MAGIC RUNS in the family!

THIS FATHER AND DAUGHTER DUO HAVE BEEN DEFYING DEATH FOR MORE THAN 40 YEARS

- Katherine Chatfield

During her teen years, Helen Coghlan dreamt of becoming a hairdresser. But apprentice jobs were few and far between, so to earn a bit of money she agreed to work as her dad's assistant.

Only, her father Arthur didn't have a standard office job; he was a high-profile magician and escapologist!

"I thought I'd do it until something better came along," Helen says with a warm laugh. "That was over 40 years ago - and we're still a team."

For Helen, now 57, joining the family business' was a natural step. She'd grown up with Arthur's passion for magic and his drive to perform impressive stunts that wowed audiences.

Arthur had made a name for himself around the Gold Coast, but really wanted to do a big stunt that would propel him into superstardom.

That moment came in 1979 when he appeared on The Don Lane Show and nearly died escaping from a locked 166-litre steel barrel that was suspended 30 metres in the air. Arthur, now 90, admits, "I knew I had to do something big and dangerous. I didn't realise how dangerous it would be."