Kent Juggler Back Home After Run on NBC Reality Show

Kent juggler Charles Peachock is back in his beloved hometown after a life-changing two-month run on the hit NBC television show America’s Got Talent.

Peachock, 35, was eliminated Wednesday from the summertime variety-act competition that garnered him worldwide exposure on six different occasions. AGT is hitting a rating high in its sixth year, attracting an audience of more than 10 million U.S. viewers weekly.

“I didn’t realize how (being on AGT) was going to affect me emotionally – how much I was going to grow and how much I could push myself,” Peachock said. “Seeing that I could handle the whole experience made me realize what my capacity for creation really is.”

The award-winning juggler had less than a week to prepare a new routine and practice it for last Tuesday’s live appearance on AGT’s wildcard episode.

Because the celebrity judges have stated their preference for danger acts, Peachock crafted a set that involved juggling a flaming (running) chainsaw along with two fireballs. Then he balanced a spinning sword on the tip of another sword seated on his forehead and juggled three knives, one of which fell to the stage.

“I had never balanced knives and I never worked with a flaming chainsaw before,” Peachock laughed. “This was untested material performed live with very little rehearsal time.”

The judges were quick to criticize him for dropping the knife, saying he “blew it” — a phrase Peachock referred to as “harsh” in his AGT exit interview.

“It was one mistake in all my performances (combined) and now all of a sudden it’s a universal ‘you blew it,’” he said. “I feel like from the feedback I’ve gotten from America, they see all the good things I’ve done on the show and that’s what they’re going to remember.”

Peachock made it farther than any other solo juggler in AGT's six-season history. He's proud of that fact — particularly since many juggling pros have agreed in online chats that the show is notoriously hard on jugglers.

Referring to the juggling credibility points he's gained this summer, Peachock said, "It is big and I am going to use it to push myself and my art to places (juggling's) never been."

Despite not earning a paycheck during the past four weeks of living in Los Angeles, the cruise ship performer has no regrets.

Along the way, he got his picture in People magazine and picked up legions of followers from around the world: more than 1,200 on his NBC fan page and more than 1,000 on each of his two Facebook accounts.

“I’m so happy I got to perform three dramatically different sets that allowed me to show off my theatric side on a national stage. There’s where you’re going to move the art of juggling forward,” he said.

Peachock is hoping his long run on AGT will translate into bigger and better things, career-wise.

“I definitely don’t mind that I’m off the show because everything happens for a reason,” he said. “Now I can’t wait to see what happens next.”