Stevie Starr, known around the world as “The Regurgitator,” returns to Ames for Veishea on April 19, 2013 at 11:30 p.m. to show what’s in his stomach.

Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Starr claims that his act began during his childhood in an orphanage when he was forced to swallow his money to hide  it from bullies and then regurgitate it. For more than 20 years, he’s being doing just that all around the world.

“You start from the bottom and work your way up,” Starr said. “I just got lucky that no one else can do it.”

One of Starr’s highlights came when he auditioned for Britain’s Got Talent in 2010. In front of a live audience as well as millions of TV viewers, Starr swallowed five coins and asked audience members to tell him which coins to regurgitate back up. When he came to the last coin, he swallowed a billiard ball, saying that he couldn’t get the coin out without a push from the ball. He then regurgitated the last coin and the ball back up.

“Doing the show was good to do not just in the UK, but around the world,” Starr said.

Although Starr did not advance to the finals of the show, his performances went viral on YouTube with several millions of views. Starr also went on to other countries’ versions of Britain’s Got Talent, such as German, Czech and Slovak versions.

“It doesn’t matter where I go because I get the same reaction,” Starr said. “Switzerland, Australia, [and the United States] … all want to see it.”

The Regurgitator is no stranger to Veishea, performing at the festival for the past few years. He explains that he comes back due to the fact it is a university with students both new and old coming to see him every single year.

“I always get new students, but I add little, new pieces to the show,” Starr said. “It’s a bit of a surprise each year before the show.”

While audiences are captivated or horrified by Starr’s act, others wonder how it is done. An article from the BBC News Magazine looked into this back in 2010.

According to the article, Internet forums and blogs claim that Starr has a “dry second stomach that he uses to swallow everything from engagement rings to live goldfish. Everything he regurgitates in his act comes out dry, [which is] a scientific impossibility, as it would require bringing up stomach acid as well.

Despite skepticism from scientific and medical professionals, Starr has claimed his act to be real. While this may be something people have watched at home, it’s not something an amateur would want to try at home.

“I’ve been doing this show for 20 years, so I know what I’m doing,” Starr said.