Merrion Square transformed into circus for City Spectacular

Body contortionists, sword swallowers, unicyclists and comedians all had to battle it out with face painters and tattoo artists for the attention of children and adults alike at this year's Laya Healthcare City Spectacular.

Usually home to office workers making the most of their lunch breaks, Merrion Square in Dublin played host to Ireland’s biggest free summer festival this weekend. More than 150,000 people are expected to attend the event with organisers saying this is their biggest year yet.

The weather remained calm and the rain stayed away on Saturday afternoon as families took picnics in the park and availed of the free entertainment. There were yoga classes, silent discos and walking tours as well as a host of acts and performers on rotation throughout the day.

Festival producer Shell Holden said: “It has been one truly successful festival weekend and there’s still one more day to go. We’re celebrating our 10th birthday spectacularly in Dublin and we can’t wait to bring all the fun down to Cork’s Fitzgerald Park next weekend.”

One of the first performers of the day was Jack Wise, a self-proclaimed sword-swallowing ventriloquial magician. The 41-year-old from Sandymount said that he likes to bring a comedic element to his magic shows, and he thinks that is the reason people keep coming back for more.

He performed card tricks using members of the audience, made a cigarette disappear into an 11-year-old’s jumper and broke a woman’s engagement ring in four before giving it back to her all in one piece. However, his show-stopping performance involved him swallowing a 22-inch sword all the way to its handle.

Sword-related injury

But he has only had one sword-related injury since he started his career more than 20 years ago.

“I was doing a show in an old nightclub in Dublin and I was up on the bar and this drunk guy thought it was a fake sword. He sort of pushed me when I was pulling it from my throat and I grazed the inside of my throat,” he said.

“It was tough starting out. I was so nervous doing my first few gigs. I was performing close-up magic for a bunch of hipsters in Dublin and they weren’t the nicest. I slowly got better at it and I realised one day, when I put in a joke one time, they all laughed. It got easier from then.”

Another act who attracted a large crowd was the "American Strong Woman", Mama Lou. Nothing about her phsyique would suggest that she bends metal for a living. But she says that she enjoys not looking like the biggest, strongest woman so she can prove her doubters wrong.

“What’s the strongest muscle, pound for pound, in the human body?” she asks. The tongue is the answer. She then proceeds to tie a rope around a couple of 1kg bags of potatoes and lifts them 4ft off the ground. They hang there for 30 seconds.

“Not so bad, for a girl,” she smirks.

Holder of numerous Guinness world records, Chayne Hultgren, aka “The Space Cowboy”, was also a big draw. His best trick was to juggle knives blindfold on a unicycle, as you do. Throw in an electric chainsaw, another bout of sword swallowing and you have a Space Cowboy show.

Wexford natives John and Deirdre Sheils, and their eight-year-old son Patrick, come to the exhibition every year.

“We stumbled across it by accident a couple of years ago and we’ve been back every year since,” said John.

“It’s just such an easy day for all of us and there’s so much to do and see. I still can’t get over swallowing a sword. It makes me feel sick thinking about it.”

The Laya Healthcare City Spectacular runs until Sunday evening in Merrion Square and will visit Cork's Fitzgerald Park on July 18th and 19th.