The Beginner's Guide To British Wrestling

[Matt D]

I watched the 26 min Jones vs Finlay match last week. I'm ready to watch some more Jones now.

[ohtani's jacket]

Excellent! There's never been a better cross-eyed wrestler than Marty Jones.

[Matt D]

I haven't been posting about it but I've been working my way through things lately. A few Zoltan Boscik matches. A bunch of Cortez. Liberal amounts of breaks. I'm just getting a sense of things still.

[ohtani's jacket]

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Doesn't need to be write-ups or anything. Just throw some stuff out there when you have it sorted.

 

In the meantime, there's this:

 

Mick McManus vs. Jackie Pallo (5/5/62)

 

I guess I never need to see another British match now that I've seen the most famous one of all. The most most noticeable thing about the bout to begin with is how different the wrestlers look from versions I'm used to. Pallo is mainly younger looking, but his hair is even poofier than in the 70s. McManus has combed down widow's peak that looks nothing like the slicked back, greasy hairstyle we're familiar with. He had to have been wearing a hair piece in the 70s. This is pretty much the ultimate needle bout. You can count on one hand how many wrestling holds there are. They lay into each other with stiff looking shots and throw each other about. The first two rounds are full of niggle almost to a fierce extent. They're arguably the most intense rounds of the bout as they do a fantastic job of meeting the public's early expectations. The story was supposed to be that after dodging Pallo for so long, McManus could no longer avoid him, but unfortunately there was a side stake of both men putting up a 100 pounds for a winner take all kitty that Campbell wouldn't stop obsessing over. That took away from the narrative at times, as I doubt either man was motivated solely by the side bet, but the in-ring stuff was fast and furious.

 

McManus was by far the better wrestler, and when he did apply holds he looked like Arn Anderson compared to Pallo, but Jackie's forearm smash was good enough that he could remain credible up against the better worker. There was none of the shtick you associate with McManus, most likely because of the magnitude of the bout but perhaps also because it wasn't as big a part of his routine in those days. Instead he came across as a wrestler's wrestler who happened to be a prick. There was the occasional shit eating grin so synonymous with McManus when he's on top, but other than that it looked like a different version of Mick. Pallo seemed to get gassed as the bout went on, and it slowed down a bit in the middle rounds, but Jackie's equaliser was a great spot. He had McManus in a Boston crab which he lost hold of. McManus attempted to scuttle out of the way but Pallo caught him in a second attempt with absolutely exquisite timing for a fantastic looking fall. I'm not sure whether it was a blown spot or if they intended for McManus to counter, but it put the ball back in Pallo's court like an equaliser should. As stated, they grew a bit tired toward the end, but gave it their best in the final round.

 

The match has grown in legend over the years, but nothing was meant to be settled on this particular evening and a draw was probably the best result for the effort that both men had exerted. It was an excellent match, but I thought the Howes/Lageat bout was never notches better and wouldn't rate McManus/Pallo any higher than **** making it far from one of the greatest matches of all-time, but that's largely down to the fact that Pallo wasn't as technically good as numerous British wrestler and what you're watching is really a complete worker in the form of McManus going to the dance with a showman with huge hair. Which basically proves McManus' side of the argument as to why he didn't respect Pallo. Maybe I'm biased toward Mick, but I thought Pallo slowed this down at times due to a lack of conditioning. Still a cracking bout, though.

[GSR]

Masambula vs. Leon Arras (8/19/70)

 

Masambula was one of the leading television stars of the 1960s. A UK-born black wrestler who took a fairly racist African witch doctor gimmick and hammed it up to such a degree that he became beloved by young and old alike. The King of Charisma, he was considered by many to be the best of the comedy workers due to the unpredictable nature of his act. Sadly for us, he suffered a career-ending injury in the early 70s, making his matches rarer than hen's teeth. Even a run-of-the-mill TV appearance like this is a huge find. It was actually more of an Arras showcase than a "Masambula bout" with Arras being quite the character himself. Arrras, better known as actor Brian Glover, was a big time talker and had no qualms about chewing the scenery when it came to pro-wrestling. Masambula spent most of the bout reacting to Arras, and playing off Glover's gags, rather than showcasing himself, but it was a fun bout, and like I said, rarer than hen's teeth.

 

Where did you find this Masambula bout? Pretty sure the only things of his that aired on TWC were the singles bout against Tony Charles (which I've not seen) and the mess of a tag match between the Royals and the Black Knights.

[ohtani's jacket]

Someone found it randomly among some 8mm films they bought off ebay. I got it from a private collector.

[ohtani's jacket]

It's a bit hard to go back to the dregs of World of Sport after those rarities, but here's another hour's worth:

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 32

 

Steve Logan vs. Peter Wilson (7/11/84)

 

No offence to Peter Wilson or Steve Logan, but I can't imagine anybody really wanted to see this on television.

 

Kendo Nagasaki/Mark Rocco vs. Fuji Yamada/Clive Myers (1/13/87)

 

All-action tag with no rhyme or reason to it. It wasn't bad, but it was closer to the Mark Rocco on the New Japan set than the Rocco I've been so high on lately.

Tony St. Clair vs. Soldier Boy Steve Prince (Caernarfon, taped 2/27/95)

 

1995... this is some seriously late Reslo. I don't know if you'll remember this, but Steve Prince was the guy who Fit Finlay stiffed mercilessly during a match on ITV. Back then he was wearing a black gi and wielding a katana blade. Here he'd changed to some sort of soldier gimmick. St. Clair was professional with him, as you'd expect, despite the fact he hadn't improved.

Andy Blair vs. Red Ivan (3/5/87)

 

As big a squash as you'll see on British television. I believe Red Ivan worked as Vladimir Krupoff in Stampede, not that the name rings any bells with me. Poor old Andy Blair was roadkill here so that Ivan could be fed to Daddy a week later. Then after that he was never heard of again.

 

Grasshopper Phil Johnson vs. Ray Smith (4/6/88)

 

The only memorable thing about this was that Smith took the liberty of stomping Grasshopper's bare feet. I've always wondered why guys didn't try that against barefoot wrestlers. The answer is that it doesn't hurt.

[pantherwagner]

Wasn't sure where to put this.

 

Wayne Bridges has got a pub in Kent, right below a bridge, run by him and his wife. Pub is obviously called The Bridges.

 

This is him and his wife (sorry, can't post this as an embedded image).

 

O_O

 

http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/resources/images/1399736/

[Childs]

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (10/12/76)

 

This is another Rocco vs. Jones bout from the 70s, which, in addition to the trilogy that aired on The Wrestling Channel, make it a quartet of bouts now. They met here for the British Light-Heavyweight title, which was left vacant by Billy Joyce when he retired, and we're fortunate that a print of it survives as title matches tend to be the real deal when it comes to a serious grappling contest on World of Sport. These two were so evenly matched. Jones got the better of the results, but there was nothing in it whenever they fought. For my money, it's one of the greatest in-ring rivalries of all-time for sheer skill and athleticism. Rocco worked this as a blue-eye, and while it got testy at times, he never fouled Jones once. I was half-expecting him to pull off some full blown heel move throughout, but he displayed sportsmanship throughout. It was an interesting glimpse into what a face Rocco might have been like, and showed how much of his all-action style was a deliberate choice to push the tempo beyond what audiences were accustomed to when in fact he was a technically skilled as any other wrestler in the country and could have worked the old-school style with ease. And Marty Jones, what can you say about Britain's No.1? One of the greatest of all-time yet virtually unheralded. People are missing the boat Jones big time as he's the kind of guy most would lap up. This was a tough, physical contest full of great action and moments that signaled that a new generation of workers had arrived on the scene as it was hard to imagine Joyce working at this speed and taking the kind of bumps that Rocco did. Great intensity and controlled aggression. The story always goes that they didn't get along behind the scenes, but instead of that ruining their bouts ala Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart, it seemed to provide the fireworks for a massively competitive feud that was probably Jones' best, surpassing even his rivalry with Dave Finlay from the mid-80s. Rocco went onto great heights character-wise and ruled the late 70s as arguably the most dynamic star on television, but while he gave us many spectacles as Rollerball Rocco, his wrestling was never quite this good again. One of the high-water marks in British wrestling and you can probably extend that worldwide to 70s wrestling as well.

 

Where's this from? I love their other matches and would like to see it.

 

edit: I see there are actually four Jones/Rocco bouts on the Jones comp I got from Carl. Wonder if that's one of them?

[Loss]

Yes, is that one online?

[ohtani's jacket]

Where's this from? I love their other matches and would like to see it.

 

edit: I see there are actually four Jones/Rocco bouts on the Jones comp I got from Carl. Wonder if that's one of them?

 

 

It as an 8mm film from the same ebay source as the Masambula bout. The other Jones/Rocco bouts available are:

 

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (6/30/76)

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (7/26/78)

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (9/13/78)

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (12/30/80)

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (6/8/88)

 

The first two bouts were uploaded by tellumyort a long time ago via Real Man's Man, and I think Arthur Psycho has uploaded the two 80s bouts. I haven't seen the one from '88 yet, but from memory the 1980 bout is JIP. The '78 title bout has never been uploaded, but I ripped it for Jimmy recently and anyone who wants to see it can PM me.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 32

 

John Savage vs. Beau Jack Rowlands (10/31/85)

 

John Savage was Johnny Smith of Stampede and All Japan fame. I don't think I've ever watched a Johnny Smith match so that doesn't mean much to me, but he got a decent win here over journeyman Jack Rowlands as Joint tried in vain to build up new stars in the wake of all the defections to All-Star.

 

Rasputin vs. Greg Valentine (9/16/87)

 

Rasputin was one of the worst guys on the circuit mainly because of how limited he was offensively, so I thought this would be a decent test of whether "The Promoter's Boy" Greg Valentine was worth his salt or not. To his credit, young Crabtree did a good job bumping and selling for the big man then got a cheap DQ win because, you know, he was the promoter's boy.

 

Dave Taylor vs. Psycho Shane Stevens (8/30/86)

 

Screensport bullshit under a big top. I don't think I can stress enough what a poor idea it was for a British promotion to try to be American. There are some things only the Americans can do well, and what made Freestyle Wrestling on WoS work for so many years was that it was quintessentially British. The "Psycho" Shane Stevens gimmick was an embarrassment not helped by the atrocious Screensport commentary or the lacklustre wrestling. Way too many duds like this in Taylor's locker.

 

Jim Breaks vs. Peter Bainbridge (6/8/88)

 

Breaks hadn't been on TV for two years when he made this random appearance on the stand alone ITV show. He was older and pudgier, and beginning to thin out of top, but petty much the same old Breaks. His job here was to carry 16 year-old Peter Bainbridge the same way he had done Dynamite Kid, Young David, Danny Boy Collins, and probably others too. It started out okay, but for some reason it ended prematurely. It didn't seem as though the editor cropped much out, so I guess Breaks wasn't interested in entering this into the pantheon of great Jim Breaks matches. i'll cut him some slack since it was 1988.

 

Danny Boy Collins vs. Tony Stewart (4/7/90)

 

Pretty easy workout for Danny Boy Collins. I've been harsh on the kid in the past, but he matured into a better wrestler in the 90s. It was just a bad decade for a British worker to mature into a good worker unless they ventured abroad to New Japan or WCW.

[ButchReedMark]

After Orig Williams, Danny Boy Collins was probably my favourite British wrestler as a child (Third being Tony St. Clair after watching him win a tournament dispatching of PN News and Drew McDonald 30 yards from my house all while wearing a pair of hot pink trunks that 1990 Lex Luger would have been proud of). He always seemed to put in a shift on the EWF/Flesh Gorden shows on Eurosport in 1991 or 1992 or so, always seemed quality on Reslo, and even now one of the more respected names on the current British circuit says that now Brookside's in America, Collins is the only trainer he'd recommend. So it's nice to see you're coming around to him, and that I haven't been wrong to have thought him ace all these years based on childhood enthusiasm.

 

Now for the same for Orig.

[NotJayTabb]

Collins is still pretty good in ring nowadays. There's a full All-Star show from last year on YouTube (headlined by Robbie Dynamite vs Jushin Liger), and the second match is Collins having a decent match with a pretty green David Finlay Jr. Collins also cuts this great pre-match promo where he tells young Finlay that he's going to be taking his revenge for every broken bone and every drop of blood he spilt at that hands of Finlay Sr.

[ohtani's jacket]

I think I've come around on everyone I used to hate except for maybe John Naylor.

 

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 33

 

Colonel Brody vs. Ray Steele (7/22/87)

 

Y'know, it's like of hard to believe Brody is a South African military colonel when he cuts a promo with a Northerner's accent. Brody was an extremely limited worker who barely sought controversy with his gimmick, but Steele being such a straight shooter tried to keep this one true and work your standard British heavyweight contest. Needless to say, Brody couldn't really keep up, certainly not to the extent of Pat Roach or Gil Singh. The defining moment in the match came when ref was trying to fix the turnbuckle padding and Steele was posted into him. He fell backwards into Steele's arms like a damsel in distress then popped up as though nothing had happened and DQ'ed like Hebner style. Immediately afterward he collapsed and had to be carted out while Steele wandered about the ring in astonishment. Suffice to say, if ref bumps aren't part of your wrestling culture then your refs won't be good at them. You could have almost interpreted it as heel ref shtick due to the poor theatrics.

 

Colonel Brody vs. Ray Steele (8/19/87)

 

This was a special 10 minute return bout that could only be won on a knockout. Walton gave away the finish by reminding viewers that countouts were also a form of knockout, so naturally Brody took a spill to the outside and that was that. Shitty return match.

 

Battle Royal (3/25/87)

 

This was a super heavyweight Battle Royal with Giant Haystacks, Scrubber Daly, King Kendo, Pat Roach, Colonel Brody, King Kong Kirk, Tarzan Johnny Wilson, and little Terry Rudge all occupying the same tiny ring. It was horribly worked, but there was a whole lotta beef in there.

 

Dave Lawrence vs. Saxon Brooks (11/3/82)

 

This was surprisingly good. Brooks was a judoka who never really went anywhere and was still quite green at this point, but his judo moves looked really cool especially against a lighter man, and Lawrence looked like a real little dynamo but only appeared on TV a handful of times. Fun bout.

 

 

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 34

 

Johnny Kidd vs. Ian McGregor (2/5/85)

 

Decent WoS bout wrestled in the classic lightweight & welterweight style. McGregor was easily the best of the 80s teenage wrestlers not because he was especially charismatic, but because there was nothing cringe worthy about him. I'm not sure how far he could have gone if wrestling had remained a mainstay on British television, but to me he doesn't carry any of the stigma that the other "boy apprentices" do.

 

Dave Finlay vs. Franz Schumann (Merthyr, taped 2/4/92)

 

It's possible that Dave Finlay's post-Paula era is worse than his Princess Paula era. Franz Schumann was kind of like a poor man's Austrian version of Chris Benoit, at least on offence, but boy was he disinterested in selling. This had some hard hitting moments, but everything in between was a bore. Finlay was an awful worker at this point. Possibly the most glossed over awful period of all-time. Has there ever been a more noted worker who had a period this bad?

 

Drew McDonald vs. Tony St. Clair (Caernarfon, taped 2/27/95)

 

Drew McDonald had gotten pretty fat at this point. He looked like a tattooed version of Adrian Adonis. For some bizarre reason, Williams was billing him as Scott Chippendale, or something equally ridiculous, and he had a manager in a bowler hat doing a Bill Dundee Sir William rip-off. Ah well, it was 1995 Reslo. The most notable thing about this was Tony St. Clair busting out top rope moves he could have only learnt in Japan.

 

Shaun South vs. Boston Blackie (Newcastle Emlyn, taped 2/5/92)

 

Blackie without a moustache is weird. His stock has fallen pretty fast for me, but he was really just a victim here to set up the cool South vs. Schumann chain match. The ref was ridiculously lenient in this bout. Mindbogglingly lenient, in fact.

 

Tony St. Clair vs. King Kong Kirk (8/30/86)

 

This was from Screensport. On one hand, it was psychologically sound and a fairly realistic heavyweight bout between the newly crowned World Champ St. Clair and the heavier Kirk. On the other hand, it was slow and there was a type of fatalism to it that it wouldn't mean anything by bout's end. Which it didn't.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 35

 

John Elijah vs. Prince Mann Singh (10/26/88)

 

John Elijah was such a stalwart, appearing on ITV right up until the end. Here he was on the undercard to Big Daddy's farewell appearance giving us one last no-frills heavyweight power contest. Elijah wasn't the type of wrestler that has great matches, but I enjoyed each and every one of his television appearances. A great wrestling man. I did get kind of tired of Walton reminding us each and every time that his hobby was paleontology, though. That and Elijah's bear story were two of the most singularly repetitive Walton anecdotes.

 

Pat Roach vs. Colonel Brody (3/19/88)

 

Older Pat Roach had a hard time moving about, but I was surprised by how much better this was than the Steele bouts. In fairness to Steele, they were wrestling in Birmingham where Roach was, of course, a beloved son, but Roach was a better seller than Steele and his bouts generally had more drama to them, as you might expect from a wrestler turned actor. Roach made Brody look aggressive here, which was quite the feat.

 

Tony St. Clair vs. Greg "The Hammer" Valentine (Germany, taped 1992)

 

Imagine my surprise when this turned out to be Greg "The Hammer" Valentine and not Crabtree's son. I don't know how good this was technically, but I'm such a mark for the Hammer I loved every second of it. The finish sucked, but the Hammer!

 

Bearcat Wright vs. Ian McGregor (6/5/85)

 

Just the finish. They were trying to turn Bearcat Wright face as Walton kept referring to him as "Bernie" Wright (after telling us he was Canadian all those other times.) Wright refused to accept the decision when McGregor was injured on the outside; the ol' blue eye classic. Seemed like a waste of time repacking Wright only to turn him face.

 

Danny Boy Collins/Greg Valentine vs. Sid Cooper/Black Jack Mulligan (6/5/85)

 

Mulligan and Cooper, what a team! I normally dislike young athletic teams but something about Collins and Valentine clicks for me. Mulligan was such a pro. He was fantastic in this as he always was. Some of the double team spots in this were a bit off, but that was a small blight on what was a genuinely exciting contest and a great showcase for the young guys Dale Martin were trying to get over. Greg Valentine really wasn't that bad a worker despite his privileges.

[Matt D]

I've done such a bad job of writing up what I've been watching.

 

Last night was Steve Grey vs John Naylor. It was the semi finals of a tournament, one fall. This was my first time seeing Naylor and I came out impressed (which could be a testament to Grey because I know OJ really doesn't like him). He had the weight advantage. I'm still getting a grip on the style, really, but there such a sense of struggle and gamesmanship. Here, Naylor had the strength and weight advantage, but was still quick and savvy. Grey spent a lot of the match battling from beneath, early on due to some legwork off of a half crab (And they made something as simple as a crab really matter in their multiple attempts at it during the match). There were a few "hanging onto the arm" exchanges that were just spectacular, and I liked the escalation towards the finish that stemmed from Grey getting slightly more desperate as things went on, allowing Naylor to capitalize.

 

I never know how much I'm superimposing over these matches, but to me, there is a sense of circling with the rounds system, of a forward momentum that sort of ebbs and flows on the way to its ultimate destination. The whole becomes more than the sum of its parts.

[Matt D]

Grey vs Keith Haward - 20 mins, no rounds.

 

Haward made for a very good base for Grey, with a 1.5 stone advantage. He mained tried to ground him and contain him and that let Grey show off. There were some call-backs and build towards moves (three attempts for the surfboard, Grey evening the falls by countering the move that Haward used to win the first one) that I liked quite a bit, and Grey accounted for himself well, constantly countering without it being overbearing. This was solid.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 36

 

Don Eagle vs. Steve Logan (9/3/86)

 

This featured some Canadian guy doing a Don Eagle tribute gimmick. Walton said he'd heard a lot of good things about him, particularly in tag, and proceeded to shit on him during the early part of the match where he was giving Logan some "shine" (for want of a better term.) Eventually, Eagle took over on offence and made Walton look a bit foolish. I'm not sure who this Eagle guy was, but he was must have been related to Stampede somehow. He was on TV two weeks in a row and never heard from again.

 

Ricky Knight vs. Flesh Gordon (Merthyr, taped 2/4/92)

 

Flesh Gordon during is the biggest douche in wrestling history. He's such a bad worker as well. I don't think I've seen him hit anything cleanly yet. Ricky Knight was a fun comedy worker, but this is a million miles away from the classic 70s WoS I love. The Super Flies beat on Gordon setting up a tag match that Psycho uploaded earlier.

 

Orig Williams vs. Dave Duran (Unknown location, taped 1985)

 

Having a good match with Orig Williams was an impossible task, but Duran and Steve Fury at ringside tried their best to make this heated. Which it was because if nothing else Williams was over like a mofo. The post-match angle with Williams ripping the shirt off Fury's back showed how pale an imitation Reslo was of the US territories.

 

Steve Prince vs. Doc Dean (3/16/88)

 

Legend has it that this was supposed to be the TV debut of Alan "Spinner" McKenzie, but he refused to appear on TV for some reason and Prince replaced him instead. Walton forgot that Prince had already been on TV getting his arse handed to him by Dave Finlay in one of the stiffest WoS bouts ever. Doc Dean was a good worker and fun to watch every time, but didn't have the build to make it on the international circuit.

 

The Emperor vs. Tiger Dalbir Singh (3/19/88)

 

I think the Emperor was Big Bill Bromley under a mask. This was all right for what it was. Singh had packed on a ton of weight in the last few years of TV wrestling and I don't mean muscle. As always, matches from '88 seem drab with wrestling on its way out the door.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 37

 

Kung Fu vs. Chic Cullen (Unknown location, taped 1985)

 

Some decent action. These two didn't match up especially well, it was blue eye vs. blue eye, and Cullen wasn't as good in '85 as he had been in the early 80s, but the match was okay.

 

Orig Williams vs. Barcud Du (Unknown location, taped 1985)

 

The big grudge match. This was full of posturing, half-arsed brawling, kids throwing trash at the ring, and South walking out on the bout. Williams threw himself to the mat, praised the Lord above, and looked like he'd just survived the biggest match of his career. I'd rip into it more, but it's my fault for not skipping it.

 

Johnny Saint vs. Danny Boy Collins (Denbigh, taped 3/15/89)

 

Outside of his early 70s work, I like Saint's late 80s work better than any point in his career. He still did all his escape holds, but he'd shelved the Vic Faulkner prankster element to his work and wrestled a more straight up version of the Saint style. This wasn't the best example of it and not much of a match, but I still liked what I saw from Saint.

 

King Kendo vs. Romany Riley (11/5/86)

 

Romany Riley looked like he'd pinched Sangre Chicana's tights here. It's so weird seeing a grey middle-aged Riley who looks like any other grey middle-aged Tom, Dick and Harry when he had such a counter-culture look in the 70s. It really is weird, but I guess it happens to everyone. Anyway, I have a lot of time for young Riley, but he was old and portly here and the fake Nagasaki was a tough load to carry. Nothing memorable.

 

Sid Cooper vs. Greg Valentine (12/19/84)

 

Cooper was doing the old £100 a round gimmick here. There's a complete lack of logic to these matches as instead of trying to knock Valentine out so he lasted as few rounds as possible, Cooper works a regular two pinfalls or submissions or a knockout bout and pisses away a bunch of money. But I suppose you've got to forget out that and just sit back and enjoy Cooper throwing a £100 at Valentine between rounds. He was past his best here, but still had a great snare and was a fun character.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 38

 

Marty Jones vs. Mark Rocco (6/8/88)

 

Rocco cut a pretty decent promo before this. Jones' wasn't bad either if you can appreciate the charm of a straight talking, cross-eyed Marty Jones staring at the camera in different directions. There's two ways you can view this bout (no pun intended): you can either view it as a bastardised version of their 70s classics and you can look at it as one of the better bouts of 1988. Jones and Rocco hadn't squared off for quite some time as Jones had stayed pretty loyal to Max Crabtree and Joint Promotions while Rocco had been one of Brian Dixon's key draws for All-Star Promotions. Toward the end of the television era, there were a lot of guys moving back and forward between the promotions for bookings and hence we got one last chapter in this feud. It was pretty much wrestled in the All-Star style. Short flurries of action were followed by contentious moments and style ruled over substance. Rocco had gone through major back surgery a few years prior (and was at death's door for a number of days according to Walton) and was slightly less mobile than in his prime. He was still a madman but his back looked stiff. Jones provided some sweet looking offense as you'd expect. He'd packed on the pounds since the last time they fought, but if there was anything resembling their classic fights it came from him. Rocco bled in this, which was rare on British television but tended to happen in bouts involving Rocco (hmm.) The finish was the kind of Americanised stuff Dixon made his coin shilling. Both men were DQ'ed for hitting the ref, Jones got on the mic demanding the bout continue and they half-arsed their way backstage where the "brawling" supposedly continued. It's actually an insult to American wrestling to call it "Americanised" as they did such a piss poor job at emulating US style wrestling.

 

Dave Finlay vs. Boston Blackie (Ladder match, Caernarfon, taped 2/27/95)

 

This was interesting. Finlay looked almost exactly the same as the guy who showed up in WCW and attacked Steve Regal, and his work was better than it had been in nigh on a decade. I can't stand ladder matches as a rule, but was taken by the fact that Finlay looked so good. So there you go: at some point before entering WCW, Finlay shook off his malaise and fixed whatever it was that was blogging down his matches.

 

Kung Fu vs. Lucky Gordon (11/5/86)

 

I'm surprised Kung Fu ever graced a Joint Promotions ring again after walking out on them ahead of the big Rocco match at the Royal Albert Hall. The 1985-86 period is better than I've given it credit for in the past as there was plenty of good stuff on the early stand alone shows, but matches like this show how thin the talent roster was. Lucky Gordon vs. Kung Fu didn't really mean anything to anybody in 1986 and wasn't going to get anyone excited about the crappy new time slot. That said, Kung Fu did enough to at least make it painless to watch, and as limited as Gordon was, he was a pro at putting guys over.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 39

 

Zoltan Boscik vs. Kid McCoy (9/3/86)

 

Boscik was another of the aging television vets the promoters leaned on in the mid-80s to break in the next generation of talent. He was pudgy and middle-aged at this point, and a shadow of the worker from those great Steve Grey matches, but his carry was effective enough. Not as good as some of the latter day Tally Ho Kaye stuff, but McCoy was only 15 here and Boscik fed him well. Perhaps too well as it was a bit anti-climatic when Boscik won. The Kid did go on to beat Boscik in the final of a Christmas knockout tournament in December that year, but Walton didn't link the two bouts together.

 

Danny Boy Collins vs. Jacques Le Jacques (12/11/85)

 

This was a European Welterweight title bout. Not a patch on some of the classic WoS title bouts, but an interesting bout to watch, which is all you can really hope for when you're combing through the dregs, or to put it more nicely, the B-sides and rarities. Jacques Le Jacques didn't really work a classic catch style and was obsessed with working his opponent's legs like few workers I've seen, but he was a decent enough hand. He tried to work heel, but couldn't really bait the crowd. Walton mentioned that if Collins successfully defended his European title he would be in line for a title shot against the world champion, referring to him only as "the Mexican." Not sure whom he meant by that, but the world champ at the time was actually El Dandy. Le Jacques went for the leg a lot, but this was decent enough.

 

Big Daddy & Danny Boy Collins vs. Scrubber Daly & Lucky Gordon (7/25/84)

 

The enjoyment factor of these Daddy tags is totally dependent on the heels. Scrubber Daly and Lucky Gordon were extremely competent Daddy opponents and the dynamic of young Danny Boy Collins being Daddy's partner and being given the room to shine (ha) made this an entertaining 10 minutes. People have commented numerous times about wrestlers like Collins having to carry the load in Big Daddy tags, but I can't imagine a 17 year old Collins being disappointed at wrestling in front of such a hot crowd and getting this much heat so early in his career. Another fun thing about these tags is the way the ring literally moves two or three inches every time Daddy or Daly are posted. It seems like Walton is exaggerating until you actually pay attention to it.

 

Tally Ho Kaye vs. Steve Fury (2/5/85)

 

Fury's television debut. Kaye tied him in knots during a one fall, ten minute time limit.

 

Danny Boy Collins vs. Eddie Riley (10/9/84)

 

Riley was a trainee of Marty Jones and a decent worker. Walton was high on him (undoubtedly because he was a trainee of Jones') and put over how quick and decisive he was with his decision making while lamenting the fact that he kept running out of mat with his pinning maneuvers. Some good action here but nothing overly special.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 40

 

Burslam, 9/27/86

Knockout tournament:

Blondie Barratt/Rocky Moran vs. Brian Maxine/Keith Myatt

Clive Myers/Fuji Yamada vs. John Wilkie/Zigue Zag

Myers/Yamada vs. Barratt/Moran

This was by far the best episode of Satellite Wrestling on Screensport I've seen. It wasn't as though the wrestling was a match for WoS in its pomp, but it was consistently entertaining from top to bottom, and so long as you drown out the moronic commentators there's a lot to enjoy. Judging by this, the one area where increased exposure to American bouts improved British wrestling was tag wrestling. At least during the '74-84 period that I'm most familiar with. The tag wrestling from Paul Lincoln Promotions in the 60s looked pretty good. These matches had 15 minute time limits, but they managed to work in the FIP elements that are so often missing from British wrestling and the heels got tremendous heat, especially Barratt, who was slapped in the face by one woman, attacked on the apron by another, and chewed out by an irate father carrying his baby under one arm.

Brian Maxine did a surprisingly good job of playing a fired up babyface in the first bout. It was much better than his other face work I've seen. Yamada was making his television debut and was keen to impress. He looked a thousand times better here than in his Reslo bouts. Myers also looked slick and complemented him well. I've grown to accept his Ironfist gimmick for what it was. I still hate it compared to the simple trunks and boots, but such a huge chunk of his career was as Ironfist that you've got to accept it. When he's on point, there's no-one in British wrestling who's as exciting to watch. Moran was also good. I was sky high on him when I first encountered his work then he tailed off badly, but here he was the Emilio Charles Jr style foil I loved so much from his ITV work. Even the lesser guys like journeyman Wilkie, potbellyed local Keith Myatt, and some fella called Chris McNeill doing a Bobby Barnes inspired "punk rock" gimmick, brought something to the table here. There was some bullshit in the final with Moran and Barratt challenging Clive Myers to arm wrestling contests (those of you familiar with Myers will know he was a legit world champion arm wrestler), but all up an entertaining hour. Yamada even cuts a promo in English and since it's the last show of the series there's a post-match vignette where Rocco attacks the commentators with a cake (what else?)

Amusing that this was the last episode ever made and the only one I enjoyed.

[ohtani's jacket]

THE ARTHUR PSYCHO HOUR

 

Ep 41

 

Greg Valentine & Pete Collins vs. Tally Ho Kaye & Sid Cooper (10/31/85)

 

"Farmer's Boy" Greg Valentine and "The College Boy" Pete Collins, who came up with these names? They sound like Buster Keaton films. Pete Collins was the older brother of Danny Boy Collins, and as Arthur Psycho astutely pointed out, the one who was going to drop the falls for his team while Crabtree's son continued to rack up the pinfalls. Cooper and Kaye were responsible for breaking in new talent and were trusted ring generals in the Crabtree set-up. Even as late as '85 they were effective at drawing heat for newcomers and guiding them through a simple match, but the bouts were such fizzers when the heels won. There wasn't much reason why Cooper & Kaye should win this. If Valentine had gone over too many of the veteran heels since bursting onto the scene then they shouldn't have booked the bout. Poor old College Boy came across as the weak link as Valentine had won a knockout tag tournament with his brother only months before.

 

Sid Cooper vs. Chris Bowles (2/5/85)

 

Cooper put former British welterweight judo champion Bowles over clean as a sheet. In days gone by that would have meant something, but it had zero impact here.

 

Pete LaPaque vs. Bobby Bold Eagle (7/27/87)

 

I love me some Pete LaPaque, but this was one of the dullest bouts I've seen. UK promoters never got over Billy Two-Rivers and would bring in pretty much anybody they could get with a Native American gimmick even if they weren't that good. Eagle hadn't been on TV since 1981 and was never going to get any heat. Walton sounded like he wanted to end it all. I've never heard him sound so depressed. He was even screwing up his syntax. At one point he talked about the tragic car accident that claimed the life of Tommy Lorne "as well as Pete LaPaque." Sounded like he needed a stiff drink.

 

Magnificent Maurice vs. Steve Logan (1/19/83)

 

This was Maurice's reappearance on TV after playing a bleach blonde exotico alongside Beautiful Bobby Barnes. He'd shaved his head, grown a "Mexican tache" (a Waltonism), and gotten a number of tattoos on his chest and arms. If I knew more about gay subculture, I'd be able to tell you the kind of look he had adopted, but he basically looked like a bald Rick Rude or gay sailor. This was actually one of the better Maurice bouts I've seen as 19 year-old Steve Logan sold the shit out of everything he dished out. Maurice was able to work from a standing base and keep on top of his opponent, which he was far more comfortable with than wrestling. I can't remember too many British workers selling the way Logan did here. He got his back worked over and was screaming the entire time. It was almost like watching a Joshi bout. But he was extremely focused on each move, and you could see the cogs turning in his head the way you so often can with rookies. There was only the vaguest hint of Maurice's exotico past, but he had tremendous swagger, and I was enjoying this until Logan botched his comeback sequence and the bout fell apart at the seams. Still better than a lot of Maurice's Brody stuff, though.

 

Jackie Turpin vs. Lucky Gordon (10/16/85)

 

Short three session contest. I'm beginning to appreciate Lucky Gordon in his JTTS role. Here he got to shine a bit more because Turpin had fallen even further down the pecking order than Gordon. Some great facials and nice timing on his moves. Turpin also provided some nice moments even if the promoters had given up on him. Too bad the time keeper and ring announcer were all at sea. They couldn't keep a handle on how many public warnings had been issued and who won the bout, and Crabtree was grinning like a dipshit after awarding the bout to Gordon by mistake. Given how much Walton hated mistakes, he must have had his hackles up over that one.