Review: PWE 4th Anniversary Show "It's Yer Dar"

Another cracking wee review written by the lovely Claire Allan.  Agree wholeheartedly with everything she has written, especially Match of the Night!

Saturday 8th August, Citadel Leisure Centre, Ayr

I have been waiting months for this show, excited was a massive understatement for this!  I was bouncing off the walls all morning, nothing could contain me.

For shows, the banter starts from the queue outside.  Meeting up with Julie, Rob and Janet is always a pleasure.

The difference for this show, I was 2nd row instead of my normal front row but that won't stop me being noisy.

The silver and platinum ticket holders always get the treat of a bonus match, usually this is stars that have performed in front of crowds before but are not as well known as the ones on the main roster.  This time Adrian decided to use some of students from GPWA, to give them some experience of performing in front of die-hard fans.  This was well received.

BONUS MATCH

AUSTIN OSIRIS & KYLE KHAOS VS CS ROSE & FLEX HUNTER

GUEST REFEREE RED LIGHTNING

I was really impressed with the technical abilities of the students, apart from some mishaps with slips off the ropes.  All credit to the coaches.  Rose and Hunter definitely had the power over their smaller opponents but once Osiris and Khaos got going and started using aerial attacks, they held the fans attention.  After a well fought battle Osiris and Khaos secured the win.  It was good to hear the fans getting behind the youngsters and I hope it has done a lot for their confidence.

(Confession: I did get distracted by someone entering the building, you may have had a hoodie on but I know those legs anywhere!)

After this match, it was time to let the general ticket holders in and OMG, they just kept coming and coming.  It felt like an eternity!! Finally all the 729 fans were in the building and the main show got underway 45 minutes late. 

As MC Simon Cassidy was about to get things started, out comes Red Lightning.  He makes his feelings clear that he packed his ring attire as he was wanting a match as well as refereeing the bonus match!  He also said he was miffed that he gets overlooked for these events and wanted answers from Lionheart.  Lionheart honours Red's wish and comes to ringside.  He tells Red that he has learned a few truths since running these shows but two things stand out in this business and they are 1) Sometimes you have to do a deal with the devil and 2) The card is subject to change.......

RED LIGHTNING VS CHRIS RENFREW

The crowd erupted as Chris Renfrew made his presence felt, the amount NAK fans in the crowd was immense.  As soon as Renfrew stepped into the ring he took it to Red Lightning.  Both men have good technical ability but they are also two brilliant brawlers.  It was obvious from the start that this was Renfrew's fight, not taking anything away from Red Lightning but Renfrew is an animal!  Renfrew pinned Red in the centre of the ring.  Hopefully he has learned his lesson that you can always get what you wish for but it can be your worst nightmare!

KID FITE, TJ RAGE & DAVEY BLAZE W/CHARLES BODDINGTON VS LOU KING SHARP

TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH

TJ Rage, Davey Blaze and Charles Boddington come to the ring, closely followed by the Tag Team Champ, Lou King Sharp.  Boddington takes the mic and announces that he felt sorry for Sharp, so he decided to give Kid Fite the night off.  Lionheart comes to ringside and tells Lou that he needs to screw the nut as he isn't going to continue to save his backside. Lionheart then turns to Lou's opponents and says he thought they would pull a stunt like this, Boddington starts to say that Lionheart cannot get involved with the match but he is cut off by the boss who says he knows that he cannot get involved but he does have someone backstage that has a score to settle with Blaze n Rage and cannot wait to get in the ring.....lights go out and the video plays......IT IS THE RETURN OF KRIS TRAVIS!. The crowd went ballistic!

Now a slight deviation from the wrestling....As many people know Kris was diagnosed with stomach cancer in the middle of 2014, prior to this he started missing events due to what he thought was a stomach ulcer.  I sent him a Get Well Soon card but in hindsight, I would have sent a different design!  In September, he announced that it was stomach cancer and that he already had part of his stomach removed and that he was going to require chemotherapy.  The support he was given from colleagues within the wrestling profession and fans was phenomenal.  Shows were made in his honour, friends and fans donated on his behalf, amazing.  After his chemotherapy, Kris got back in the gym and started raising money for Cavendish Cancer Care.  He has been doing charity football matches (and planning to do more?) and helping raise more money for them any which way he can.

I make no secret that I have the utmost respect for him and do care about him (even though he probably thinks I am a mad woman!).  I have known Trav for about 3 years and always get him the same way, very respectful to fans, willing to sign autographs and pose for photographs.  He's friendly and not only is he good looking on the outside but has a beautiful heart on the inside, in my experience this is a rarity.  He is the perfect role model for kids, an inspiration to adults and a true ambassador for what he believes in.

Back to the wrestling.....

BLAZE & RAGE VS LOU KING SHARP & KRIS TRAVIS

For me, this was Match of the Night.  Not because it contained Kris Travis.  It was truly awesome, Kris proved that even after nearly a year out of the ring, he had not lost his ability and was still capable of kicking butt!  Blaze & Rage did not make it easy for them.  Kris then tagged in Lou, who got a good few hits in but the tide turned, due to their power Lou struggled against the bigger men, on one or two occasions he had the chance to tag Kris back in but attempted to go for glory but to no avail. Kris eventually got back in the ring and showed exactly how to do it!  After an amazing fight the Champ retained after the opponents were pinned.

1ST HALF MAIN EVENT

BIG DAMO VS SAMOA JOE

What a first half main event this was, two of the biggest guys I have seen in a ring.  As normal, most of the fans were on the side of the 'Samoan Submission Machine' but my group were firmly on the side of the 'Beast of Belfast' which made the chanting fight very interesting, as my group are some of the loudest fans about!  The two men were equals in the ring in both power and ability.  In the beginning, nothing could separate them.  The fight went on the outside and they got into a chopfest.  Damo is a hard hitter but even I felt everyone of Joe's as they echoed around the Citadel.  After more action in the ring, Joe got the win after making Big Damo submit, showing why he is a Submission Machine!

DREW GALLOWAY VS IESTYN REES

This was definitely a match for the ladies!  Two very handsome men.  As soon as both men were in the ring, you could tell there is a bit of history between them especially after Iestyn blames Drew for him losing the Elite Rumble.  This was my third time seeing Iestyn Rees and have been quite impressed, he has a great ring presence and can hold the crowd’s attention.  Drew Galloway has similar qualities but had the backing from his hometown crowd.  After some in ring action, Drew decides he should take Iestyn on a grand tour of the Citadel, introducing him to fans, walls and doors!  Once back at the ring, Iestyn turned the tables and threatened get his own back with a couple of painful chops against the guard rail.  Eventually Drew managed to pin Iestyn, after a hard fought battle. 

WOLFGANG & KENNY WILLIAMS VS THE COFFEYS

This was another match I was interested in.  In the last couple of shows, there has been some cracks showing between the two brothers, would it finally break tonight?  The fans were split equally, again the chant wars began, even overheard a couple of girls arguing who was the better looking Coffey brother! (and put my tuppence worth in).  Once the match began it was Mark vs Kenny, Mark had the upperhand in this contest then tagged in Joe.  At this point the match was swinging back and forth, so much so Joe even took Kenny for a swing!  Once Kenny & Wolfie took control of the match, Joe did not stand a chance. There was fantastic chemistry on the team of Wolfie & Kenny.  Nearer the end of the match, Joe managed to escape the clutches of his opponents but instead of accepting his tag, Mark jumped from the apron which in turn was the main reason for Joe being pinned and Wolfgang & Kenny being winners.  Joe remained in the ring for a few moments, stunned by what his brother had done.  Mark came back out and Joe demanded answers!  Mark did not explain himself but showed some cowardice by slapping his brother then running away.  I think it is jealousy on Mark's part as it was clear the crowd favoured Joe.

MAIN EVENT

NOAM DAR VS GRADO

This was the most anticipated match of the night, the atmosphere was electric, the hall was buzzing.  Keeping in mind, these two are the best of friends away from the ring and have travelled the world together.  The challenger came to the ring in his usual style, you could see the focus in his eyes, he wants the title and I was praying he would get it. Next out came the champion, accompanied by a young lady singing his entrance music.  Usually in a Grado match there are some comedy moments but tonight it was different, he wanted to retain the title just as much as Noam wanted the win.  No-one could get the upperhand, the bad thing about fighting your friend is they know your style like the back of their hand, they know what moves you are going to do!  It was a great match thus far!!  Unfortunately, near the end poor Eddie (the ref) took a hard knock and was out cold!  Noam managed to get the anklelock on which had Grado tapping but there was no official to make the call.  Noam went over to try to revive Eddie, when he turned round he got caught by 'The Wee Boot' and was pinned.  Again, nobody to make the call.  Enter Iestyn Rees, who believes he should have been in this match instead of Noam, starts to beat up both Noam and Grado.  Drew Galloway makes the save.  This causes Blaze & Rage with Boddington to make their presence known and help Iestyn.  Samoa Joe then comes in and cleans house with the bad guys!  He even manages to cause that 'baldy midget' Charles Boddington some pain!  The match ends in a no contest.  Drew, Joe, Noam and Grado then have a little dance in the ring.  Personally, I would have preferred the match to continue until there was an outright winner but the time was against this match.

All in all it was an excellent show, the best Pro Wrestling Elite show so far.  Adrian McCallum deserves a lot of plaudits for putting on these shows on, they are definitely getting better each time......you may need to start looking for a bigger venue soon!

Wishing Pro Wrestling Elite all the best for the next show on 26th September at Ayr Town Hall, the roof will be raised! Unfortunately I will not be there due to family commitments!

PS If you want to donate to Cavendish Cancer Care, you can text TRAV01 followed by either £5 or £10 to 70070.  Your donations will be much appreciated.

Until next time......

Review: BCW No Blood No Sympathy Night 1 - East Kilbride

Friday 5 December 2014

So December sees the BCW annual two night extravaganza No Blood, No Sympathy return to East Kilbride and Kilmarnock.  Having missed their show in September, I was really looking forward to this one and it appeared I was not the only one.  Arriving at the venue just before 6 as we usually do in order to get our ringside aisle seats, I was surprised to see how many people were already waiting in line.  Tickets had already sold out and there would be limited standing tickets available on the door.  Luckily we were able to get ringside seats close enough to the entrance aisle for me to still get some great photos!

The first match of the night saw Paul London take on Kid Fite for the BCW Heavyweight Championship.  Kid Fite had made his feelings clear about being in an opening match and not the main event for the Homecoming show back in August and here he was in the opening match once again!  Paul London made his super long entrance and did the rounds of the crowd (which we all love) and was about to enter the ring when Kid Fite appeared and made a sneak attack.  This was a cracker of a match and could most definitely been a main event match.  There were no holds barred as both guys went all out to take the title belt.   London drop-kicked Fite from the apron and the match continued outside the ring for a time with London having the advantage.  Back in the ring the momentum swung back and forth with both having near pins but it was Kid Fite who took the victory, retaining the belt which he would have to defend the following night against Drew Galloway.

Next up was Wolfgang v Joe Coffey.  Now I love both these guys, whether heel or face they both put on one hell of a show and tonight was no different but, for me, something was missing.  I cannot quite put my finger on what though.  It may be that they had to follow such an incredible opening match or possibly because it appeared neither man was in heel role and it all seemed a bit too civilised with them shaking hands before and after the match.  I think I am just used to seeing both these guys do their best to destroy their opponents.  As I said the match itself was good, there was a chant of "that was awesome" from some of the fans, but the buzz that makes me want to get in their faces just didn't happen and I couldn't get into it they way I normally would.  There were near pins for both guys but Wolfgang took the win on this occasion.

The next match saw my personal favourite, Jack Jester face fan favourite, Grado.  Jester managed to make a small child cry on his way to the ring and Grado seemed to be the Pied Piper of East Kilbride as every child in the room seemed to flock around him during his entrance.  Surprisingly, I really enjoyed this match.  While I think Grado is really entertaining, I had started to find his routine becoming a little boring but he has picked up his game - gone was the checking the ref and having a cheeky pinch of his bum and there were no somersaults around the ring.  I mentioned in a previous blog that Grado appeared to be looking leaner and improving on his wrestling ability and it was really evident in this match.  There was some cracking stuff from both guys but there was still some humour - the funniest moment obviously unplanned when Jester threw Grado onto a guy in the crowd only for the chair he was sitting on to collapse..."he's hardcore" yelled Jester.  Despite the crowd being firmly behind Grado and hitting Jester with the "wee boot" and "roll and slice", it was Jester who took the win, rolling up Grado for the pinfall.

The first half main event saw Johnny Moss up against former WWE superstar Hardcore Holly.  I really enjoyed this match, although Rob seemed less impressed.  The majority of the crowd were behind Holly but there was a small contingent of Moss supporters who would not be silenced.  Moss dominated much of the match and hit a couple of cracking suplexes on Holly but the sound of Holly's chops to the chest of Moss actually echoed in the hall.  Holly was able to fight back, hitting Mossy with the Alabama Slammer to take the victory to the joy of the crowd.

Just before the interval, BCW owner Graham McKay came into the ring to thank the fans for coming out and making the show a sell-out, when Big Damian O'Connor appeared, furious that UK talent such has himself had been overlooked in favour of big names from the US and demanding that he be given a match.  With Damo hovering over him in the corner, McKay got on the phone to ask for assistance in the ring...and it arrived in the form of Drew Galloway, setting up the main event for later that evening.

During the interval Hardcore Holly, Chavo Guerrero and Paul London came out to the merchandise tables, selling their merchandise but also willing to sign items brought by fans and have pictures taken at no additional cost.  Having already met Chavo at a TNA show, I had my wee book signed by Hardcore Holly and Paul London and got a couple of pics too.  (I met Paul London in Dundee but as I was with the RI crew at the time, I didn't get autographs or photos)  I also picked up a copy of the Homecoming DVD which was available for the first time that night.

The first match of the second half was Liam Thomson v Chavo Guerrero.  As usual, I managed to wind Thomson up during his entrance and followed it up with a "chicken" chant when he left the ring to escape the onslaught from Guerrero, although I admit to being outdone by the group of guys who chanted "Carmel's better" - that seemed to really wind him up.  Chavo also had a "pied piper" moment when he left the ring and every child in the room flocked to him.  This was another great match with some nice moves from both guys.  It was great to see "The Three Amigos" carried out up close and Thomson hit a cracking dropkick to the back of Guerrero while he was on the ropes.  It was Guerrero the fans wanted to win and they got their wish when he hit Thomson with a frog splash from the top rope and scored the pinfall, leaving Thomson needing assistance from the ring and backstage.

The penultimate match of the night saw Kenny Williams and Davey Blaze team up to face Just Uz, accompanied by Kay Lee Ray, for the Tag Team Titles.  This was an absolute belter and was a real close contender for match of the night.  I have said in the past that some of the combinations put together as teams to face Just Uz did not have the chemistry needed to make a really good match.  I hadn't seen Williams and Blaze as a team before but they did an incredible job, they worked really well together and the whole match just flowed.  There was plenty of strength and agility shown by both teams and it really was a joy to watch.  Just Uz retained their titles on this occasion but if Williams and Blaze continue to work as a team to this standard, they may just be wearing those belts themselves in the near future.

Finally it was time for the main event, Damian O'Connor v Drew Galloway.  This was by far Match of the Night.  It was strange to see Damo have to look up to the face of an opponent and these two giants went at it hammer and tong.  They started in the ring, however they ended up battling all over the hall.  At one point Damo slammed Galloway into the fire exit door with such force the glass smashed.  They continued to battle around the hall and I actually feared for the Christmas Tree at one point.  Back in the ring they continued to fight and after several failed pin attempts, Damo got frustrated with referee Sri Hari and knocked him down and out of the ring.  Galloway seized the opportunity to make a pin attempt but there was no referee to make the count.  A second referee came out but he was accidentally knocked out by Galloway.  This time Damo had the pinfall attempt but once again there was no referee to count.  Damo dragged Hari from the floor back into the ring before attempting to finish Galloway but when his attempt failed, he again attacked the referee.  The match ended with Galloway having both referees in the ring before hitting Damo with the Futureshock and both referees made the 3 count.

With Damo beaten and lying on the floor at ringside, Kid Fite appeared.  Galloway called him into the ring to go for it immediately but Chavo Guerrero then came to the ring and said that Galloway should enjoy his victory tonight and Kid Fite would wait until the following night when he would be putting the title on the line against him during No Blood No Sympathy night 2 in Kilmarnock.

I unfortunately was unable to attend the Kilmarnock show as Rob was involved in Reckless Intent's show on the same night, so I am eagerly awaiting the DVD release of the event so I can see what I missed.

BCW have been putting on some of the most incredible shows and after selling out the Kilmarnock Grand Hall with their Homecoming show, went one better and sold out both Ballerup Hall in East Kilbride and Kilmarnock Grand Hall with the No Blood No Sympathy shows.  My advice is that if you want to see one of their shows, DO NOT wait to buy tickets on the door - you may well be disappointed.  Check them out on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date on future events and ticket sales.

Review: BCW Homecoming

Friday 29 August 2014

Travelling through to the West for shows on a Friday is a nightmare and this was no exception. The traffic was a nightmare from the start, with an accident and a breakdown on the Bypass then slow moving traffic on the M8 and frequent heavy downpours reducing visibility, it took forever to arrive in Kilmarnock.  We had front row seats booked which gave early entry to the venue at 5pm. We didn't actually arrive until 5.10pm but things were running a wee bit late and the doors opened a few minutes after we arrived and just before another heavy downpour!

Photo by David J Wilson

First up was a wee meet and greet with Drew Galloway (aka Drew McIntyre) who would be competing in his first match in Scotland since his release from WWE - the reason for the show being called Homecoming.  I think due to the slight delay and in order to keep the rest of the night on time, there was no "photo op using your own camera" at the meet and greet but there would be photos taken by David Wilson during the interval at a cost of £15.  Rob and I both had special event posters signed and also met Joel Redman from WWE NXT who signed Rob's book and had a pic taken with him.  We got our BCW shirts and Rob got a very nice Drew Galloway one.

After all the front and second row ticket holders were seated, there was a special pre-show bonus match featuring Tommy Marx and Aaron Echo against Lou King Sharp and Switch. I have to admit to being a little bit disappointed with this match - I am used to seeing Tommy Marx and Lou King Sharp flying around the ring and struggling to get pictures that are not blurred but the match seemed to lack energy.  This may have been due to the slower pace of Echo and Switch.  Marx and Echo took the win after Echo delivered a powerbomb on Sharp then scored the pin.  Although a decent warm-up match and good experience for the young guys, I feel that it would have been totally out of place as part of the main card.

The main show started with BCW owner Graham McKay coming out to the ring to announce that Kilmarnock Grand Hall had never sold out for a wrestling show, even back in the days of World of Sport, but that night, for the first time ever, BCW had done it - the Homecoming show was sold out!  He also announced that Galloway would be back for the annual No Blood,  No Sympathy double header on 5 and 6 December and that also appearing would be Chavo Guerrero, Hardcore Holly and Paul London - take my money now!!!!

The first match of the night was for the BCW Heavyweight title between champion Kid Fite and Davey Blaze.  This was a bit of a surprise as usually the title matches are the main event (or at least first half main event) and not show openers.  These guys faced each other in East Kilbride back in June and that match was an absolute belter....and this one was just as good.  With Blaze determined to take the gold and Fite just as determined to keep it, they both pulled out all the stops.  Fite took an early advantage but no matter what he threw at Blaze, Davey just kept coming back at him and the crowd let him hear their appreciation.  There were some cracking moves and a belter of a double clothesline that threatened to decapitate both men!  While Blaze did have a couple of pin attempts, it was not to be his night and eventually Fite hit the challenger with a DDT and took the win to stay champion.

Next up was Red Lightning v Joe Coffey.  I am really liking Joe Coffey more and more every time I see him and, as much as I love to hate Red Lightning, I really had to feel sorry for him - the amount of punishment he took was incredible.  He was suplexed, bulldogged, swung around several times before being put in a Boston crab, took two massive corner splashes which actually moved the ring a good couple of inches from the walkway - I have the photo to prove it!!  Even his attempt to block Coffey's discus clothesline by kicking his arm went against him, Coffey just spun round and used his other arm instead.  There was a small period where Lightning did get the upper hand but it didn't last very long and once Coffey gets the momentum going, he is exceptionally hard to beat and he proved it here once again - Coffey wins by pinfall.

The next match up pitted Jack Jester against Joel Redman.  With Redman waiting in the ring, Jester burst through the barriers into the crowd, terrorising the kids who had been standing against said barriers jeering him just seconds before.  Once back at ringside, Redman was quick to point out the large corkscrew in Jester's hand and demanded the referee take possession of the offending item before Jester entered the ring.  The match very quickly spilled out to ringside, with faces being smacked off the barriers before Jester pushed Redman into the ring then hit him with a legdrop on the apron right in front of me.  Back on his feet, Redman then grabbed Jester, who had climbed onto the apron to the front, and suplexed him into the ring.  This match went back and forth and with Angel Wings from Jester and superkicks from Redman both scoring near pins this could have been either man's match.  Finally, with Redman standing on the top rope, Jester pushed the referee into the ropes, Redman gets "crotched" and Jester finishes him off with the tombstone and takes the three count.  An absolute belter, this was a close contender for my match of the night.

The first half main event was a mixed tag team match with "Bad Boy" Liam Thomson & Carmel Jacob up against Grado & Kay Lee Ray.  As always, Grado received a rapturous welcome from the crowd which Thomson and Jacob did not appreciate.  With Grado pulling out his usual comedy antics, Thomson decided to get in on the act, attempting to pull off one of Grado's comic stunts of sitting on your opponents back and slapping their ass as if riding a horse.  Jacob was not impressed and got into the ring, screaming at her partner and asking what the hell he was doing.  Thomson's attempt to explain ended up with Jacob sitting on Grado, only for Grado to slide out, ending up with Grado astride Jacob and Ray astride Thomson.  Then followed another comedy skit where Grado and Ray are chasing their opponents around the ring only for Grado to tire out and end up being chased.  The match ended in a win for Grado and Ray when Grado hit Thomson with a "wee boot" and Ray followed up with a Swanton before they both piled onto Thomson for the three count.

As Grado and Kay Lee Ray are doing their celebratory dance in the ring, Johnny Moss appears, attacks Grado and holding Kay Lee Ray by the hair, demands to be given a decent match and who should appear to save Kay Lee - Drew Galloway!  After dealing with Mossy, Galloway grabs a microphone and challenges Moss to a match.  Moss demands that the match be for Galloway's Evolve Championship. Galloway agrees - main event set!!



The second half started with a Tag Team title match between champions Just Uz (BT Gunn & Stevie Xavier) and The Models (Joey Hayes & Danny Hope).  I have only ever seen Hayes in singles competition and never seen Hope before but I have to say they work really well as a team.  I make no secret of the fact that I think Just Uz are amazing as a tag team and really need more teams of a similar calibre to compete against.  The Models definitely fill this void (although I still think the Just Uz/Hubba Bubba Lucha match in April was the best tag match I have ever seen)  Anyway this match was non-stop from start to finish and looked like their may be new champions when The Models managed to isolate Xavier and give him a hell of a beating.  Xavier managed to tag BT Gunn and the match ended after Gunn hoisted Hayes onto his shoulders, Xavier launched from the top turnbuckle clean over his tag partner to take out Hope who was about to attack from behind, leaving Gunn to finish off Hayes and score the pinfall to retain the titles.

Next, another title on the line, this time the BCW Openweight Title with champion Noam Dar defending against Kenny Williams.  Williams just gets better every time I see him and this match was another stormer.  Dar took an early advantage, knocking Williams from the ring and into the barriers right in front of me.  Back in the ring he then hit Williams with the most stunning dropkick.  Williams never gives up and fought back and after trading blows, began to gain momentum, scoring a couple of near falls himself before Dar tried to use the referee as a shield.  As Williams continued his assault, Dar suddenly swept the leg and a couple of cracking kicks later, Williams is pinned for the three count.  Dar leaves the ring still champion but Williams won our hearts.

Finally, the main event and quite obviously Match of the Night, Drew Galloway faced Johnny Moss for the Evolve Championship. OMG - how on earth can I describe this match in any way that does it justice? Actually I can't! It was one of those matches you just had to see to believe.  I'd never seen Galloway in action before - I don't watch WWE - all I can say is WOW!!!!  After being clotheslined out of the ring, Mossy looked to be leaving, only for Galloway to catch up with him on the walkway for a slugfest before backdropping Mossy back into the ring.  Slamming Galloway into the turnbuckles, Moss takes the upper hand but Galloway keeps fighting.  He produced an amazing armdrag from the top rope on Moss and after several near pins from both, Galloway hits the Futureshock and scores the pinfall.  The crowd go wild!

With the match over and Galloway celebrating, Kid Fite appears and attacks him with a steel chair before grabbing the microphone to let the crowd know he is not happy at being moved from a main event slot to opening the show because Galloway has returned.  Next Charles Boddington, who is Kid Fite's manager in other promotions, arrives in the ring with his ever present briefcase....and decks Kid Fite!!  After telling of his happiness to have Drew back, he states that someone else wants to see him - the one and only Lionheart, the very man Galloway faced in his last match in BCW before leaving to join WWE.  And it looks like we will be seeing these guys face off in the ring at some point in 2015, once Lionheart is medically cleared to wrestle after his neck injury.

Finally, the entire roster came out to the ring with a case of beer and toasted the return of Galloway, with the obvious exception of  Mossy and Kid Fite, however one other member did not join in the celebrations, Jack Jester.  When he did finally come to ringside, he glared at the scene before him, before spitting in the face of Galloway and leaving again.  I foresee one hell of a match in the near future between these two!


We purchased a copy of the official programme and having a read through it, we noticed there had been a few changes to the original card.  Having originally advertised both Joel Redman and Martin Stone to appear, Stone was nowhere to be seen and his absence was not mentioned or explained.  This obviously led to the changes to the match-ups in the programme of Moss v Redman, Stone v Red Lightning and Coffey v Jester, however in my opinion, the changes worked out for the best and this show now ranks as Number 1 on my list of best shows attended, beating the amazing April show featuring Fergal Devitt.

BCW's next show is in East Kilbride on 20 September and tickets are on sale now.  We unfortunately will miss this show due to already having an event on the same date, but I am so looking forward to the No Blood, No Sympathy double header (tickets for these shows go on sale 1 October).

For information on BCW's future events and tickets, check out their Facebook page or website

Review: BCW Live in East Kilbride

Friday 27 June 2014

After the last BCW show in April, I didn't know how they could top it.  Well maybe this time they didn't but they came close...and the next show....well I will get to that at the end....

The first match of the night was Switch against Tommy Marx.  Switch managed to reduce a young girl at ringside to tears during his entrance when he suddenly turned to face her and shouted boo!  Tommy Marx got a great reception from the crowd throughout the match but it was Switch who dominated most of the match.  Despite pulling off some great moves, Marx was not able to overcome the size and strength advantage and underhand tactics from Switch, who eventually took the win.

Next up was Red Lightning v El Technico.  Red Lighting took the microphone and starting whinging about hurting his shoulder at the last event and that the crowd were unsympathetic before threatening to go “El Technico” on El Technico, whose mask still reminds me of the Predator movies.  Obviously the masked man did not take kindly to this and went straight for the shoulder of Lightning, before Lightning escaped to the ringside area to chants of “chicken”.  Once back in the ring, Lightning managed to gain some momentum and began working on the leg of El Technico in an attempt to keep the big guy grounded, but this was not successful and it was El Technico who scored the pinfall.

The next match was a very close contender for Match of the Night – “Bad Boy” Liam Thomson v Joe Coffey.  Coffey is becoming one of my favourite wrestlers and I have developed a grudging respect for Thomson after his recent match with Uhaa Nation at PWE and this match did not disappoint.  Their chops echoed around the hall, the slams into the corners moved the ring and neither man held back in their bid to win this match.  It was action packed from start to finish.  With the advantage going back and forth and both scoring near falls, it really was too close to call.  Both pulled out their usual finishing moves, but Coffey kicked out of the pin and Thomson got to the ropes breaking Coffey's Boston Crab hold.  Finally, Coffey delivered a devastating clothesline on Thomson and pinned him for the 3 count to the delight of the crowd.  This really was an amazing match and Rob even commented that he could not believe this was NOT the first half main event!! A video showing the climax of the match is on the Loudmouth Facebook page and is most definitely worth a wee look!

The first half main event pitted fan favourite Grado against Noam Dar for the Openweight Championship.  This match was hysterical from the start and I have to admit that I probably laughed more during this match than at most comedy movies!   It would appear that Grado has toned up recently and while still retaining his “Chubby Chancer” character, seems to be working on both his physique and his wrestling ability.  Anyway, rather than tell you about the match, why not watch the entire match for yourself!

First up after the interval was my favourite, Jack Jester against Kenny Williams.  Jester’s entrance included the BCW debut of his lizard, Gallus (there’s a wee video clip on the Loudmouth Facebook page) and now Rob is pestering me for a pet lizard!  With the majority of the crowd firmly on "Team Kenny", Jester took a lot of abuse from the kids in the audience and spent some time chasing a large group of kids from one side of the stage to the other and managing to reduce another child in the crowd to tears.  Once in the ring, Jester dominated Williams for much of the match, even dumping him in the laps of the ringside crowd before taking him over to introduce Williams face first to the merchandise table.  Back in the ring again, Jester continued his assault, including a legdrop on the ring apron and a suplex.  Williams seemed to gain a little momentum and scored a near pin but Jester caught him off the top turnbuckle, delivering a piledriver and scoring the win.

The next match was supposed to be a tag team title match between Damian O'Connor & T J Rage and Just Uz, however the team of Damo & Rage attacked Stevie Xavier with the belts before the bell had rung and it was declared a no contest with Just Uz still champions.  With Rage and Damo trying to claim the belts in the ring, BT Gunn then said if they wanted a tag match, they could have one as he would take them both on himself.  While Damo and Rage did work well together, they did not have the chemistry Damo shares with his "Britain's Most Wanted" tag team partner Scott Renwick.  The match itself was short but very, very sweet, with Gunn unloading on the two big guys and proving that he is a force to be reckoned with.  Despite the obvious disadvantage, Gunn took it to Rage initially before landing a dropkick on Damo.  He also landed a cracking suicide dive through the ropes onto both his opponents which almost had Damo landing on me!  Back in the ring, Gunn then took some punishment from both guys before finally landing a superkick to the head of Rage and scoring the pin to retain the titles.

Finally, the main event - Kid Fite v Davey Blaze for the BCW Heavyweight title – and this won Match of the Night for me.  This match started in the ring but spilled out into the ringside area, before heading off to the merchandise tables and back again and despite warning Fite that I didn't want him landing on me again, he very nearly did.  It was, in a word, brutal!  Within minutes of the match starting, Blaze was in the ringside area checking his nose wasn't broken, only for Fite to come out and slam him into the ring post.  Back in the ring, Fite kept the advantage, attempting to use a sleeper hold to defeat Blaze but Blaze rallied before his hand could fall for the third time.  The match then spilled out of the ring again and headed over the to the merchandise table, where Blaze had the advantage but Fite was not going down easily, regaining the advantage and driving Blaze into the chairs which had quickly been vacated by the crowd, before grabbing a hoodie from one of the chairs and using it to choke Blaze (upsetting the young owner of said hoodie and causing more tears!).  Back in the ring again, Fite kept the upper hand but it took several attempts before he was able to keep Blaze pinned for the 3 count.  Another fantastic match to end the night's entertainment.



Rob & Leah Owens

Rob & Kasey Owens

After the show, Jester and Grado signed posters in the foyer while Rob got photos taken with Leah and Kasey Owens and got up close and personal with Gallus!

This was a great evening's entertainment with a very noisy crowd, which meant I did not have to work to get them going.  In my opinion, BCW have definitely raised the bar as far as wrestling shows go.

As promised at the beginning of this blog, here is the scoop on the next BCW show - it will be held at Kilmarnock Grand Hall on 29 August and features the first Scottish appearance of Drew Galloway (aka Drew McIntyre) since his release from WWE.  Guaranteed to sell out, tickets go on sale on 10 July so check out BCW's Facebook page to keep up to date with all the information.