Tributes have been paid to a Manchester-born magician, who performed professionally for more than eight decades. Mark Raffles died, aged 100, last month.
Mark was born as Albert Taylor in Harpurhey on January 22 1922 and had a career spanning 81 years, until his retirement just three years ago. He struggled at school due to a debilitating stammer and left when he was just 14.
After taking a keen interest in magic and being taught by his uncle, Mark turned professional in 1938, performing a silent magic act at the Queen’s Park Hippodrome, in Manchester. At that point he was called Ray St Clair but changed his stage name to Mark Raffles after perfecting a pickpocket act, covering his stammer by a unique manner of speaking on stage.
