Plate Spinning
Plate spinning is a circus manipulation art where a person spins plates, bowls and other flat objects on poles, without them falling over. Plate spinning relies on the gyroscopic effect, in the same way a top stays upright while spinning.

Most professional plate spinning plates are gimmicked, having an indentation in the centre to help keep the plates on the poles.

The current world record holder is David Spathaky who last spun 108 plates at the same time in Bangkok, Thailand on television. He had previously held and broken his own record four times since 1986.

In Popular Coulture

The tune Sabre Dance is often played in the background. This was a popular act on The Ed Sullivan Show and other American variety and talent shows during the early years of American television. Tom Griswold, co-host of the Bob & Tom Show, a syndicated American comedy radio program, occasionally says he wishes he could see a plate spinner on TV again and wants to book one for his staff's annual Christmas party, which Chick McGee cites as further evidence that Griswold is out of touch with contemporary entertainment. In an episode of the Simpsons, at the Springfield Retirement Castle talent show, one participant does a similar act, but uses the dentures of several of the residents. Plate spinning was often seen in HBO's prison drama Oz, where an unnamed prisoner would often be seen spinning a book on the tip of a pen.