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The Early Days of Belle Vue Wrestling 1930-1933

Wrestling had seen the fields, then the Music Halls, continued in the fields, but 1930 saw the next attempt to change it.

In terms of an actual wrestling bill in 1930 we may have the only one, showing Wrestling with Boxing at Belle Vue on 15th December. We know that night Oakeley beat Assirati and Billy Riley beat Garnon

Although we know there was a match in Doncaster that night and one at the Olympia in London, I now believe the main push was to do something big at the Kings Hall. We have known about the first matches for a long time, but the actual newspaper bill maybe only few have seen before.

Every year the circus took over at the Kings Hall and it was usually February before it could be hired again. I have seen a few spurious claims that other wrestling went on, but I don’t find any concrete proof until the 2nd, 9th and 27th of February of more wrestling.

The 27th of February is particularly significant because it was to be the first all wrestling bill, not mixed in with boxing.

In these first four bills the advertising used terms Catch as Catch Can, All In Wrestling, International Wrestling and even just Wrestling.

As we know Oakeley and Irslinger were doing the pushing. A big city venue needed the best wrestlers they could muster.

Who were the first ones? Four shows and seven main wrestlers used:

• Billy Riley 3 times
• Atholl Oakeley 2
• Bill Garnon 2
• George Modrich 2
• Henry Irslinger 1
• Speding Robinson 1
• Bert Assirati 1.

Only the 27th February, which was all wrestling, said there were support bouts. Wrestling was no longer to be mixed with Boxing.

The early shows were refereed by a pioneer of three Alhambra Tournaments, Wigan man Bob Berry. He is featured on Heritage in a story I wrote some years ago.

The results and again the rumour of other wrestlers on the shows need to be proven once and for all. I am showing you how it was advertised. Oakeley had replaced Len Frankin on the second of the four shows.

During March there were the same men plus the addition of Boganski in all three shows and Dick Wells did one. Again there were support bouts. Do we assume the support were not sensational enough to have a billing?

If I am reading the papers correctly then I think this effort was it for now.

Had progress stalled? Did they need a pause to see if the direction was right? Did more wrestlers need training to broaden the roster? All vital questions.

For the moment there is not much evidence of attendance once wrestling had broken away from Boxing.

There were, however, letters in the papers reporting barbaric scenes and rough, foul tactics. For sure, off putting to some.

Belle Vue had seen the best Oakeley and Irslinger could offer at this point, supported by Oakeley’s friend Garnon and imports Modrich and Boganski. Talent was spread thinly because some of these were needed in South Africa for the very same reasons. Riley went out that year, as did Robinson.

Of course by March wrestling had been seen around the country in other places, but this is the Belle Vue story and the hall was to become very significant in the future. This was to be all until November 1931.

One of the driving forces, Oakeley, was to go on a learning mission in North America in April, 1931.

I think we can assume that if it had been a roaring success then the money would be pouring in and the shows would have kept going. That, it seems to me was not the case. That’s my speculation.

Another thing I had not realised was that when Oakeley was in North America he had actually wrestled in Canada as well. So I share this with you.

As best as I can find these seven shows, built around nine wrestlers and some support acts, were all that happened in the initial launch of Belle Vue. There are various websites and results sites that are reporting other shows, and as best I can I have checked the papers and refute the claims.

One significant point that I make, and this was still true when I was watching in the 1970’s, is that every year in mid December, all Kings Hall events were closed off for the Circus. The hall was never available again until mid February. At that time, I don’t think Belle Vue had a big enough event hall to back up The Kings Hall.

Unless someone comes along with hard evidence of anything else, everything else must be questioned.

I have seen results for 1931 with Carver Doone and Maurice Letchford on them. To the best of my knowledge, these guys were not working in 1931 here in England. Indeed Carver Doone (Jack Baltus) was in Canada in 1931.

Come 31st November 1931 the Dynamic Duo of Oakeley and Irslinger were back, and clearly they had to have found some more wrestlers and got them trained up. This is World “Oakeley.”

And I say this because I have been reliably informed by Assirati’s Biographer Mike Hallinan that Assirati had beaten Oakeley at another venue and there was friction between him and Oakeley, leading to Assirati pulling out, and in fact I don’t think I can find him again in the 1930’s at Belle Vue.

Also, a whole year in and Douglas Clark had not been used. I think we know Doug did not take to Oakeley writing all the scripts. So the Belle Vue world did not paint the full picture.

But, yes some good additions: Black Devil (Jim Wango), Manual Fullaondo, Jack Ansell, the famous Bob Gregory, Jack Chant, and some famous names to be, in Jack Pye, Norman the Butcher (Norman Ansell) Cordite Conroy, King Curtis, and a Masked Marvel, who I suspect might have come from South Africa.

Not sure if any of these had worked In the support bouts earlier in the year, but as we know Jack Pye went on to make himself King here for more than 30 years. You could say, Going In The Right Direction. The roster was growing.

The circus came again and sticking to Belle Vue only, they had to wait for mid February 1932, but on the surface when the shows came again, it looks impressive. Even more wrestlers had been found, and at last Doug Clark had been persuaded to come on board.

It may have helped Doug to come by billing him as World Champion, Cumberland and Westmorland style, and also an ex British Rugby league International. That would do for now. But of Course Oakeley is there in February billed as the British champion. This was All In Wrestling. Oakeley was trying to diminish the fact that Doug Clark had won a British Tournament, but it had been labelled “Catch”. Nice Trick, Dirty Trick !!!

I think they had dragged over from Europe some veteran champions, not even sure if they had been amateur champions. I am not so fussed about results and even some of the finer details. I like to enjoy seeing the bills. They bring alive the window in time.

Again as far as I can see this was the opening season, looks ok. But in reality, was it? Always it’s about the money, and you hire a big hall with your ambition and backers. If you are on to a good thing then why stop?

I am going to speculate, that maybe it was not quite ok. Might have been a close call, but it seems Oakeley pulled out.

After the summer wrestling at Belle Vue carried on, and it must have had a few fans by now. Would the average fan have any knowledge of promoters like we do here on Heritage? Would they care or even notice if the promoter changed? Well when I went to Belle Vue I did not have a clue who the promoter was or the fact that it was shared out. For the most part it was fronted by Martin Conroy in my time and later Brian Crabtree, and I knew nothing of the circumstances.

So at the middle of 1932 in came William Bankier who had been a Music Hall Wrestling promoter circa 1908-1910 at the Alhambra in London, and also a strongman previously known as Apollo before that. As far as I can see, he did three summer shows and three in the autumn.

Notice Bankier brands his shows either just Wrestling or Free Style Wrestling. And smart move, he labels Doug Clark as Cumberland and Westmorland Champion and also the “Catch” Champion.

Gone is Oakeley and many of the continentals. I suspect Bankier had George Rel’s support to have Clark and his student Mitchell Gill coming over from Yorkshire.

Jack Pye has his foothold now, others from Yorkshire and now the Lancashire men, with Billy Riley back and the super George Gregory. His big import is of course Ben Sherman.

A young Tom Connors on one bill against O’Tani is fascinating. Connors being the name of a wrestling Pioneer of great repute. Do we assume, no relation, just a use of the name to gain prestige. I don’t know, it is a research all of it’s own.

Would I be making it up if I said Oakeley must have neen watching Bankier and decided to go for the Free Trade Hall in Manchester that could hold 2500 with the upper balcony?

Oakeley’s first show clashed with Bankier’s last, Belle Vue had always been Friday night. I saw a press report that Belle Vue had been struggling to get 1500 people spaced out around the Kings Hall. That kind of crowd would look better in a smaller Hall. I would love to know the attendance at both halls on the night of 18th November 1932.

Pojello and Bartush headlined for Oakeley.

We know today the true nature of Wrestling. Pojello, the veteran arrived with Bartush at Southampton on the 11th. It was master and pupil but the crowd did not know that. I bet the bout was worked to perfection. And of course Oakeley worked his own shows.

Three full years had gone by to try and get some progress.

Was Belle Vue Wrestling a busted flush?

In reality, I believe it had done just enough to get a few fans and survive, but it was going to need something extra, to somehow lift it from where it was .

I can only find two bills for 1933 and they were poorly laid out. Doug Clark on one and Mitchell Gill on the other in March and April 1933. They were Relwyskow men, but we know Bankier had used them. Clark could have even done his own shows. So keep in mind, we cannot be certain, but the evidence suggests that wrestling was struggling. I have not bothered to display the two bills.

But below are three comments in a Manchester paper specifically talking about shows at Belle Vue. That is the evidence that the game had not yet got a proper foothold.

1934 was to be as late as November before someone else had a go at sorting Belle Vue wrestling out.

During the 1940’s Dick and Jessie Rogers did Belle Vue and shows were twice a week, Wednesday’s and Saturdays. It is a myth that Belle Vue had weekly shows through the 1930’s. We will go forwards into the mid 1930’s and hopefully explain how Belle Vue did survive and got going more successfully.

My final caveat is that my resarch is based on finding advertising and not data. If there was no bill or no report, then I have not used other data.

Why would anyone else or these promoters not advertise their shows? They needed the spectators.

If I am wrong, then one day someone can prove me wrong.

But for now I propose this as Kings Hall Belle Vue Wrestling History.

More years to Follow.

Ron Historyo Time Cop 2024