‘Now that’s magic!’: Wig of legendary TV magician Paul Daniels sells for a whopping £2,100 at auction – seven times the estimated value

• The late magician’s hairpiece had a pre-sale estimate of £300 – seven times less
• According to his widow, Debbie McGee, Daniels started wearing wigs at 30
• The hairpiece was sold alongside a collection of Daniels’ magic memorabilia 
• Daniels died in 2016 aged 77 after he was told he had an incurable brain tumour

A wig once worn by legendary TV magician Paul Daniels sold at auction yesterday for £2,100 – seven times the estimated sale price.

The hairpiece had a pre-sale estimate of just £300 but there was a fierce bidding war to get the locks.

According to his widow, Debbie McGee, Daniels started wearing wigs at 30 before he even went bald so audiences would not notice his gradual hair loss.

Debbie, 64, said: ‘Magic collectors love anything and everything belonging to famous magicians.

A toupee worn by TV magician Paul Daniels sold at auction yesterday for £2,100 – seven times the estimated sale price. Pictured: Debbie McGee with the toupee

According to his widow, Debbie McGee, Daniels started wearing wigs at 30 before he even went bald so audiences would not notice his gradual hair loss

‘It seemed sad to just throw it away. Whoever purchases it is guaranteed to have a great talking point at any gathering.’

The hairpiece was part of her late husband’s lifetime collection of magic memorabilia, being sold at Special Auction Services in Newbury, Berkshire. 

Although the wig had a pre-sale estimate of £300, previous hairpieces of his have sold for three times as much. 

In 2011, Daniels sold another of his wigs for £1,100.

Daniels, who once did a show called Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow, died in 2016, aged 77. He had an incurable brain tumour. 

The hairpiece was part of her late husband’s lifetime collection of magic memorabilia, being sold at Special Auction Services in Newbury, Berkshire

Speaking after her husband’s death, Ms McGee – who met Daniels when she was the assistant on his hit magic show – said the couple had enjoyed the marriage that ‘everyone dreams of’ and had stayed side-by-side sharing jokes until the end. Pictured: The pair together in 1983

Speaking after her husband’s death, Ms McGee – who met Daniels when she was the assistant on his hit magic show – said the couple had enjoyed the marriage that ‘everyone dreams of’ and had stayed side-by-side sharing jokes until the end. 

Wiping away tears, she told the BBC: ‘Our life has been full of laughter and that’s what it has been the last few weeks – up until the last 48 hours when he slipped into a sleep.’ 

Describing how the couple dealt with Daniels’s sudden illness, Ms McGee said she ‘cried the whole night’ when he was first diagnosed. But she said she vowed to make his final days ‘the best time possible’ – and never allowed him to see her cry.

Describing how the couple dealt with Daniels’s sudden illness, Ms McGee said she ‘cried the whole night’ when he was first diagnosed. But she said she vowed to make his final days ‘the best time possible’ – and never allowed him to see her cry

She said: ‘I said to myself: ‘OK, what would he do in this situation?’ And I said: ‘OK, let’s go and find out from the doctors what we’re going to do’, and then ‘whatever time he’s got left I’m going to make it the best time possible’.

‘And that’s what I did – he never saw me cry. I smiled, I put my make up on and did my hair every day. I got him home and I looked after him for about ten days on my own.

‘So we sat out here because the weather’s been a lot like this. His favourite ice cream was Magnums – we had a lot of Magnums sitting out here. We went in and watched Bradley Walsh on The Chase every day at 5pm because Paul and I love Bradley, and that made us laugh every day.’

Daniels’ magic collection, including the toupee, was stored at the couples’ home in Henley-on-Thames, Oxon. 

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