A great magician really does tick all the boxes when you are arranging a Corporate Party, or indeed any function that needs guests to be entertained.

Of course we all know that magicians usual use cards for their tricks, but have you ever wondered why there is a Joker in the pack? Well we have the information that you require!

We have all shuffled a pack of cards at a private party. Cards are great magic entertainment for events. Most probably you own at least one, just in case we want to practice a couple of magic tricks or have a game or two of a popular card game. You normally take the playing cards from the pack, take out the Jokers and start dealing the cards.

In the 1860s, some American card players of Euchre devised some new rules for their beloved game. The problem? It required an extra card. Sure, they could have used one of the spare cards from the deck, but since all the face cards are part of the game, this wouldn’t have been a ‘good fit’. They referred to the new card they came up with as the Best Bower, adding it to the game where it became the highest trump card available.

Looking to make a quick buck from these variation rules, American card manufacturers quickly jumped on the trend by including a couple of extra cards in their decks. The British were a little slower to catch on though, only adding them in during the 1880s.

The Best Bower card was slowly phased out to become the Joker or Jolly Joker that we all know and love today. Like the Ace of Spades, it was typically branded with the company logo or with a unique floral motif that connected it to the manufacturer. It wasn’t until the Joker title for the card became more common that it was almost always represented by a performing jester.

Despite the fact you may think the Joker is connected in some way to the Fool in Tarot cards, you might be interested to know that there is no connection at all. Tarot cards have been around since the 15th century when jesters were still a possible career option and there is no link to the Jokers in a pack of cards.