ABRACADEBACLE
Ever wondered how David Copperfield does it? One fan knows – and claims he was so badly hurt that three years of his life disappeared
IT SHOULD have been the magical highlight of a holiday of a lifetime.
Having flown to Las Vegas with his wife to celebrate his birthday, Gavin Cox was excited to get the hottest ticket in town, to see David Copperfield at the MGM Hotel and Casino.
Mr Cox and his wife Minh were braced for an evening of dazzling entertainment from the world’s most famous magician, whose tricks are a closely guarded secret and have brought him a vast fortune and an enviable A-list lifestyle.
Then the night got even better, as Mr Cox was invited to be one of the volunteers to join Copperfield on stage and take part in his act. But from that moment followed a series of events that Mr Cox claims have ‘wrecked’ his life and have placed him at legal loggerheads with Copperfield.
The extraordinary case has dragged on for almost three years and led to the magician’s techniques being revealed in unprecedented detail.
Mr Cox, 55, had been picked from the audience to take part in an illusion in which 13 fans ‘vanish’ from inside a suspended cage – only to ‘miraculously’ reappear at the back of the theatre.
But according to Mr Cox, a chef, the stunt went horribly wrong after he slipped and fell in a poorly lit area, leaving him braindamaged. It is his sensational court documents in a claim for millions of dollars against the magician and the hotel that shed light on the smoke and mirrors world of a modern-day Houdini.
The claim states: ‘During the trick plaintiff [Mr Cox] was injured when he was hurried with no guidance or interaction through a dark area under construction with cement dust and debris, causing him to slip and fall.’
In an exclusive interview, Mr Cox said: ‘Seeing David Copperfield was the highlight of a dream trip to celebrate my 53rd birthday. Instead it turned into a nightmare. My health has been wrecked, and I’ve lost my business and my life savings.’
Mr Cox and his wife are seeking punitive damages from Copperfield and MGM for alleged negligence. The magician and the hotel deny the claims, saying his injuries were caused by ‘pre-existing and/or unrelated medical conditions’.
Today Mr Cox is forced to wear an oxygen ‘lung’ at night because he stops breathing and he spent three months in a Californian brain trauma centre. The couple claim they have been forced to live in the US for nearly three years as the case drags on.
Their lifestyle could not be more different from Copperfield’s, whose talents have earned him a $800m fortune. The magician, born plain David Kotkin in New Jersey, was once engaged to supermodel Claudia Schiffer and now dates French model and designer Chloe Gosselin.
Meanwhile, home for the Coxes is a rented apartment in a suburb of Las Vegas. ‘We are too broke to go out and Gavin’s injuries prevent us from enjoying a normal life. Gavin once cooked for royalty but now he can’t even bake a muffin because he has nerve damage in his hands and no sense of smell,’ said Mrs Cox.
Their nightmare began in November 2013, when Copperfield ‘chose’ Gavin to take part in the trick – called 13 – by hurling giant inflatable balls into the audience. Those who caught them were invited to the stage. ‘I was in seventh heaven when I caught a ball,’ Mr Cox said.
As he walked to the stage, the 6ft 4in chef said he was asked three questions by a Copperfield employee: Could he run? Was he a magician? Was he a member of the press?
Once on stage, he and 12 others were seated in a suspended cage and given torches to hold. He recalled: ‘A curtain comes down over the box and torch light shines out to give the impression we are still in there.’
But in reality ‘all hell broke loose’ once the curtain came down, according to Mr Cox. He said Copperfield’s assistants hurried him down a secret passage, through a door and outside into the open air. He said: ‘It was like a fire alarm went off. They were saying: “Hurry! Run, run, run!”
‘It was pandemonium. You don’t know where you are going. It’s dark. There are hands pushing you. As I went around a corner, my feet slipped from underneath me and I hit the ground.’
His lawsuit claims Copperfield ‘failed to prevent, inspect, maintain and warn of dangerous conditions’. Copperfield’s lawyers deny this, saying ‘multiple inspections’ were made of the area.
After the trick Copperfield came to a side room to talk to the 13. Mr Cox claims the magician was told: ‘This guy is injured. He needs an ambulance.’
However, documents filed in Copperfield’s defence insist Mr Cox asked for help only after the magician left the room.
An ambulance took Mr Cox, a Londoner, to hospital where his right shoulder was found to be dislocated.
Two days later he filled out an
‘It was dark and hands were pushing me’ ‘If he’d hit his head he’d be dead’
accident report at MGM and hired a US personal injury lawyer. His wife said: ‘We stayed in the US for three weeks because Gavin’s injuries meant he couldn’t fly.’ Once back in Britain, Mr Cox said he began to suffer chronic pain, headaches and confusion. A scan would later show lesions on his brain. But Mrs Cox said waiting lists were ‘too long and he needed immediate treatment’.
So the couple returned to Vegas in February 2014. Their travel insurer refused to pay for ongoing treatment but they were seen under a ‘medical lien’ – doctors agreed to postpone payment until the lawsuit was settled.
Mr Cox’s career had once included years as a London chef, where he cooked for the Queen Mother, Margaret Thatcher and Dracula actor Christopher Lee.
He has been unable to work since the accident and has had multiple operations on his back and neck. He has also been diag-
nosed with permanent brain damage and a form of Parkinson’s.
His wife said: ‘The force of the fall shook up his brain. A doctor said if he’d hit his head he’d be dead.’
The Coxes were forced to sell their guesthouse at the end of 2014 and have been living off their savings.Their son Harry, 11, remains in Britain, cared for by their eldest son Oliver, 25.
A recent date for mediation was pushed back after the magician’s lawyers said they needed to travel to Britain to question Mr Cox’s sons and British doctors under oath. His legal team claim Mr Cox could have received the care he needed in Britain, saying: ‘The claim that they were forced to seek treatment in Las Vegas and are now trapped here is not true.’
A trial date for the case has been set for January 2017.
Last night Copperfield’s lawyers said: ‘This illusion has been performed for more than 15 years and with more than 100,000 participants. We deny all allegations. Unfortunately we cannot comment further due to ongoing litigation.’