We need A.I. to replace the Japanese audience and ref. for a 60s British one and uncle Kent waxing lyrical and we’re back in the flush of youth! Nice surprise celebrity guest at the end too.
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Talk Wrestling
Share your memories of British wrestling 1930 - 1988
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I think we are getting off track here, somewhat.
I don't think for one minute that wrestling styles evolved in the UK (or anywhere for that matter) that didn't include a self-defence element. It would be absurd to think that only the Japanese thought it would be a good idea to put someone in a choke hold, when they had them in an advantageous position.
A watered down version of the above would becomes a sport (or in our case, a "worked" sport), but the original version would have included a self-defence variant.
Most Judo clubs these days, teach a watered down version of Judo, which is basically an Olympic sport now. The original version of Judo (which was taken from the original Ju-Jitsu) included chokes and locks that, if taken to their extreme, could result in death. That original version was taken around the world (including to the UK), and to Brazil where it became Brazilian Ju-Jitsu.
When UWW (used to be called FILA, the governing body of Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling) described the history of Olympic Wrestling, they said
"...Catch-as-catch-can was included in the 1904 Olympic Games and continued through the 1936 Games; it had new rules and weight categories introduced similar to other amateur wrestling styles, and dangerous moves - including all submission holds - were banned. New rules and regulations were later developed and codified by FILA and amateur catch wrestling became known as freestyle wrestling..."
If there were no submissions in Catch wrestling in the North West, then where did the "Grovit", (sometimes called the Grobbit), come from? Dynamite Kid said, in his book, that he learned submission stuff in Wigan (and didn't like it, because it hurt too much), and mentioned the Grovit as an old-time Wigan move.