The comedy stage hypnotist Robert Temple is bringing back his red hair and outrageous show to venues across the UK this April, including Brighton.

For the past 15 years, Temple has toured his shows across ten countries, hypnotising over 20,000 people in over 2,000 performances – everywhere from Las Vegas to London, Mumbai to Greece.

His childhood was spent watching performers at the Sunderland Empire, where his dad worked, and - inspired by his hero Paul Daniels - Temple became one of the best young magicians in the country.

“We’d talk at magic conventions and I would e-mail him and he would reply,” he said.

“He didn’t ever come to the North without me seeing his show. Watching him perform was like attending a master class for anybody wanting to be involved in comedy entertainment.”

But when he was a teenager magic lost its appeal.

“When somebody shows you a card trick you think it’s clever, but you know it’s a trick. With hypnosis there’s this air of mysticism,” he said.

“The audience knows what’s in store when they buy a ticket and nobody is hypnotised against their will. It’s an evening where people can forget all about their inhibitions – literally.”

The hypnotist will perform at Komedia in Brighton on April 23