Neil’s shocking YouTube video goes viral

Neil Woodside was at the Belfast Festival at Queens earlier this month when he came across a highly-charged performance in the grounds of City Hall by Bristol-based entertainers, the Lords of Lighting.

The duo enthralled throngs of spectators with their unique show, which featured them dressed in special suits using Tesla coils to fire bolts of electricity at one another.

Neil captured a seven minute clip of the incredible performance on his camera and uploaded it to video-sharing website YouTube, and so far it has been watched by over 4.6 million people worldwide.

The 24-year-old former Larne Grammar School pupil told the Times: “The amount of views this video has got is just crazy. It went viral almost immediately – about 750,000 people had watched it within 24 hours.

“Before I knew it I had major media outlets such as CNN, ITN and BBC contacting me asking for permission to use it.

“The clip seems to be hugely popular in the USA and has featured on Good Morning America. It has also taken off in a number of other countries including Sweden, Japan, Canada and the UK.”

When asked why he thinks his video has become such a global phenomenon, Neil chalked it up to simply “being in the right place at the right time”.

He added: “People share these kind of videos with their friends, family and work colleagues and all of a sudden people are talking about it and it becomes a huge hit.

“It is amazing to think that so many people around the world have watched my video and it really demonstrates the power of the internet. Over 5,000 people have commented on the video and the feedback has been incredible.

“The Lords of Lightening have even been in touch with me to thank me for the publicity they have received as a result of this clip.”

Neil is now hoping that lightening will strike twice and that his next YouTube upload, whatever that may be, will jolt peoples’ interest in a similar manner.

To view Neil’s video, log on to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FpjcOWwiI4