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Confessions of a Ghost-Hunter "I could perhaps like others have astonished you with strange improbable Tales; but I rather chose to relate plain Matter of Fact in the simplest Manner and Style, because my principal Design was to Inform, and not to amuse thee. I could heartily wish a Law was enacted, that every Traveller before he were permitted to publish his Voyages, should be obliged to make Oath before the Lord High Chancellor that all he intended to print was absolutely true to the best of his Knowledge; for then the World would no longer be deceived as it usually is, while some Writers, to make their Works pass the better upon the Publick, impose the grossest Falsities on the unwary Reader. ...it hath given me a great Disgust ...and some Indignation to see the Credulity of Mankind so impudently abused. Therefore ... I imposed on myself as a Maxim, never to be swerved from, that I would strictly adhere to Truth..." Final chapter from Gulliver's Travels
I believe I have finally uncovered the mysterious identity of the ghostwriter who collaborated with Jasper Maskelyne on Magic - Top Secret. Jasper's son, Alistair was quite adamant that a ghostwriter had produced both Magic - Top Secret and the earlier White Magic. In our correspondence ten years ago, Alistair Maskelyne talked about a preliminary manuscript that he had read through: "Magic - Top Secret was a ghost written largely fictional account of my father's western desert experiences . When I was given a preliminary draft to read in 1946 my comment to my father was "there is so much over dramatised fiction here that it is obviously untrue. Can we get it re-written to present your wartime feats on the lines of a serving officer? The ghost writer's reply "there were thousands such. It would never sell." Alistair wrote: "Magic:Top-Secret is not "Maskelyne's own account", merely the ghost writer’s endeavours to boost my father's recollections." I have no reason to doubt Alistair. But historians of magic understandably require additional evidence. In October 2004 I contacted Stanley Paul, the publisher of Magic - Top Secret and White Magic. Random House (who now own Stanley Paul) have an archive in Northamptonshire near where I was born. Jean Rose, manager of their archive library, was very helpful to me over the phone. She located the original contract for Magic Top-Secret signed by Jasper Maskelyne in June 23rd,1947. In the surviving contract there is no reference to a second writer ! I pressed her on this point. She said that from Stanley Paul’s perspective Jasper Maskelyne was the sole person contracted to write the book. There was no evidence in their files to indicate that there was a collaborator. However, she added that the contract also made reference to Jasper’s literary agent, Rupert Crew. Jean Rose kindly informed me that the Rupert Crew agency is still in existence and gave me their contact number. I spoke to a Doreen Montgomery, a co-director of the Crew agency. I introduced myself by saying : “I’ve done a great deal of research on the wartime career of Jasper Maskelyne. I’ve corresponded in detail with his son, Alistair. But his son claims that Magic-Top Secret was ghostwritten..." “It was.” Her response was instant. There was no hesitation or doubt. I then asked her how she knew this. I explained that I had checked at Stanley Paul. Their records indicated that Jasper was the sole signatory. And Doreen made the following points: The agreement with a ghost-writer is done through the agent, not the publisher. The celebrity signs with the publisher, but they make separate arrangements with their collaborator and these terms are sorted out with their agent.Such an arrangement would not show up in the publisher's contract. Furthermore, she was able to provide a name - Frank S. Stuart. She seemed sure it was Frank "S" for sugar Stuart. She said that he wrote or ghosted several books for the Agency. She also thought that it was plausible that he was responsible for White Magic, published before the war. She did convey to me that Frank was a reputable worker. He would have to sit down and interview the client. He would not be allowed to write material without their permission and approval. I then spoke to Jean Rose at Random House again. She agreed that if Jasper worked with a ghost-writer brought in by the Rupert Crew literary agency, then the second name would not appear on the Stanley Paul contract. As long as Jasper fulfils his contract and delivers the manuscript, no hard questions are asked about authorship. Who then is Frank S. Stuart? I decided to press on with my own research. In November 2004, I visited the new British Library which is located near Kings Cross. Indeed, this reading library is not far from the new headquarters of the Magic Circle. I requested three pre-war books written by Frank S. Stuart. I was particularly keen to examine "Nothing Up My Sleeve", supposedly the life story of Douglas Beaufort, "Society Magician", written with the assistance of Frank S. Stuart and published by Stanley Paul in 1938. This forgotten book provides important independent evidence. Firstly, its very existence shows that Frank S. Stuart collaborated with a magician from Jasper Maskelyne's era. Secondly, the internal evidence - what the book actually contains and how the material is presented - strongly supports the theory that its author also wrote the Maskelyne books. For example, the teaser design of the contents pages of "Nothing Up My Sleeve" has a familiar ring. I found it very similar to the sensational style of language used in the contents of White Magic and Magic - Top Secret. Below are some examples culled from the chapter headings:
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Frank S. Stuart appears to have manufactured a series of tantalising tales for the gullible public. In the final chapter of "Nothing Up My Sleeve", Beaufort/Stuart shamelessly declares: "Looking back over nearly sixty years of conjuring, it seems to me...that I have left out more adventures than I have included ! "There was the occasion when a European Prince sought my aid when an escapade with a grisette ceased to be a joke to him and became a terror. There was a time when a young English Duke asked me to investigate the secret of a grisly family legend, told to each heir when he became twenty-one. It was a peculiarly horrible story, and my magic proved puny beside a more sinister magic we could not understand. Once I saw what seemed to be a werewolf. Once a highly educated, titled girl offered me priceless family heirlooms for a love potion, and would not believe me when I said I could not invent one. Once I saw something of a poisoning case in very high life, and saw how skilfully it was hushed up. Many of these stories I have purposely avoided in this book. I have tried to stick almost entirely to tales in which I could quote names, dates, and places as verification. One need not be a magician to make up fairy-stories, but I have given, as far as possible, accounts of things I have actually witnessed." Readers might wish to absorb the sarcastic quotation drawn from Gulliver's Travels which heads this web article. Jonathan Swift, in his final chapter, mocks previous fantastical tales that have no relation to the truth. His narrator, Gulliver, then boldly claims that his own account is genuine. An outrageous claim that the reader would realise is blatantly false. Frank S. Stuart and David Fisher, proponents of the Maskelyne myth, boldly claim that what they write is all true. Their publishers unscrupulously maintain the illusion. Cassell Military History are even preparing a paperback edition of the War Magician for 2005, sub-titled the True Story of Jasper Maskelyne. the Credulity of Mankind so impudently abused ! On their final page, Frank S. Stuart and the ghostwriter of White Magic bring their ripping yarns to a similar sounding conclusion. Note also the double exclamation structure:
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The contents of Chapter 11 and 12 of Nothing Up My Sleeve are most revealing and have direct parallels with material that was later recycled for Magic - Top Secret. Beaufort's perilous mission to Morocco is a prequel to Maskelyne's dramatic mission to Damascus. Beaufort's duel with the marabouts is suspiciously similar to Maskelyne's duel with the Imam. Beaufort ends up with a precious silver dagger from the Sultan. Maskelyne, for his brave efforts, receives a gold watch from King Farouk. In both accounts, the evil scheming fanatical muslim/dervish/wogs are outwitted. And British diplomacy triumphs. I defy anyone to read this rubbish without concluding that Frank S. Stuart freely invented ludicrous chunks of fiction dressed up as fact. And that is why I am even more convinced that Maskelyne's 'memoirs' are tainted material. The giveaway clue , missed by everyone, is hidden in plain sight on the very first page of Magic:Top-Secret: "...Mr Douglas Beaufort, was sent by our Foreign Office to Morocco to perform some alarming illusions at a time when the Sultan's friendship seemed essential to avert a war, and the desired result was attained..." A circular trail of audacious self-endorsement, overlooked by all the experts. The time has come to rip into these ripping yarns and objectively evaluate, even emasculate ,the Maskelyne myth.
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