Jasper sets himself on fire to show how magic can help the war effort
- jamesedwardsmagic
- Mar 22
- 5 min read
Jasper’s commitment to applying stage principles to assist the Allied war effort is perhaps most evidenced by an extraordinary feat in February 1942. Dressed in a boiler suit and covered from head to toe with ‘magic paste’ he voluntarily walked through a blazing crashed aircraft. His purpose was to show how magic paste applied to rescue crews could protect them from burns in the event of an aircraft crash. A genuine event, it stunned the crowd of onlookers and nearly cost Jasper his life.
The origins trace back to World War One and the Battle of Jutland in summer 1916. While both sides claimed victory in this naval battle fought between Britain’s Royal Navy Grand Fleet and Imperial Germany’s High Seas Fleet, there were significant casualties in ships and men. The Admiralty was concerned the flash from cordite used to propel the shells down their barrels during the engagement. According to some accounts, when staff officers looked to mitigate this problem, they turned to Nevil Maskelyne. Showmen often did fire tricks, walking on hot ashes and fire eating, so perhaps their techniques could apply to the Navy. Nevil duly passed on a formula for a fire-retardant paste. The paste, when applied to exposed skin such as hands and faces, helped protect them from burns.
“In great heat, the paste crusts, sealing its own surface. For three or four minutes, until the layer of paste has been vaporised away, the skin of the wearer is protected from the hottest flame or from injury when in contact with red-hot metal.”
There is likely some truth in this story. Concerns over the high incidence of burns after the Battle of Jutland led the Royal Navy to adopt personal protection measures for their sailors. These included anti-flash gear, such as a fire-resistant hoods and gloves made from asbestos and other such materials. Fire-retardant gels applied to the skin could have enhanced this level of protection. These types of gels didn’t become widespread until the 1950s but it is feasible that people such as Nevil Maskelyne developed early forms. The most common use of these gels is now in the movie industry to protect stunt persons from flames when filming scenes involving fire.
Fast forward from the Battle of Jutland to World War Two, Jasper was motivated to recreate his father’s paste after seeing a bomber crash at Heliopolis. The paste could, he hoped, save lives. Initial tests went well, so Jasper set-up a special demonstration for the military top brass. He arranged for the remains of a shot-down bomber to be used for the display. His team propped up the wings with timber supports and filled the fuel tanks of the aircraft with petrol. They then surrounded the bomber with flammable material, such as broken packing-cases filled with straw. And they inserted a detonator to set the aircraft alight. Understandably, Jasper was anxious about the event. “The days… before the test took place were most unnerving to me, and I try not to remember them.”
For the display, Jasper put on some simple protective gear before applying the paste:
“My ‘costume’ consisted of an ancient pair of bathing-trunks, covered by a home-made boiler suit produced from discarded Army blankets - tailoring by Maskelyne. A pair of welder’s goggles protected my eyes from the dreadful brightness of the flame, and a home-made mask with eyepieces guarded my head; my hands were covered by old gloves.”
Over this, an assistant tipped a bucket of magic paste, and he rubbed it over himself to seal off all surfaces thoroughly.
When the ignition button was pressed, the detonator exploded, and within minutes the aircraft was a ferocious ball of fire. With huge bravery, trust in the paste, and a steadfast commitment to prove how it could help others, Jasper walked into the flames. This was no publicity stunt. Without dwelling too long in the burning aircraft, Jasper emerged unscathed, except for singed eyelashes, eyebrows and hair. The paste had done its job.
After the demonstration, held on 14 February 1942, Jasper wrote about it to his wife:
“I am including a few pictures that I think may interest you. I’ve invented a Fireproof Cream which has cut out the asbestos suit. Any chump can make it! With a boiler suit dripped in it and a wet towel round your head you can walk right into a burning aeroplane and rescue the crew. I have walked into several burning planes, two wrecked fighters and a big bomber. If I had not been in the army, I could have sold the idea to the WO [War Office] for £50,000!! Still, such is life!! Anyway, I have been recommended for a reward after the war - about £1,000 I’m told?! So, if you have news of a new Fireproof Cream - it’s mine. It’s very cheap to make - 10d per gallon.”
News of her husband’s high-risk activities was hardly the Valentine’s message his wife Evelyn had expected. However, official records confirmed the effectiveness of the invention:
“FIRE RESISTING CREAM: A by-product of experiments in search of a fire-proofing compound for garnish and fabrics. This is a paste of soap, flour or asbestos shred, and water. It is remarkably effective, in some respects superior to standard fire-fighting suits. Above all it provides at negligible cost an emergency means of dealing with fires in places where full firefighting apparatus is not available.”
In the event of a crash at an airfield, fire and rescue crews could quickly apply pre-made stocks of the cream. In Jasper’s own records, he wrote that:
“My paste was made available on a number of airfields, and I understand it did good emergency service until better permanent measures were made available. I like to think that it saved some lives.”
He also thought it may be useful to Air Raid Precuations or Fire Brigade teams back in the UK. Longer-term fire resisting cream was superseded by new developments, such as heat-resistant asbestos suits. These first appeared in the 1930s, but they did not become widespread until the latter half of World War Two.
Alongside the cream, Jasper also conducted research to “make all camouflage material fireproof.” This led to experiments designing types of non-flammable dyes, paints, and camouflage netting.
Sources: (1) Maskelyne, Jasper. Magic-Top Secret (1948). (2) Maskelyne, Jasper. White Magic (1936). (3) Imperial War Museum, IWM 267/3635.
Comments