Remember those lazy Saturday afternoons of yesteryear when wrestling dominated World of Sport between 4 and 5pm? Who could forget the likes of Mick McManus, Adrian Street and especially Big Daddy, with his mocking chant of "Easy, easy, easy!" as he performed the Big Splash on some hapless opponent?
Now, for the first time, one of the men who was at the forefront of televised wrestling – ‘Judo’ Al Marquette – lifts the lid on those heady days of a sport filled with men we loved to hate. From the early days of the much-loved commentator Kent Walton, through to the suave sophistication of World of Sport presenter Dickie Davies – Marquette, who fought and beat all the top names in many of his 4,000-plus bouts, leaves no stone unturned.
Tracing the very roots of professional wrestling from Manchester’s ‘Blood Tub’, to sold out shows at the Royal Albert Hall, and on to the bright lights of ITV and viewing audiences of millions, find out what made the men in the ring tick and about their adventures in and outside the great wrestling venues around the UK.
Tales of fantastic bouts, detailed mini biographies of all the fighters, as well as the many characters, celebrities and referees who made the sport so popular, Two Falls, Two Submissions or a Knockout is the complete story of British wrestling, affectionately - and sometimes hilariously - told in this semi-autobiographical account of the sport in its heyday.
Turn back the clock and recall those fantastic days when 4-5pm Saturday meant only one thing...
On Wednesday November 9th 1955, a sports commentator and disc jockey introduced a new programme to television - Professional Wrestling from ringside at the West Ham Baths in London. The name of the commentator was Kent Walton and, after about 5,000 or so bouts, his name, hardly surprisingly, became synonymous with the sport.
Born in Cairo, Egypt in 1919 of English parentage, he served with the Canadian Air Force during the war and afterwards continued his acting career both on stage and in many TV appearances. He also compered many light entertainment shows including Answers Please and Cool for Cats.
It had been a telephone call from the Head of Sport for Associated Rediffusion, Ken Johnstone, which would change his life forever. He rang Kent and asked him what he knew about wrestling.
"Nothing," he replied.
"Then find out," said Johnstone, "You need to be an expert by next Wednesday - you’re commentating at the West Ham Baths."
Kent contacted Johnny Dale of Dale-Martins Promotions in London, who whisked him around the country to watch as many wrestlers in action as could be squeezed in. Johnny also introduced Kent to Mike Marino, one of the top heavyweights, who took him into the ring and gave him a practical demonstration of the various holds and throws.
The bouts were always filmed on Wednesday evenings, the first two being transmitted at 11pm the same evening, but because of the lateness of the hour they did not seem to attract a significant audience.
The reaction to wrestling on the Saturday afternoon programme by the viewing public, however, was nothing short of sensational. From 4pm to 5pm every weekend, grandmothers and grandfathers, mums and dads - and children - would be glued to their television sets, ‘cheering’ their heroes and ‘booing’ the villains.
Mick McManus, Jackie Pallo, Steve Logan, George Kidd, Les Kellett, and of course the great tag teams such as The Royal Brothers, Colin Joynson and Steve Haggerty, Roy and Tony St Clair and many others, would become household names along with perhaps the most famous of all, Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks.
The cauliflower ears, broken noses and bruises were occupational hazards by these very skilful and entertaining athletes - affectionately known as the ‘grunt and groaners’.
Kent received thousands of letters during the 25 years he was commentating, mostly enquiring about the cuts and bruises he had sustained when men weighing 15 stone or more were hurled over the top rope, often deliberately, literally landing in the erstwhile commentator’s lap! There were also questions asking him how Jackie Pallo, Steve Logan, Mick McManus and all the other hard cases reacted to some of his comments on the liberties they took with their opponents and referees.
Such was his brilliance as a commentator, he could influence the viewing audience to fanatically like or dislike individual wrestlers. It was a great era that I feel certain will never be repeated. There were good times as well as funny and sad times, all of which evoke the most wonderful memories.
These are the wrestling legends of which this book is about and I feel privileged to have walked amongst giants - and often taken them on - for much of my life.
