David Blaine ends stunt with plunge

NEW YORK: US magician David Blaine escaped from a gyroscope hoisted above the streets of New York on Friday, two days after being strapped to the spinning device in his latest stunt.  

The 33-year-old conjurer jumped off the gyroscope, 50 feet above Manhattan streets, and safely broke through a wooden platform after escaping from shackles in the charity stunt. 

Blaine had been locked into a harness and spread-eagled in the centre of three concentric metal rings, which allowed the gyroscope to tilt in any direction. A crane held the gyroscope in the air.   

The contraption left Blaine exposed to the winter elements, wearing a lightly padded jacket, trousers and a scarf while he dangled above a vacant lot near Times Square.   

The gyroscope was designed to spin at up to eight revolutions a minute until Friday, the Thanksgiving Day holiday in the United States.   

To avoid any challenging calls of nature, Blaine fasted before embarking on the stunt.   

Prior to being strapped in, the illusionist had said one of his biggest concerns, besides not eating or drinking, was dizziness.  

A wobbly Blaine was all smiles after landing safely on Friday.   

"Thank you so much everybody for coming out and supporting this, it's been so fun," Blaine told the crowd that had gathered to watch. 

The stunt was dreamed up by retail giant Target and the Salvation Army, who will give 100 needy children a shopping spree.   

Earlier this year, Blaine spent a week in a water-filled sphere in New York in an abortive challenge that was supposed to culminate with him holding his breath for a record nine minutes.   

He was pulled from the globe after seven minutes when he appeared to struggle while removing chains around his hands and feet.

He said last week that the experience had shaken his confidence.  

Blaine previously spent 44 days without eating while suspended in a glass box above London's River Thames in 2003.   

Other stunts have included being encased in ice for nearly 62 hours and spending 35 hours standing on a 100-foot pillar.