David Blaine blames President Bush's speech for messing stunt

New York, Sept 26 : American magician David Blaine has blamed President George W. Bush's September 24 night prime-time speech for the failure of his much publicised stunt.

Blaine's stunt involved him hanging upside down above Central Park's Wollman Rink in New York, and he was to end his show with a "Dive of Death" performance.

The stunt, which was supposed to have continued for 60 hours straight, with him taking a plunge from a 44-foot-high platform at the end, did not go as planned.

"It wasn't meant to be what it was on TV," the New York Daily News quoted Blaine as telling TMZ.com's cameraman.

He explained that the plan was for him to drop just a few feet before being whisked away by a harness attached to a batch of helium-filled balloons.

"But because of the president's speech, my show was delayed 15 minutes and all of the wind picked up," he added.

Fans seemed both delighted and disappointed by Blaine's grandiose attempt.

ANI