YouTube has revolutionized the availability of video footage on all subjects from all around the world, including, I’m happy to say, pro wrestling. Thanks to some dedicated fans like “Tellumyort,” there is now a wealth of “World of Sport” matches from Britain, which I’ve never been able to see until now.
I’ve learned from this great footage that classic 1980’s “Brit Pro” offers a little different flavor to wrestling unlike any other federation I’ve seen. The wrestlers are leaner and more common-man looking, more accessible, not as perfect or muscular or Hollywood as American wrestlers. Believe me when I say it’s true, the British love their wrestlers t00. The matches are generally cleaner and more sporting, with far less blatant nastiness such as foreign objects or interference by managers as we witnessed weekly in the USA. This made the cheating, when it did occur, absolutely unforgivable and infuriating for the fans.
The Brit Pro style didn’t really showcase pure jobbers getting trounced by unbeatable heels like American wrestling, but they frequently pitted cute young rookies against bigger, meaner veterans. Can this lad beat the odds? It was more “back and forth” with the foes taking turns being in charge. It all looked and sounded more professional, more like a sport of kings than a red-neck circus. Many of the holds are more intimate than American “catch as catch can” style, with more sensuality and body contact. Grunting and groaning by the combatants is fairly loud and ever-present. Their singles matches were separated in rounds with rest breaks every few minutes similar to our boxing. Tag Team matches were rare compared to American wrestling, and teams generally had to win Best of Three Falls to gain the victory.
The most critical aspects, the kinks and tropes and scenes that make you love pro wrestling, were provided by Brit Pro as in any good wrestling from anywhere around the world. There was plenty of injustice, revealing and colorful gear, painful signature holds, humiliation, gullible officials, Babies-in-Peril, displays of pain, surprise finishes, villains getting their just desserts, sweaty bodies, etc. Some of these elements were done better and in greater quantity by the Brits, so you might just prefer this style. At least check it out and see what you think. In wrestling as in anything else, variety is the spice.
One enjoyable Brit Pro match I’ve seen on You Tube features the popular “Royals” Tag Team, veteran Bert Royal and his plucky young partner Vic Faulkner in their bright purple trunks. They face off against the larger and meaner “Outrageous Rockers” in traditional black gear, who employ a wealth of dirty tactics. The cheating is more basic, less brutal and more subtle, than American wrestling from that day, but the psychology of a great Tag match is present here in spades. So check out this match on You Tube. Treat yourself to this or any other Brit Pro matches. It’s different than what you’re used to, but that doesn’t make it any less entertaining.
good match really enjoyed the baddies style