London
A British magician staged the ultimate reality TV show this week by playing Russian roulette with a loaded handgun on live television. Derren Brown said he would determine which chamber was loaded by reading the mind of the audience member who placed the bullet in the six-shot pistol. The show was filmed outside Britain to get around the country’s handgun ban, and aired with a slight tape delay in case Brown accidentally blew his head off. His survival—the fifth shot was the live one—didn’t placate outraged critics. “You’re going to get copycat kids doing this,” police spokesman Rick Naylor said, “and we’re possibly going to end up with some tragedies.”
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