Mike the Juggler

Michael Eric Wahrlich (1955–2023), better known as Mike the Juggler, was a New Zealand busker who juggled tennis balls in the streets of Te Aro, Wellington, for about three decades.

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.

Career After moving to Wellington, Wahrlich became a lawnmower for the Wellington City Council in the 1980s, and was later made redundant.

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. He would often do this wearing a tracksuit, or what RNZ described as a "Signature blue jumper and baggy pants".

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".