Inside the Magic is your source on the Internet for the most interesting and entertaining Disney and theme park news and information. Based out of Orlando, Florida, Inside the Magic launched in 2005 with a tiny web site and short podcast and has grown to the multimedia-driven experience it is today.

We don’t try to cover everything in the Disney and theme park universes. Instead, we carefully select only the most exciting stories to write about and special events to cover. Through our professionally-recorded audio podcasts, high-definition videos, descriptive writing, and colorful photos, we bring the worlds of Disney and theme parks to you.

History of Inside the Magic

The weekly Inside the Magic podcast was the second Disney-themed show to hit the Internet. For years there have existed hundreds of news and rumor sites related to Disney and theme parks, the birth of podcasting offered a new opportunity to reach interested fans in a new, more connected way.

The first podcast episode was released on April 13, 2005. Since then, there has been a new episode of Inside the Magic every week. The show started with a couple hundred weekly listeners and have now grown to thousands of loyal fans.

Inside the Magic has been featured in the Orlando Sentinel, on FOX35 and Local 6 news in Orlando, and has received nominations in the annual Podcast Awards numerous times for Best Produced Podcast, Best Travel Podcast, and Best Entertainment Podcast.

What began as an audio-only experience has now become a feast for the senses, allowing you to choose the method by which you get your Disney and theme park information. The Inside the Magic audio podcast enables listeners to hear the latest news on the move while our videos provide unprecedented visual access into private events. Coupled with articles, quick posts, and commentary on Twitter and Facebook, Inside the Magic everything a theme park fan needs.

More than Disney

While the focus of Inside the Magic is primarily on Disney topics, it is not uncommon to find coverage of the most exciting events from Universal Orlando, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, and beyond. Disney certainly created the world of theme parks as we know it today and still often leads the way with exciting new technologies and attractions, but that doesn’t mean other theme parks should be ignored. It is Inside the Magic’s opinion that a Disney fan who spends 100% of his/her time on Disney property is missing out a whole lot of fun.

About the Owner/Host

Inside the Magic is operated by lifelong theme park fan, Ricky Brigante. Since growing up in Miami, Florida and ultimately moving to Orlando after college, Ricky has become an expert on Orlando’s many theme parks and attractions.

Ricky has hosted the weekly Inside the Magic podcast since its inception and has no plans to stop any time soon. As he likes to say, “I’ll keep making ‘em, as long as you keep listening!” His video production background has enabled him to create top-quality video summaries of special events and attractions throughout Orlando’s theme parks and the surrounding areas.

Currently, for his day job, Ricky owns and operates Lanyard Lab, designing and producing custom lanyards.

In his spare time, when not working on Inside the Magic, watching movies or playing guitar, Ricky spends as much time in Orlando’s theme parks as possible. A trip to the Magic Kingdom is never complete for Ricky without a journey into the boundless realm of the supernatural aboard a Doom Buggy inside his favorite attraction, The Haunted Mansion. At Epcot, Ricky enjoys regular trips aboard Spaceship Earth and at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, you’ll find him on the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror or racking up points on Toy Story Midway Mania. Trips to Disney’s Animal Kingdom bring Ricky face-to-face with the impressive Yeti. But Ricky’s love for theme parks doesn’t stop with Walt Disney World. Other favorite attractions include Terminator 2: 3-D at Universal Studios as well as the annual Halloween events, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando and Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.

You can often find Ricky on Twitter and on Facebook.

Other Inside the Magic Personalities

Co-host of Inside the Magic, “Skipper” Ben Rebstock produces a weekly segment for the Inside the Magic podcast called “Cruisin’ the World,” during which he often tells stories from his experiences formerly working for The Walt Disney Company as a Cast Member at Walt Disney World. Ben previously worked at MuppetVision 3-D, Fantasmic!, and, most notably, The Jungle Cruise. He also met his wife, “Princess” Lisa, while working at the Magic Kingdom. She worked in Fantasyland, naturally.

Mark and Jay pop in to the Inside the Magic podcast from time to time with their ultra-popular “Backstage Pass” segments, deeply exploring the history and secrets behind Disney attractions, shows, and day-to-day operations with theme parks. The radio drama-style segments combine thoroughly-researched information with adventure, excitement, and plenty of humor.

Based out of California, Jeremiah and Josh Daws are film-making brothers who have a passion for Disney and theme parks when they’re not penning the script for their next feature. The Daws brothers cover special events at Disneyland for Inside the Magic.