'The most perfect woman': Paul Daniels with his wife of 25 years, Debbie McGee . Magician Paul Daniels says men dominate his profession because they are ‘more creative’ than women. The 75-year-old, who started teaching himself tricks at the age of 11, blamed a female  obsession with fashion, saying this led to girls giving up toys at a younger age than boys, focusing instead on clothes. And he went further by saying that although there were some women in the industry, their  tricks were less inventive than their male counterparts. Daniels said: ‘There is a reason there are fewer female magicians – girls give up toys sooner than boys. Around the age of eight they want fashion items. ‘There are women who are starting to see it as a business, but they do tricks straight out of the box. Men are more creative.’ Daniels, who rose to fame with his long-running BBC programme, The Paul Daniels Magic Show, also  said there were fewer roles for older magicians. He said donning a wig for his programme of 15 years was ‘one of the smartest decisions I ever made’. Daniels added: ‘I was 32 and the industry was suddenly getting very young. I thought, “How am I going to survive this?” ’ Daniels, who now performs at a range of venues including casinos, theatres and village halls, described feeling an ‘enormous relief’ when his TV show ended in 1994. Successful: Paul Daniels, with Debbie McGee, rose to fame on The Paul Daniels Magic Show on the BBC . He joked about being ‘an international sex symbol’ because his work takes him around the world, and revealed: ‘Magic pays me very well. ‘People must think of me as quite famous because I get sent a lot of packages. ‘They are mostly from families of magicians who have died – they send boxes of tricks they don’t know what to do with. ‘I keep some in my shed and sell the rest on eBay.’ He added: ‘Comparing Dynamo or Derren Brown to me is like comparing Robbie Williams to Pavarotti. They’re both very nice guys, but my focus is comedy. I want to entertain, to make people laugh.’ Yet he admitted he was ‘not a social animal’, a trait he considers to be a hang-up from ‘being the small kid with a largish head and sticky-out ears’. And while he says his profession is a younger man’s game, the  magician said his personal life had bettered with age. He lives with his second wife, Debbie McGee, 54, to whom he has been married for 25 years. Long-lasting: Paul Daniels says that if something goes wrong in his 25-year marriage to Debbie, they both just shrug it off . Daniels, who famously claimed in 2000 to have bedded more than 300 women, told the Observer: ‘Sex can be great in your seventies – no Viagra needed – and it certainly beats fish and chips. But I don’t think that’s the love bit.’ He added: ‘The best thing I ever did in my life was marry Debbie McGee. ‘She really is the most perfect woman and we laugh a lot. When something goes wrong we just look at each other and shrug.’
Daniels says young girls' fashion obsession makes them less creative .
He thinks men are more creative as they carry on playing with toys .
'The most perfect woman': Paul Daniels with his wife of 25 years, Debbie McGee . Magician Paul Daniels says men dominate his profession because they are ‘more creative’ than women. The 75-year-old, who started teaching himself tricks at the age of 11, blamed a female  obsession with fashion, saying this led to girls giving up toys at a younger age than boys, focusing instead on clothes. And he went further by saying that although there were some women in the industry, their  tricks were less inventive than their male counterparts. Daniels said: ‘There is a reason there are fewer female magicians – girls give up toys sooner than boys. Around the age of eight they want fashion items. ‘There are women who are starting to see it as a business, but they do tricks straight out of the box. Men are more creative.’ Daniels, who rose to fame with his long-running BBC programme, The Paul Daniels Magic Show, also  said there were fewer roles for older magicians. He said donning a wig for his programme of 15 years was ‘one of the smartest decisions I ever made’. Daniels added: ‘I was 32 and the industry was suddenly getting very young. I thought, “How am I going to survive this?” ’ Daniels, who now performs at a range of venues including casinos, theatres and village halls, described feeling an ‘enormous relief’ when his TV show ended in 1994. Successful: Paul Daniels, with Debbie McGee, rose to fame on The Paul Daniels Magic Show on the BBC . He joked about being ‘an international sex symbol’ because his work takes him around the world, and revealed: ‘Magic pays me very well. ‘People must think of me as quite famous because I get sent a lot of packages. ‘They are mostly from families of magicians who have died – they send boxes of tricks they don’t know what to do with. ‘I keep some in my shed and sell the rest on eBay.’ He added: ‘Comparing Dynamo or Derren Brown to me is like comparing Robbie Williams to Pavarotti. They’re both very nice guys, but my focus is comedy. I want to entertain, to make people laugh.’ Yet he admitted he was ‘not a social animal’, a trait he considers to be a hang-up from ‘being the small kid with a largish head and sticky-out ears’. And while he says his profession is a younger man’s game, the  magician said his personal life had bettered with age. He lives with his second wife, Debbie McGee, 54, to whom he has been married for 25 years. Long-lasting: Paul Daniels says that if something goes wrong in his 25-year marriage to Debbie, they both just shrug it off . Daniels, who famously claimed in 2000 to have bedded more than 300 women, told the Observer: ‘Sex can be great in your seventies – no Viagra needed – and it certainly beats fish and chips. But I don’t think that’s the love bit.’ He added: ‘The best thing I ever did in my life was marry Debbie McGee. ‘She really is the most perfect woman and we laugh a lot. When something goes wrong we just look at each other and shrug.’
Daniels says men dominate his profession because they are ‘more creative’ than women. The fashion, saying this led to girls giving up toys