According to Ray's files, Pye wasn't there and there were other changes to the bill: HULL; Polman bt O’Donnell; Mask bt White Angel; Leiderman bt B.Rawlings- DISQ; Zaranoff bt F.Sullivan

Very good news

Hi Hack, I have a newspaper proof (of a wrestling advertisment) for a show from the London & Essex Guardian from 1958. I can't seem to find this newspaper online. Do you know anything about it?

Yes, Bob had been here in New Zealand in 1970, so this wasn't long after returning to the UK.

because when you put a full stop in the word like that the browser thinks you are writing a website address. (dot)man is a domain address.

thanks Hack I didn't have the report of the show

His brother Black Butcher Johnson was billed from the West Indies. Promoters just chose far away places to make them seem exotic.

I haven't done a deep dive on his career, but that is the earliest one i've seen also. Ray had a Ramsgate bill listed but that was Milo not Marino.

South African Angel was Johnny Kwango

I can't find them working together after that show in Ray's files. Interestingly, by the end of 1975 they were both working for the independents.

Great stuff as always Ron, many thanks

that's a cool memory Bernard, thank you for sharing

So Les Kellett rather than Les Martin, to clarify.

I sent these to Hisaharu at wrestling-titles years ago, he said he'd found evidence in the newspapers to match these finds. I'm not sure what newspaper archives he uses but it's not the BNA that I use.

Just as an FYI, Jim Craig lived in Scotland, so he was getting this information from correspondents who went to the matches. So if the promoters did a local title change or a return match angle (for example, held up the belt for a week or two, or reversed the decision later, among other choices) the fan may not have known or provided that information along to Jim.

There were several title changes in 1955. The names you mentioned (Sullivan & Mancelli) came from Jim Craig's fanzine that reported the title changes. There may be other sources, but we also have newspaper bills where Mancelli & Sullivan were billed as champion for short time frames. I want to emphasise that the information comes from a fanzine, because these were local title changes, it was a small group of fans that collected and shared this information to like-minded people. I don't think Mat magazine was still running in 1955 (but I could wrong) so I don't think Morrell was publicising any of this activity. Dale Martin didn't have a magazine at this time.

Tony Rocco just passed away this week.

Thanks for this Ron. Interesting to see what other towns ran on the same night. I believe Kirkcaldy was a R&G town and that was one. Depending on the matchmaker's pencil you could go a long way in either direction.

The British wrestling magazines of the time covered wrestling news & names from around the globe, which was smart as quite a lot of those names did end up visiting the UK.

Beaumont was also the champion on Dick Rogers' shows in the 1950's. Not sure where the belt came from but Jack was photographed with it. You do make an interesting point about Beaumont and Foley coming from different camps.