You might think Paul Daniels would be impossible to impress — after all, he knows the secrets behind every magic trick you could show him.

But he says: “I feel amazed when I see a great performer. I saw Barry Cryer give an after dinner speech, and afterwards I was just sitting there in awe of what he had created.”

Daniels has a business-like outlook on his career; he uses online messaging service Twitter and writes a blog “because fans like it” and says that whether or not he would agree to do another TV show would depend on how much he were paid for it.

But at the same time, it’s not the technical side of magic that most interests him; it’s the finesse and beauty of a slick performance — one that shows the skill of someone who understands what Daniels calls “the psychology of theatre.”

Daniels, 70, who lives near Henley-on-Thames, became famous for his own performances on BBC television in the Eighties and Nineties, in which his wife, Debbie McGee, often acted as assistant.

Ms McGee will not be appearing with her husband in Radlett because her Radio Berkshire show does not allow her to commit to all the performances, but Daniels says: “She’ll probably be with me. She’ll say hello to people — she’s not posh.”

When I speak to him, Daniels is also preparing a masterclass for other magicians, about how to put together entertaining routines.

He says: “I’ve never claimed to be the greatest manipulator or the greatest illusionist. But I’ll fight like hell for being the greatest entertainer. Time after time people say, ‘I never knew you were this funny.’ That’s because the BBC used to cut the comedy out so they could fit the magic in.”

Performing on stage, by contrast, gives him much more freedom — he is performer, director, lighting man and sound man all in one.

He says: “I never actually know when I walk on what I’m going to do. I have tricks in my pockets, tricks standing in the wings, tricks in the box I have on stage. It just depends on my mood and on the audience. I go where I feel like going.”

Daniels has respect for other magicians, such as Derren Brown, who have been filling the magic-shaped hole on our screens since Daniels left it. But he disputes the idea that they are doing anything new.

“All magic is really old. It comes from the beginning of time. It’s the root of all science and all religion,” he says.

Daniels will form part of an evening of entertainment that will also include dancing and music from Rob McVeigh, a contestant on the BBC series Any Dream Will Do, in Musical Magic, at The Radlett Centre, in Aldenham Avenue, on Friday, March 6, at 8pm.

Tickets cost £16.50 (under 16s £8.50, family ticket £46) and are available from the box office on 01923 859291.