At the end of last year I thought I had found the furthest outpost of Wryton land in Caernarfon. About a hundred miles from Manchester. I am talking about the golden years of the early sixties and regular wrestling. Well it looks like we can add nearly another 40 miles to that now.
The Kings Hall , not as grand as Belle Vue for sure , in fact only built as Art deco in the 30's for multiple use , with different floor levels. I take it the ground floor dance hall was used for wrestling with a seating capacity of over 1200.
Don't bother to look for it today as all you will find is a block of flats. Yes pulled down in 1989.
It looks like they did a winter season. the prices marked up considerably above that of Belle Vue for sure.
Look at those bills steeped in Wryton Stalwarts.
Very little in overseas visitors , the most the reports could brag , was Lancashire versus Yorkshire matches.
They must have considered it established by 1962 with every week in the summer. But for me , an absolute sin to be advertising wrestling without the wrestlers.
Did it all come to an end. Could they have kept out O'Shea in 1964 , who was already promoting a few shows at Lampeter.
There is nothing in the papers to support large crowds or a miserable demise or even any further papers that would show if Wrestling remained through the 1960's.
But for me , I just don't see Billy two Rivers , Ian Campbell , Ricky Starr , title matches.
Was the geography just too difficult . I leave it to the reader to enjoy what is here and give an opinion.
But one more thing I did find. Like Blackpool there was a Pleasure Beach/ Fair ground that had a Boxing and Wrestling Booth. On two occasions the performers were named and the promoter. Here we are.
I don't know much about Ron Taylor. He Looks to have been Nottingham based in later years.
Any observations welcome.
Great Ron. The museum in Aberystwyth has posters of various entertainment events during the century but there's no sighting of wrestling. It was the Municipal Hall when it opened in 1934 and re-named the Kings Hall in 1937. As you say there are now (expensive) flats on the site, from the first floor up. You can get a nice pizza and ice cream from the shops below.
It was quite a traipse to get to Aberystwyth whichever route the wrestlers took. The shows were still going in 1965 and back in 1980.