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Column #1 |
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Thursday, 13 May 2004 |
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I'm 42 and wrestling has been my passion since I was a small kid watching World of Sport on a Saturday afternoon with my Gran who was definitely one of the handbag brigade on the front row of the Victoria Hall Hanley in the late 50's, to at the tender age of 18 wrestling in Lagos, Nigeria to a crowd of 60,000. Mine were indeed humble beginnings watching my hero's (who were always villains) with the exception of Tony St. Clair who used to wink at me, say hello and ruffle my 11 year old tomboy hair. Never did i imagine years later I would be travelling with these men that I had idolised for so long these men were Gods to me. My hero's were Rocco, Wild Angus, Psycho Billy Howles, I bet not many people remember him. Maurice Hunter. God I'm so old! I used to be mesmerised by it all and thought I'm the wrong sex I wish I was a bloke so I could be like them and become a wrestler. It was on my mind as a child constantly I couldn't wait for Saturday night to come around. So that i could sit in the Victoria Hall watching these sweaty men. That hall was always packed to the rafters and regularly turned people away.The atmosphere was absolutely electric. So when at the age of 14 I saw my very first ladies match I was totally awestruck! Women in swimsuits lovely figures those two girls were The Cherokee Princess and Rusty Blair who I later spent years wrestling and travelling with. BUT here I was a chubby kid no boobs, no waist plain Jayne my heart sank because I though I was too ugly to wrestle. What a crock that turned out to be! I sat on the front row of the Horseshoe Bar in Blackpool in my white summer (yes i could get into a dress in those days) the girls had gone and a monster of a bloke that scared me to death came on he was awesome and so mean looking The Mighty Chang. I can't remember the match but he promptly started to bleed and it spattered all over my white dress most charming. Being the stroppy cow i was and always have been I went to the promoter Bobby Barron, bless him he was my mentor, my friend and I loved him dearly when he died years later I was devastated. We got talking I wanted my dress cleaned but we got on the topic of training he told me to come back next week and have a trial ME I was shaking like a leaf. Poor sod i bet he thought that's got rid of her. Wasn't he in for a surprise. I turned up promptly at the Horseshoe after a week of no sleep and begging my mother to let me have a go. He did look surprised to see me but true to his word he got in the ring with me and absolutely dragged and ragged me around that ring like a rag doll i was useless couldn't do a thing. Total crap to be blunt.That was only the beginning in gets a burly chap called Tony Francis who once again ragged me from here to breakfast time finally dragging me up and slamming me into that canvas i swear my bum cheeks hit that dance floor through the ring! I landed badly felt a sharp pain in my ankle and true enough it was broken. I felt so deflated and humiliated but what I did feel was a rush that no drug,drink or experience could ever do anything better for me than what I felt that day in the ring. Six weeks later I'm back, my ankle was on the mend and I'm raring to go this time i get treated just as roughly but I'm now on a concrete garage floor that has four posts cemented into it! Things had changed a little though. There seemed to be more interest in them. Bob and Tony had suddenly began to be nice to me. Tony Francis loved him to bits too. I wonder what he's up to now. August bank holiday two girls fail to turn up so a girl from Derby and myself are put in a tag match with Rusty and Cherokee the new girl was a blubbering wreck couldn't do a thing. ME bold cow i started shouting abuse at the punters well I thought I can't wrestle but i've got a helluva foghorn on me so I thought I'd use it.The match was horrendous but my saving grace I was later informed was my mouth. The rest is history, 27 years later I've travelled most of the world including USA and Japan. I've wrestled in front of a crowd of 9 people and at the other end of the spectrum wrestled in front of 72,000 people. I still love it with a passion but i miss the characters of the past that i've lived, laughed and loved with there are a few now but their love of wrestling doesn't feel like it used to. I have many people to thank for helping me, Frank Cullen who is even older than me (ssssh don't tell him i told you that) he helped me in the ring when everyone thought i was a no hoper, my mucker Robbie Brookside who took so much stick off me when he first started wrestling but that's a story for another day.Orig Williams i love that old fart too!!! He was a sheep in wolves clothing and probably still is. Mighty Chang or good old Butch Lynch he was so kind to me and i miss him an awful lot he was a very talented wrestler. Brian Dixon well let's say he's just put up with me for years and has listened to many of my woes and troubles over the years not to mention given me work and made my years in the job a laugh. Mitzi his wife who i wrestled none stop for 10 years or more she always used to nick my chips just to wind me up. She loved newspapers. Also my gorgeous partner who gave me the most precious beautiful blonde, bouncy,blue eyed son who is now 10 months old and can wrap this mean old girl around is little finger. Hmmm I sound too soft but don't be fooled! Most of all good old Bob where would i be without him. Probably doing a job i hate and never to have left Stoke on Trent not as Stoke is bad but i do like to travel. This sounds like i'm leaving this earth!! LET ME TELL YOU I'm not going anywhere yet i've still got a bit of life in me and i think i will have to be dragged out kicking and screaming 'cos i'm not ready to graze yet. I want this wrestling school i'm about to open to really work it's the one other thing I want to do and it keeps me amongst the thing I love best, the company of wrestlers, their tales, lies, exaggerations, funny stories. We all seem to have one thing in common apart from being nuts and that is a similar sense of humour that no other people have and I tell you it will be the saddest day of my life when I can't be around all that but hey, you never know what's around the corner. Catch you all later when i can think of some tales on the road to tell you. Only the printable ones! KLONDYKE KATE.
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