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Mike the Juggler
Michael Eric Wahrlich (1955–2023), better known as Mike the Juggler,[1] was a New Zealand busker who juggled tennis balls in the streets of Te Aro, Wellington for about three decades.[2] He was killed in the Loafers Lodge fire, which occurred in the hostel he lived in. A man was subsequently charged with arson and murder. Early lifeWahrlich was born in Wellington Hospital on 27 June 1955 and grew up in Porirua.[1] He had four siblings: an older brother and three younger sisters.[3][1] He learned to juggle as a child with oranges and lemons from the kitchen.[4][1][5] For some time Wahrlich attended Epuni Boys' Home in Lower Hutt near the start of its history, when it was run by the Ministry of Education.[6][7] CareerAfter moving to Wellington, Wahrlich became a lawnmower for the Wellington City Council in the 1980s, and was later made redundant.[4][8][9] In the late 90s, Wahrlich met a man playing the guitar in Manners Mall, and after seeing him succeed, Wahrlich decided that he would also entertain the public in Manners Mall, by juggling tennis balls.[2] He would often do this wearing a tracksuit,[10][11] or what RNZ described as a "Signature blue jumper and baggy pants".[6] When Manners Mall was closed he started juggling on Lambton Quay outside a Westpac bank,[11] and also in Cuba Street.[4] Wahrlich was hospitalised in 2022 after being badly assaulted at his hostel,[11][1] and was discharged from hospital about a month later.[2] As a result of the assault, a 39-year-old was arrested and charged with intent to do bodily harm, and was remanded in custody.[12][13] In 2022 Wellington City councillor Nicola Young described him as a "city institution", and another councillor, Laurie Foon, said "Mike has been on the streets of Wellington since most of us Wellingtonians can remember".[11] DeathWahrlich died on 16 May 2023, aged 67, in the Loafers Lodge fire in his hostel, which also caused the deaths of four others.[4][14][13] After his death was confirmed, flowers and three oranges representing juggling balls were placed on his usual juggling spot, outside the Westpac bank in Lampton Quay.[12][13] Over 200 people subsequently wrote messages for him on an online tribute book.[4] His funeral was open to the public and was held on 26 May.[10][9][1][12] It was attended by 120 people in person and 300 people online,[14] including Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau and Councillor Nureddin Abdurahman.[15] References
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