Part Thirty-One: Rule Britannia:
“With us having Davey Boy as the champion, we had someone to build around. The wrestling scene in Britain at the time was really solidified around Joint Promotions. We had filled the gap left by the WWF after their programming was pulled and we were stronger than ever. We were helped in a big way as our contacts in Jim Crockett Promotions and All Japan Pro Wrestling allowed for a steady stream of international stars as well. We had the philosophy of being a British organisation with an international bend.”
- Extract from an interview with Brian Dixon, 2001
“Oh yeah, they had a philosophy alright, just take what Vince was doing and put a Union Jack around it! You had the big Babyface Champion, Davey Boy and every few months, they'd bring in some guy from Japan or the States, build him up so Davey Boy could knock him the fuck down. He held the championship for nearly five damn years, longer than Hogan or anyone else at that time! And he went over everybody! I mean, they brought in Luger, who got beat. Stan Hansen, who got beat, Toshiaki Kawada, who got beat. Do I need to go on? Now five years of this would have killed a lot of the territories dead. Hell, Vince knew better and shook things up here and there with Macho and so on.”
“But, Joint Promotions were smart, I'll grant them that. First two years, they went smoothly and did everything to build Davey Boy up. Then, through all that, they were making all these different cartoon characters on the undercard that people loved. They even got an actual Japanese guy to take up that Kendo Nagasaki gimmick. So, you had Davey Boy on top and all these characters running around keeping people's attention. It waned, as these things always do, but then the mid-90's pretty much sucked all round. Hell, least Joint Promotions handled it a lot better than most. Then, they managed to finish on a high point when Hogan did a stint, which, believe me, isn't something I say lightly.”
- Extract from an interview with Jim Cornette, 2014
“I had done the Great Muta gimmick with Jim Crockett Promotions only a year before getting an offer for Joint Promotions. They were looking for Japanese stars and, using their contacts with Jim Crocket Promotions, as it was called at the time, got in touch with me. They had used a Japanese themed masked wrestler in their company before and wondered if I wanted to fill in a similar role. I eventually agreed to it, but on the stipulation that things were to be changed to better reflect Japanese culture and strengths. It was the start of a legacy character in Britain and one I am pleased turned out so well.”
- Extract from an interview with Keiji Mutoh, 2013
Royal Albert Hall
Northgate Arena
De Montfort Hall
Manchester Apollo
Newport Centre
- List of common venues for Joint Promotions to have their events take place in throughout the 90's
Brawl in The Hall
Summer War
Christmas Clash
- The three major live, televised events of Joint Promotions that take place yearly. Brawl in The Hall takes place in April, Summer War in August and Christmas Clash in December
“When we started the tours around the UK, we worked on the smaller venues mostly, with the bigger arenas for our three major shows. People were being turned away at each show though, tickets were impossible to get a hold of on the day of an event during our heyday and we were getting national attention. Working with companies from America and Japan really helped people take an interest as it felt like there were so many different styles going on. It appealed to a lot of different people.”
- Extract from an interview with Brian Dixon, 2002
The establishment of Joint Promotions as the face of British wrestling was key to the sport's continued growth in the early 90's and consolidation beyond that point. It attracted wrestlers from the Japanese promotions and had a working deal with Jim Crockett Promotions that allowed for a constant exchange of wrestlers from one to the other. This helped keep the roster of wrestlers fresh and fans could easily find someone to support. The weekly show on the World of Sport was only an hour long and prevented many talents from becoming over exposed. The live shows proved to be the company's main source of income and where people came to see the wrestlers most often. In a way, it was similar to the business model of 1980's WWF where the house shows took precedence over the television shows. It was a model that would do very well within the confines of Britain more than the US.
- Extract from
From The Ashes: The Rise of British Wrestling, 2012
“My experiences in the UK were kinda typical for a lot of guys who went over there. You didn't get the same kind of money you would have got in the States, but the travelling was much shorter, schedules were a bit lighter and you didn't have the same cultural divide you got in Japan. The majority of those who went over enjoyed it and you had a lot of repeat runs from some of them. I was among them and had a great time working for Joint Promotions when I was with JCP.”
- Extract from an interview with Scott Hall, 2008
DAVEY 'BOY' SMITH VS. STAN HANSEN
BRITISH HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
TIGER MASK VS. NAGASAKI
FIGHTING FINLAY & DREW MCDONALD (CELTIC CONNECTION) VS. STEVEN REGAL & DAVID TAYLOR)
BRITISH TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
JOHNNY SMITH VS. TATSUMI FUJINAMI
NORMAN SMILEY VS. ROBBIE BROOKSIDE VS. MASAHIRO CHONO VS. BAM BAM BIGELOW VS. CACTUS JACK VS. DIAMOND STUDD
SIX MAN BATTLE ROYALE FOR THE OPENWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
- Run down for the card of Christmas Clash '91
“We all had our chances to shine, with everyone being given their freedom to go over their characters and how they'd work with audiences. It was something of a pleasant surprise when I found myself becoming the most hated man in Britain, showed that I was good at my job.”
- Extract from an interview with Steven Regal, 2013
“Now, even though we're among the lower orders, that does not mean that we can't show appreciation for your betters. Today marks a great day, a day of celebration as we take part in the anniversary of a great person. One whose actions have defined this party, made it stand out above all the others and made it great once more. Ladies and gentlemen, give your voice as we celebrate the birthday of Magaret Thatcher!”
- Extract from an in ring promo by Steven Regal that took place in Dover, Kent, 23rd October 1991
WRESTLING SHOW ALMOST CAUSES RIOT
- Headline from
Sun newspaper, 24th October 1991
“It really was the high point of British wrestling at this point. You had wrestlers appearing on other shows for ITV, BBC and Channel Four, we were always recognised on the street and even had other big names lining up to be on our shows as ring announcers or similar roles. It was such a fun atmosphere to work with and everyone wanted to be a part of it and make it as good as they could. I think the highlights were always the Christmas Clash shows. It was always the final show before we went on our Christmas break and we were able to bring on special guests, some of who did comedy bits and it was an all round good show that everyone enjoyed. For a while, British wrestling enjoyed popularity it had never experienced before and I honestly wouldn't change those years for anything.”
- Extract from an interview with Max Crabtree, 2001
“By late 1992, business had started to wind down a bit. It was inevitable really, can only stay on top for so long. Davey Boy was talking about how he was eager to take a break from being Champion and all the pressures that came with it as well. We were starting to draw up a list of names that he could lose to when Pat told us about his contact with Hogan. With him having left the WWF on a sabbatical, he was interested in coming to Britain to have a few months in the company. Considering we were looking to bring in Vader and others, it seemed like it would be a good run for Davey Boy to end on things. A tag run with Davey Boy was what was initially agreed upon, but then plans changed.”
- Interview with Brian Dixon, 2002
SUMMER WAR
THE PRIDE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM DAVEY 'BOY' SMITH' VS. THE ALL AMERICAN HULK HOGAN
- Main event of the Summer War wrestling event that took place at Wembley Stadium