Ramsey Dukes

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Ramsey Dukes is the current and most well-known pen name of Lionel Snell, a contemporary magician, publisher and author on magick and philosophy. He also wrote under the pen name, Lemuel Johnston.

In his youth, Snell enjoyed a series of scholarships. They brought him to Cambridge, where his writings on Austin Osman Spare and magical theory brought him into contact with the young chaos magic movement in the 1970s. He had been interested in the occult before, but this comparatively rigorous and modern style of it, largely shaped by fellow scientist Peter Carroll, drew his special attention.

Since 1972 he has written and published several books noted for their impact on late 20th century magick and humor. The ones most often referred to may be SSOTBME - An Essay on Magic (1974) and Thundersqueak (1978). Words Made Flesh ((1987) is written from a more philosophical point of view and notable for its original outline of the "information model" theory of magic that our universe could be a virtual reality—as later explored in The Matrix. It is an example of the author's ongoing studies in the relationship between magic and rationalism.

Snell has made the claim that in 1977 he performed a ritual called the Abramelin operation.^[1] He has worked on the subject of magic with diverse associates including the Ordo Templi Orientis and Illuminates of Thanateros.^[1]

[edit] Partial bibliography

Works include:

SSOTMBE: An Essay on Magic, Its Foundations, Development and Place in Modern Life
- 1st edition: Mouse That Spins, 1975. ISBN 0904311015
- Hardcover: Turner, 1979. ISBN 0904311090
SSOTMBE Revised: An Essay on Magic. Mouse That Spins, 2002. ISBN 0904311082
Thundersqueak, with Liz Angerford and Ambrose Lee. Mouse That Spins. ISBN 0904311120 (3rd rev. ed., 2003)
Words Made Flesh, Mouse That Spins. ISBN 0904311112 (2nd rev. ed., 2003)
BLAST Your Way to Megabuck$ with my SECRET Sex-Power Formula. Mouse That Spins. ISBN 0904311139 (2nd rev. ed., 2003)
- BLAST... has been published in German as Zaster-Blaster, Zapp Dir den Weg zum GiGaGeld mit meiner GEHEIMEN SEX-KRAFT-FORMEL.
The Good, the Bad the Funny, with Adamai Philotunus. Mouse That Spins, 2002. ISBN 0904311104
What I Did in My Holidays: Essays on Black Magic, Satanism, Devil Worship and Other Niceties. Mandrake Press Ltd, 1999. ISBN 1869928520
Uncle Ramsey's Little Book of Demons: The Positive Advantages of the Personification of Life's Problems. Aeon Books, 2005. ISBN 1904658091
Hellgate Chronicles