The reviews are in for Derren Brown: Only Human, which had its press night at the Apollo Theatre on 21 October after a UK and Ireland tour. It is the theatre where he presented Showman, and the new evening turns on free will, prophecy and the choices that shape a life, with the audience doing much of the work. The notices are warm across the board: Derren Brown is called a master of his craft more than once, director Andrew O’Connor is credited for the misdirection, and the only recurring complaint concerns the running time.
4.6 / 5 from 7 criticsThe verdict: nine reviews so far, seven of them rated: four five-star notices and three four-star, an average of 4.6 out of 5. The Times and The Telegraph have also reviewed it, behind paywalls and without a rating we could read. Almost every critic remarks on the care Brown takes with his volunteers; where they part company is length, with Matt Wolf and Liam Arnold both suggesting that nearly three hours could be trimmed.
What are critics saying about Derren Brown: Only Human?
WhatsOnStage
Reviewer: Aliya Al-Hassan
Aliya Al-Hassan treats this as a return to form after Unbelievable, the 2023 show in which a troupe of actors performed the tricks, and is glad to see Brown back at the centre of his own act.
“Only Human is Brown’s first live show in over three years, and boy it’s a good one.”
She admires how lightly he handles a large amount of audience participation without mocking anyone, and singles out Simon Wainwright’s video design for a finale she says is hidden in plain sight all evening.
West End Best Friend
“The mastermind of mentalism returns with another magnificent masterclass.”
Reviewer: Phil Meikle
Phil Meikle notes that Brown has drifted from the old Svengali routine towards something more reflective, built around Nostradamus and the question of whether ordinary people can learn to predict their own futures.
“This is a slick, fast-paced spectacle that will have you slack-jawed throughout.”
He credits the meticulous scripting by Brown, Andrew O’Connor and Stephen Long, and calls O’Connor’s direction a feat of misdirection, with the surprises tucked inside Simon Higlett’s set.
All That Dazzles
“The mentalist and illusionist returns to the West End with his latest show, once again astounding and confusing audiences in equal measure”
Reviewer: Daz Gale
Daz Gale admits he found the first act slower than Showman, but says the patience is repaid once a second-act sequence sends the evening in a sharply different and genuinely tense direction.
“It is Derren Brown’s showmanship that makes any of his shows so utterly compelling to witness.”
He reads the co-writers’ television background in the more dramatic structure, and concludes that working out the method matters far less than the pleasure of watching Brown work a room.
Liam O’Dell
“The illusionist’s most shocking show yet”
Reviewer: Liam O’Dell
Liam O’Dell, who found Showman too much of a compilation of earlier material, says this show breaks new ground for Brown.
“…I have not seen a show of Brown’s descend into such astonishing chaos as it does right before the interval.”
He notes a wobble in pace during a second-act mind-reading section and one rushed explanation, but praises the care taken over trigger warnings and the way the design feeds the tricks.
LondonTheatre.co.uk
“a truly astonishing performance from the master showman”
Reviewer: Matt Wolf
Matt Wolf describes a level of audience participation he has not met before in a playhouse, and finds Brown more guarded about himself than he was in Showman.
“Brown is careful never to render anyone uncomfortable: Dame Edna he is not.”
His one reservation is length: at nearly three hours, he thinks the show could stand some trimming.
London Box Office
Reviewer: Stuart King
Stuart King counts himself an admirer of the craft rather than a true believer, and enjoys the show for its slick theatricality.
“Brown successfully traverses the demarcation between human relatability and exercising his skills as an arch-manipulator.”
He is struck by how quickly Brown swaps out a volunteer who is not working without embarrassing anyone, and credits Andrew O’Connor’s direction for keeping every element under control.
Theatre and Tonic
Reviewer: Liam Arnold
Liam Arnold ended up part of the act on press night, and writes about the strange experience of reviewing an evening of which he cannot account for a sizeable chunk.
“And frankly, four stars seems entirely reasonable for an evening I can't fully remember.”
He calls Brown a masterful showman and praises the set, video, lighting and sound, but finds the nearly three-hour running time overlong and some of the philosophy laboured.
Production photographs by Pamela Raith.
Also reviewed by: The Times (Clive Davis, “still a formidable entertainer”) and The Telegraph, whose reviews sit behind paywalls.
For more from this week’s openings, read our review roundups for Martin Guerre at the Old Vic and Ilford Boy at the Donmar Warehouse.
Derren Brown: Only Human is booking at the Apollo Theatre until Saturday 30 January 2027.
