Carl Dean and Claudine, together the Deans of Magic, have already been filmed for ITV’s variety star hunt Britain’s Got Talent, judged by Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan and presented by Ant and Dec.

The stage couple, who are also married and whose real names are Dean and Susan Metcalfe, appeared before 2,000 people at the Hackney Empire for the recording of their audition for the semi-finals of the second series of the show.

Dean said: “I was young magician of the year in 1977 and by the late 1980s me and my wife, who is my stage partner, were the biggest act on the major club scene in the southeast.

“But all those clubs have now closed down, so we went on to do cruises.”

The Metcalfes decided to switch away from magic to work on a series of other projects, including opening a jewellery shop in Daventry’s Market Square and a restaurant in Northampton.

However they kept up with the magic, working at corporate events and other one-off performances, until recently when the lure of the stage drew them back.

Dean said: “I love the stage and for the last 18 months I’ve been working on the show again and coming up with ideas.

“I lost the image and I’ve been working on that to create something new and getting it just right.”

The Metcalfe’s performances now have a dramatic burlesque and Gothic touch to them.

And it was their fame in the world of showbiz that led to them being invited to take part in Britain’s Got Talent.

Dean said: “In 2006 I got a call from Britain’s Got Talent for the first series and I said no way.

“Then I got another call last year for this series and I was going to say no again, but people kept telling me I’ve got nothing to lose.

“We went down to London for our first interview and then we got invited to perform.

“Magic takes a lot of time to build up the drama and suspense, which doesn’t translate into the talent show audience very well, so for us it was just about bringing an image for them and not doing our most complicated and sophisticated illusions.

“It’s been hard because I have an artistic and creative idea for my own performance, but the producer and people with a TV background have their own vision for the show.

“Parts of the audience at the Hackney Empire had already been prompted to boo at the first sign of anyone flopping, so we knew it was going to be a challenge.”

The couple hope they have done enough to continue in the competition to the live semi-finals stage broadcast in May.