I love how magicians toss out the term "Cold Reading" not knowing what it actually means. . . sure, there are some psychological nuances afoot in this -- "Filler" as we all it -- stuff that fleshes out a routine and transforms it from being a "trick" into a mental miracle. As TeeDee points out however, there was (more than likely)some activity that went on with these ladies prior to the shooting of this routine, especially when it comes to getting the exact wording of the pick-up line e.g. NO STOOGES are necessary.
Derren is in a very novel position in arranging this kind of thing and like most TV Talking Heads, he's got access to dozens of consultants that can aid him in creating routines of this nature; everything from how to do the "pre-show" set-up to how to present the reveals. Our problem is when viewing this stuff is that we buy into the final product vs. weighing the fact that these other things off camera are the more logical course of action. Magicians frequently miss this in that they are always looking for a trick and worse, some stunt they can do that strokes their ego or, in this example, gets them laid. . . very few of us ever thinking of how we'd react if someone tried the same thing on us.
Effective mentalism is cunning, subtle and carefully blocked out; we do things long before we need the information (just look up Paul Stockman's variation to Confabulation if you doubt me). We do not approach what we do as one would traditional magic tricks in that 90% of what we do must look and feel real and unexplainable, regardless the claim.
About the Cold Reading Thing. . . this technique as it is known today IS NOT what the true meaning of the term implied, which was being able to Read a person upon first meeting. It had nothing to do with Barnum Statements the Forer experiment, etc. Nor was it, at least until the latter 1970s early 80s, a primary explanation of things offered by the cynical; the JREF managed to weave that thread into the nomenclature in a slow and methodical manner. Character Reading, which is the original term, is natural when it comes to this style of feedback, especially when you are doing a short "skit" such as the one featured in this video bite. It's part of being a Psychic Entertainer and a big part of what helps establish a state of "legend" around one's persona via that laity.
On these points Pink is correct, some level of "Cold Reading" is being used but not so much for the reason or assumption most magicians associate with when throwing that term around. My recommendation being that you invest into the John Riggs Cradle to the Grave DVD series and learn what this skill really is and isn't. . . maybe spend time actually learning and work with a Reading system so you can see first hand that there's a lot more to it than generic lines and phrases.
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