He's the heir to the Latymer baronetcy and the Coutts banking fortune that goes with it but Drummond Money-Coutts has more than money on his mind.
Rather than follow his father Crispin into banking, the Eton educated 28-year-old chose to become a magician.
Now better known as DMC, Money-Coutts is one of Britain's hottest young magic acts with a following that rivals those of Dynamo, Derren Brown and even David Blaine.
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No more banking: Drummond Money-Coutts swapped finance for a career in magic
How does he DO that? Money-Coutts pulls off an incredibly realistic levitation illusion
And his success looks set to continue with the launch of new show, Beyond Magic with DMC, which starts tonight on National Geographic and sees him travel the world in search of fresh tricks and inspiring magical talent.
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ShareIt was, he says, a dream come true. 'I get to explore the history of magic, I meet with some of my all-time heroes of magic, I recreate some of the most iconic illusions of all time and I share it around the world with a host of wonderful people,' he says, enthusiastic.
'This series is the culmination of a 20-year obsession with, devotion to and study of magic.'
Born to Crispin Money-Coutts, 9th Baron Latymer and his wife Lucy Deedes in 1986, Money-Coutts first became interested in magic at the age of six.
But it wasn't until a trip to Davenport's, the oldest magic shop in the UK, aged eight that his ambition to swap money for magic crystallised.
'From that moment, nothing else was ever an option,' he laughs. 'I briefly attempted the sensible option - banking - but that was a crashing disaster and I was miserable, so I ran away with the circus instead.'
Clever: Money-Coutts says his obsession with magic began more than 20 years ago
Banking dynasty: Money-Coutts' family founded Coutts Bank which is used by the Queen
Travels: In his new show, Beyond Magic with DMC, the magician travels the world in search of new tricks
His repertoire of illusions combined with a love of card-sharping - his early tricks were practised on his Eton schoolmates - have made him into one of Britain's most popular magicians, although unlike Blaine and Brown, he's not a man for big bangs and well-publicised stunts.
Indeed, when asked about his favourite magicians, he plumps for the subtle Argentinean Rene Lavand, whose magic he describes as being 'filled with poetry and theatre'.
His own style owes much to Lavand's influence and he remains fascinated with subtle trickery and challenging illusions.
'Magic is like music,' he explains. 'Nobody is born able to play a guitar or piano and there's no shortcut to sitting down for hundreds and thousands of hours, for years on end, to learn every small minutiae required.
'To me, an insatiable hunger to look under every stone and discover everything you can about the subject is the number one thing you need to become a magician.'
Magic in action: Money-Coutts performs the classic interlinking rings trick for a pair of baffled onlookers
Passion: Although Money-Coutts briefly tried the family business, he was always thinking about magic instead
Subtle: Unlike David Blaine and Derren Brown, Money-Coutts takes a more low-key approach to magic tricks
Money-Coutts' background - the Eton education, the banking fortune, the title - does make him an unusual addition to the world of magic and he admits that few of his friends have chosen similar careers.
'Whenever I attempted something else, I ended up sitting there thinking about magic, so when the time came to leave university there was only one choice.
'It's a great irony that five or so years on, a great many friends who initially went into ‘sensible’ careers are now fleeing en masse to set up their own businesses,' he smiles. 'It’s wonderful to see.'
His family, who he hopes 'are very proud' of his success, have proved supportive, although they rarely get to see him in action.
'Growing up I was very private about magic,' he admits. 'Even today I try to keep my private life and my magic life separate.
'It’s very seldom my family or close friends actually ever see me perform.' Lucky for the rest of us then, that we can.
- Beyond Magic with DMC premieres tonight at 8pm on National Geographic Channel
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