The Real Magic Behind “Now You See Me 3”: The Story of Jasper Maskelyne

Any lover of the cinema and of the magic has no doubt seen the new movie “now You See Me 3”.The story is about illusionists who take on the role of a real Robin Hood with the help of magic. The film stars Woody Harrelson, Morgan Freeman, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher, Lizzy Caplan, Rosamund Pike, Jesse Eisenberg and Mark Ruffalo, and is directed by Ruben Fisher. The plot of the film intertwines the story of the illusionist Jasper maskelyne and his tricks during World War II.

But who is he and why does his image become part of the story of “Now You See Me”?

Jasper Maskelyne is an illusionist who is said to have helped the Allies win in North Africa during World War II through his tricks. His claims are disputed and the truth will never be fully known. Nevertheless, his name became a legend and a kind of symbol.

In the 1930s, Jasper Maskelyne was a superstar among wizards. He filled theaters in Great Britain with his shows. A poster for his 1931 appearance at the London Palladium proclaimed him “england’s Greatest Illusionist”. He is eccentric, charming, with a thin mustache, a piercing gaze and is extremely agile.

Today I discovered…Jasper Maskelyne, the magician who helped build decoys for the British army during WWII. https://t.co/GSuVLLldHt pic.twitter.com/GSuVLLldHt

–  Dr. Waitman W. Beorn (waitmanwbeorn.com on 🟦) (@waitmanb) https://twitter.com/waitmanb/status/1643165604960927744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Maskelyne’s greatest deception,though,was carried out in a completely diffrent setting – the desert outside Cairo during the Second World War.In his 1949 memoir, Magic: Top Secret, he claimed to have led a team that mass-produced “tricks, deceptions and devices designed to confuse and mislead the bald Axis commanders”.

Here comes the turn of covert operation bertram.

♦ In 1940 the British War Office established a Camouflage Training and Advancement Center at Farnham Castle in Surrey. It is indeed a place to work for a diverse group of people, among them hugh Cote – a distinguished Cambridge zoologist who applied the coloration observed on animal skins to cannons and tanks. From the art world comes the surrealist and friend of Picasso Roland Penrose, author of “Camouflage Guide for the Defence Guard”. His party trick was to hide his beloved – the famous American model, photographer and war correspondent Lee Miller – naked, in camouflage of paint and nets, in a garden. He thought that if he could hide a naked woman in a garden full of people, then anything could be hidden.

Jasper Maskelyne was a famous British magician who played an important role during WWII creating the illusion of a false army that would attack the Nazis from the south, confusing them with inflatable tanks, barracks… thus he misled the Germans in the battle of El-Alamein https://t.co/OP5BYIjhmb pic.twitter.com/OP5BYIjhmb

– RelatandoHistoria (@relatandohisto1) https://twitter.com/relatandohisto1/status/11

Operation Bertram: The Deceptive Victory at El Alamein

World War II was a conflict defined by strategic deception.While many know about the D-Day ruse, fewer are familiar with Operation Bertram, a brilliantly executed deception that played a crucial role in the Allied victory at El Alamein in 1942. This operation wasn’t about a single trick; it was a complex, multi-layered scheme designed to mislead the Axis forces about the location and timing of the Allied attack.

The Core of the Deception

the British, under the command of General Bernard Montgomery, needed to convince the German Afrika Korps, led by General Erwin Rommel, that the main Allied assault would occur further south then it actually did. Rommel was a master tactician,and the British knew a direct,predictable attack would be met with fierce resistance. Operation Bertram aimed to exploit Rommel’s strengths against him by creating a believable illusion.

Building a Phantom Army

At the heart of Operation Bertram was the creation of a completely fake army in the southern sector. This wasn’t just a few strategically placed props; it was a massive undertaking. The deception involved constructing 400 model Grant tanks and at least 1,750 vehicles and guns. This fake force was designed to appear active and threatening, drawing Axis attention away from the real Allied buildup in the north.

The deception extended beyond just visual elements. The British created fake railway lines, waterworks, radio transmissions, and even simulated construction noise. They wanted to create a comprehensive illusion of a large, functioning army preparing for an offensive.

The Double Bluff with Artillery

Operation Bertram didn’t stop at creating a fake army. It included a clever double bluff involving artillery. In the weeks before the battle, three decoy artillery pieces were deployed.These were deliberately designed to look convincing initially,but were then allowed to fall into disrepair. The idea was that Axis intelligence would dismiss them as dummies, only to be surprised when they were replaced with real artillery the night before the battle.

The “Magic Gang”

This ambitious operation required a unique team. General Claude Auchinleck tasked Major Jasper Maskelyne, a renowned stage magician and illusionist, with leading the deception effort. Maskelyne assembled a diverse group of specialists, dubbed “The Magic gang” (also known as “The Crazy Gang”). This team included an electrician, a chemist, a theater set designer, an architect, a restorer, an artist, and a carpenter. Together, they brought a remarkable blend of skills to the project.

Maskelyne himself claimed to have previously disguised a thousand tanks as trucks in the North and created two thousand fake tanks, along with the other deceptive elements mentioned above.

A Stunning Success

Operation Bertram proved remarkably successful. After the battle, a Panzerarmee general admitted that he believed the Allies had at least one more armored division than they actually did. He also believed the main attack would occur further south and be delayed by at least two days. This miscalculation significantly hampered rommel’s ability to effectively respond to the Allied offensive, contributing to the decisive Allied victory at El Alamein.

The success of Operation Bertram demonstrates the power of deception in warfare. It wasn’t about overwhelming the enemy with force, but about outsmarting them with ingenuity and illusion. It remains a testament to the creativity and resourcefulness of the British deception planners and the effectiveness of a well-executed strategic ruse.