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This tribute to four fellows who for long periods of time, demarcated an area of Downtown as their home. Kenny, Bucket Man, Mike the Juggler and Blanket Man all had rich stories to tell of their journey to our city’s heart.

“Kenny” – John Adams frequented Courtney Place during the evenings and with his amplified guitar entertained thousands over the 1990’s. Well liked, Adam’s rendition of Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler” became his signature tune, and many nights he’d sing it several times at the request of his audience of passerbys. The singer and poet ran into grief when Wellington Council seized his amplifier which newly-arrived central city apartment dwellers claimed disturbed the peace. His many months of silent protest became as notable as his earlier performances. It’s said he made more from his “Give my Amp back” sign than he did from his singing.

His knowledge of classic English and American poetry was vast. He recited poems from memory in return for coinage. As such, his ability to remember poems is reminiscent of iconic New Zealand performer, Sam Hunt. Among his favourite poems were Shakespeare’s ‘Sonnet 116’, Lord Byron’s ‘The Destruction of Sennacherib’, Kipling’s ‘If’, Wordsworth’s ‘Daffodils’ and poems by American poets like Whittier and Longfellow.

Adams kept a list of poems next to his guitar case that people could choose. It was an aspect of his performance that became increasingly important to him when the city council eventually confiscated his amplifier.
(attrib: Poetry Archive of NZ)

“Bucket Man” - for 20 years from 1983, Robert Jones walked the streets of Wellington by day and lived in a crude shelter on Tinakori Hill. He was always up for a cup of tea but always turned down offers of help. Sadly he died in a Wellington gutter. His funeral at St Andrews on The Terrace, was attended by hundreds of Wellingtonians. Writer Maurice Gee based one of his characters on Jones in his prize-winning novel Blindsight (2005).
(attrib: Te Ara Encyclopedia)

“Blanket Man” – Ben Hana, identified by his loincloth, blanket, dreadlocks and headphones. Ben sat on the footpath in the Courtney Place precinct mainly through much of the early 2000’s. Apparently once happily married with children and a job, his life saw him descend into an existence on the street and as well as mental instability Ben was plagued by alcohol abuse.

Ben claimed to be a devotee of the Maori sun god Tama-nui-te-ra and claimed he wore next to nothing as an act of religious observance. Occasionally he removed the last item of clothing which sparked attention from the local constabulary. Ben died in 2012.

“Mike the Juggler” – Mike Wahrlich became a fixture along Wellington’s Golden Mile over a period of almost 30 years. While employed as a gardener and greenkeeper during his initial years of street entertainment, Mike became a more permanent street feature after being made redundant. Hugely popular with his beaming smile and constant juggling, Mike was always prepared to teach passers-by how to juggle. Sadly he died in a fire in 2023.