Family's tribute to top Blackpool magician

The showman, whose real name was Richard James Davies, is believed to have died in his sleep just hours after watching one of his favourite musicals.

His devastated dad Paul, from Hardhorn Road in Poulton, said: “This came as an almighty shock. It was devastating and completely out of the blue.

“It’s going to take considerable time to learn how to deal with it. We will never get over it.”

A post-mortem examination was unable to reveal how Richard died, Paul said, although further test results are outstanding.

An inquest is due to be held once the medical investigation is completed.

Writing on Facebook, Richard’s friend and BBC Newcastle radio presenter Simon Logan said: “I woke up on to find my lovely friend and brilliant magician Richard James had passed away in his sleep.

“I called an ambulance and tried to save him but he had already gone. Everyone is shocked and stunned at this dreadful news. He was just 37. RIP, my friend, I will miss you forever.”

Paul said Richard ‘tragically passed away in Newcastle suddenly and unexpectedly’ after seeing hit musical Les Miserable on stage.

“It was one of his favourite shows,” he said. “We had music from it playing at his funeral.”

Richard, who grew up entertaining his classmates at Bispham Endowed Primary School and later Montgomery High School, also in Bispham, moved to Spain in 2003 after working for several years as a Butlins redcoat in Minehead.

There he worked in venues across Marbella, Puerto Banus, and Benalmádena in Costa del Sol on the south coast.

He performed in front of tourists and big name celebrities, including boxer Ricky Hatton and the late television presenter Cilla Black.

Paul said: “He loved magic and was very, very good. He started from around five years old, when his grandmother bought him a magic set.”

An accomplished keyboard and organist, Richard would incorporate his own music into his acts, which also involved several of his own illusions and tricks, which he designed and sold online and at conventions, including in Blackpool.

Paul added: “He exported them all over the world, including America, Germany, and Japan. He sold quite a lot and many were demonstrated on YouTube.

“He was continuing to develop stuff, he was in the process when he died. We found all sorts of designs.” As well as performing reguarly in bars and clubs, Richard thrilled crowds at larger venues, including the Torre Quebarda casino in Benalmádena, where he was described as a ‘master illusionist’.

Richard eventually moved back to the UK in 2010, living with his then-girlfriend in North Shields, near Newcastle, and continued to concentrate on his career in showbiz and product design.

His brothers Michael and James, also a keen magician, both went to university in Newcastle and the three remained close.

Richard died on January 30. Richard had undergone surgery ‘two or three’ times for a shoulder injury but is not thought to have had any serious underlying health problems, leaving his family puzzled and heartbroken.

As well as scores of friends both at home and abroad, and extended family members, Richard was survived by his parents Lorraine and Barrie Housby, who live in Spain, Paul and Gail Davies, and siblings Michael, James, and Julie.