The Wrestling Data_base_ is proud to present the largest collection of old British wrestling handbills on the Internet.

Have a look at them and let us know if you think this type of promotional material would help modern British wrestling.

Yeah, I think these would make them much better. As would individual programmes for each event.

Proper posters advertising the actual programme will always benefit the wrestling game. There were times when you couldn't go into any city, town or even village without seeing the half quad size posters advertising the nearest wrestling show.
It kept everything very high profile, and as a punter you knew what you were getting for the entrance money. Particularly useful if you were staying away from home turf and looking for a night's entertainment.
After all, you don't go down to the local UCI and buy a ticket without knowing which film you will be watching.
These posters also became collectors' items !!

The only thing with it now a days is there's always no certianty that everyone who would be listed on the poster would be at the show for various reasons.

There are the flyers about (I know - I picked up some from the All-Star show in Fareham) that publicise the event, and it payed off - there was about 300 people in the hall.

I think it depends on the town to how the show is advertised as well as the venue. For example, in our local paper (the Orpington edition of the News Shopper) there is an ad every month for the Fairfields - I've only been able to find it in the paper once and it was tiny (yes I know advertising in papers etc is expensive) so obviously would be a bit of a problem knowning about an event if it's not publicised well in local forms of media. I'm not saying that's All-Star's fault, maybe the unwillingness of the paper as well as the venue itself.

Barramya wrote:

The only thing with it now a days is there's always no certianty that everyone who would be listed on the poster would be at the show for various reasons.

Why would you suggest that this is the case, any more than it was back between 1960's and 1990's ?
There do not appear to be a fraction of the shows per week now as there was then, although the numbers of true professionals seems to be depleted as well. Are there more shows than there are good available wrestlers ?
Are wrestling Feds run as businesses or, as was suggested elsewhere on the Forum, as a means of making 'holiday money' for the promoter? If a more business-like attitude isn't taken taken to ensure that wrestlers fulfill their obligations, how long do you think that 'Joe Public' will put up with it ?

I ask these questions not to be controversial, but in an attempt to understand the reasoning behind the statement.

Very true, I get what you mean. Most wrestler's now a day will turn up to a show that they are billed on, obviously, as there are wrestlers with the commitment there. I do think that there is the talent there to be billed.

The thing is, I know that some wrestlers are like needed suddenly, and are not billed, and I know of some examples. I think that there was more commitment by some of the wrestlers back in the day, for the fact there was the motivation of TV and other things. I do think that some wrestlers in the industry today are more likely to go for a show with more exposure or more of a guarentee for more work.

I think a lot of people know that they would want to wrestle more but have to work a job as well so although they are said that they are going to be there by promotors, they might not be able to get the time off work for example. I'm not sure what the situation was back then pay wise.

Then there's the whole "let's announce people who are not going to be there to get the fans through the doors" attitude of some promotors now a days than in the past. I'm not denying that there wasn't that happening then, however if you were on TV and announced a card, I assume people would remember that card from one week to another. Sometimes now a days a promotion won't return to a venue for months at a time, and then again, situations can change.

That's just what I think, from my experiances and don't commend any of it. I know what I've said is v contrivercial(sp?) but thats my opinion.