weren’t there. But look, the fight will come and go, and the Monday after, I could look like a complete eejit.’
Now, I know Keith for a long time and a showman he is, a publicity machine he most definitely is, but an eejit he is not. ‘He won’t reveal his prediction, but I get the feeling he’s backed McGregor. Could this be the first sign an upset is on the cards? We’ll have to wait and see.
Keith Barry brings his Hypnomagick show to the Olympia, Fri/Sat, Nov 10 & 11.