MAGIC was in the air as celebrity illusionist Dynamo rolled into town, accompanied by a very special guest.

The magician was in Blackburn to deliver a jaw-dropping performance to an intimate audience of around 200 people as part of the adidas Spezial exhibition which is on show at the Cotton Exchange in the town centre.

But guests who bagged tickets for the performance were in for a huge surprise, as none other than The Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown appeared following a memorising card trick which led the audience down a path of magical mystery.

The exhibition is the brainchild of Darwen-born Gary Aspden who has worked with adidas for more than 20 years and is the designer of the iconic Spezial trainer.

Speaking to the Lancashire Telegraph Dynamo said: “I’m really excited to be here today, I’ve been friends with Gary for around 20 years now and to see this exhibition in Gary’s hometown is pretty awesome.

“I’d like to do one in Bradford next - it would be great to keep repping it for the North!

“Obviously it is for such a great cause and if doing this can keep some homeless people off the street then that’s the real magic.”

A star-studded line-up of names including DJ and TV presenter Goldie, comedian Tez Ilyas and Primal Scream have all signed up to perform charity gigs to raise money for Nightsafe, the charity which helps young homeless people in East Lancashire.

When asked about how he felt when asked to perform, Dynamo said: “It was a no-brainer. I’m supposed to be out of the country for filming but I knew that this had to happen.”

The magician, who has his own pair of Blackburn Spezials, of which a limited number were made, also posed in front of his very own trainer which was on exhibition alongside around 1,200 other pairs.

n The exhibition is free and runs from noon to 10pm until October 19. For more details visit spezialblackburn.com