Liverpool-born Mike Coyne began his show business career as a young magician, successfully touring in variety throughout the UK in the late 1950s. He turned to comedy when variety, and magic in particular, lost its appeal in the 1960s, and he found part-time work as a comedy-magician in most of the country's top venues and clubs, especially in the north of England.
In 1971 he was offered the chance to appear in the brand-new series of The Comedians on ITV. Despite now having a successful and permanent job away from the bright lights, Mike accepted, although he appeared in only two programmes of the first series, choosing instead to concentrate on his new career.
On his retirement, Mike went back to performing magic in and around his home in Wetherby, West Yorkshire, until his death in 2014.
