Watching & Enjoying British Professional Wrestling

Once a year, I go through a phase of binging on British pro-wrestling.  Quite some time ago, I decided to create a unique video that could introduce others into this distinct product.  British pro-wrestling, specifically the variety that aired on ITV's "World of Sport"from 1965 through 1988, takes some time to get used to and appreciate.  The rounds, the rules, the style and all make it as different from American pro-wrestling as lucha libre is.  I think most anyone can enjoy a Johnny Saint match for his unbelievable "escapological" style, many could enjoy familiar faces like the Dynamite Kid or Fit Finlay and some might be curious about Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks.  There is a great deal more depth however.

In these videos, I attempt to share the history, the rounds, the rules, the weight class system and the basics of the style.

I should remark that the BBC's "When Wrestling was Golden" documentary inspired me to hastily pull this project together.  There seemed to be a rare spike in interest and I hope that people will take an interest in British pro-wrestling and perhaps my contribution can fan the flames of interest a little.

In an age when the current television product in the US is so stale, so redundant and so stale, this pro-wrestling provides a level of variety of characters, technical prowess and uniqueness that I hope many will give it a chance.

While this is by no means a complete listing, below are some of my personal favorites matches that I would implore fans to check out!

BBC Video Diaries: Pro-Wrestling

Director: n/a

Distributor: BBC

Released: 1993

Talent Featured
Robbie Brookside, Ian "Doc" Dean, Brian Dixon, Bill Dundee (Sir William), Giant Haystacks,

 Ulf Hermann, Maxx Payne, Steve Regal, Johnny Saint, Dave Taylor, Steve "Skull Murphy" Young

The Good
An amazing little documentary from the early 1990s that features Robbie Brookside as he struggles to "make it" in pro-wrestling. Brookside was a hot young star in the final days of televised British wrestling as Brian Dixon's All-Star promotions utilized him well. A teenage star from Liverpool, Brookside fell into that era of excellent workers who were able to rub shoulders with many great British stars, but were too young, too small, too British or whatever to reach that next level. In 1988, British wrestling was taken off TV and the native version of the sport practically died over night. It had been ailing for several years, languishing under the influence of the Crabtrees, unable to compete with the flash of the WWF and suffering several other hardships. Many found scarce work across the country at independent shows, some traveled to Japan, some to the Continent and a select few tried to make it to the US. Other than Japan, this documentary focuses on that post-TV era. Brookside and partner Doc Dean travel from small show to small show working for Brian Dixon, but the conditions, payoffs and even some of the talent is pathetic. The two travel to Germany for a tour and you get a feeling for how vital that is for keeping many of these guys afloat. Otto Wanz and the CWA was able to give many European wrestlers a place to go and make good money for about a decade after British wrestling died. A portion of this focuses on his former partner Steve Regal (more recently known as William Regal) who managed to catch a break with WCW, reinvented himself as Lord Steven Regal and became one of the best workers in the US and one of the most underrated entertainers as well. While Regal had good size, Brookside never filled out, he looks like and kind of works like Edge (if you've never seen him). Brookside believes in the British style, but understands the need to adapt to the American approach. Unfortunately for him, Britain never had a domestic product that was able to do this and the last of the "World of Sports" generation are now retired and the independent scene over there is remarkably disjointed from the traditional British style. This is almost a tragic story and while the end is hopefully, you know fifteen years later how it would end.

The Bad
This documentary has a understandably narrow scope as it focuses on Robbie Brookside's career up to this point. He had not yet traveled to Japan, although he had opportunities with New Japan and Michinoku Pro that never panned out for him. There were a handful of great workers (Tony St. Clair, Fit Finlay, Dave Taylor and a others) who successfully bounced around and did not have a paycheck-to-paycheck career like Brookside. Many did though and it is interesting to focus on that story. People like Doc Dean, James Mason and others struggled to find their place and while some had chances abroad or even in the US, few found actual success. The sad story here, unfortunately is the real one for most British wrestlers and it has only gotten more dim as time has passed.

The Rating: ****1/2

The Wrestling Game

Director: n/a
Distributor: Mountain Films
Released: 1963

The Good
I don't know how much 1960s British pro-wrestling is kicking around, but this is a nice sampling that shows how that style is different than elsewhere. Although it does not feature many legendary British stars, it does feature "Judo" Al Hayes, who became a star in the US. The real draw here is seeing the action. This was a feature, but it was not exactly an expose. I had heard Ron Garvin elude to an expose that killed British wrestling (I'm not sure if this is it), but this more showed and explained the draw of pro-wrestling. Also, I popped for the powerbomb in the opening bout...who expected that?

The Bad
At just over 10 minutes, this hardly gets at anything. It is a neat historical piece, but the lack of commentary and explanation could be a turn off for many modern viewers. It also did not really have the star power that you'd expect. It was more of a random filming that had a couple of familiar names, but mostly people that even I didn't know.

The Rating: **1/2

Pure Dynamite: The Price You Pay for Wrestling Stardom
Author, Ghost Writer, Editor: Tom Billington, Alison Coleman
Publisher: Stewart House
Released: 8/01 

The Good
There's not a lot more one can want from an autobiography: funny road stories, pretty good insight, dirt on all the stars and a strong finale. While you might only demand one of those, so few wrestler's autobiographies deliver 3 of the 4 that it's sad. Billington's been in Europe, Canada, Japan and the States and he gives all the details. He lightens things up with funny stories and considering his apparent meanstreak it's necessary to have those parts. Puroresu fans should enjoy this more than just about anyone's books. Most compliment this book for its unbridaled honesty and he doesn't seem to pull punches and that's more a positive in wrestling than a negative...I think.


The Bad
Bitterness can be very off-putting. Billington's hatred of Davey Boy Smith and dislike of a number of people is kind of hard to overlook as he blasts so many people. He tends to give a negative along with a slight positive (like "he was an asshole, but he was good with ribs") and his "rating" system of tough guys is questionable. Many of them seem to be his drinking buddies. If you realize those few things, you should be able to get through this just fine without too many hang-ups. 

The Rating: ****1/4