Old-school grapple fans were amazed when World of Sport returned to British TV in 2018, marking the first time that a home-grown weekly wrestling show had aired on a major channel since 1985. With a live tour on the horizon, we had a quick chat with WoS’s resident monster, Crater, to find out what we can expect when the show hits the road over the next few weeks…
STARBURST: Introduce yourself to the readers…
Crater: I’m WOS Wrestling’s Monster, Crater. I’m a professional wrestler who has been active around the UK and Europe for the last 12 years. I’m one of the biggest wrestlers in Europe at 36 stone, and I’m known for my domination of my opponents and agility not usually seen at this size.
You’ve been wrestling for quite a few years now. When did you start, and what made you want to do it in the first place?
It’s certainly been a rollercoaster. I started at Futureshock Wrestling in Manchester. I was a shy kid but always quite active. I used to play rugby in high school, and even though I watched some wrestling it was mostly the highlights that were on Sky One at weekends. My brother and I used to watch them and then one day I just thought how much fun it looked. I never thought there would be anywhere in England that trained wrestlers, but thought it was worth a Google search. Luckily I found Futureshock where I truly got hooked. It literally started as something to do instead of rugby that looked fun. It’s a choice I definitely don’t regret.
Fill us in on your wrestling achievements up to this point…
So far I’ve managed to win titles all over the UK and Europe, and I’ve worked for most of the major promotions that I’ve wanted to. I’ve become well respected as one of the best big men around and have also branched out to popping up on the odd UK TV show. And now, being the most dominant part of ITV’s WoS Wrestling, I have been a mainstay of Saturday afternoons for over a million people. With a live tour in January and February for WoS Wrestling I’ll be adding more names to my list of defeated opponents!
Any thoughts about the original WoS/old school British wrestling?
I’m a bit too young to remember World of Sport’s original showing, however my parents were fans and went to some of the local shows and obviously watched it on ITV. They had their favourites like Mick McManus and Giant Haystacks. I’ve since gone back and watched what I can find and was genuinely amazed at how innovative the wrestlers of that time were. To say they paved the way for everyone in UK wrestling today is an understatement. I like to think Crater pays homage to them in some ways.
World of Sport was revived in 2018 for a 10-part TV series, and follows up with a live tour over the next few weeks. Why now?
Wrestling has never been hotter in the UK right now. When I first started appearing on shows, the crowds were hitting 100 people if you were lucky and that was an amazing draw. Nowadays selling out venues is common and these venues can hold thousands in some cases. It used to be one company dominated and if you weren’t there then no one knew your name. Now, with the internet and ease of media creation it means people can be stars without ever setting foot in a “big” company. For example, the first time I appeared in Germany I came out to so many chants, one being “He does moonsaults” which people had seen from some highlights of big matches in the UK. It’s crazy how much social media has spread the word.
What’s it like being the biggest competitor on WoS?
It gives me a major advantage. “Mass moves mass”, it’s a phrase that’s known to be true. It also does put a target on my back but it’s not just size I bring. Being three times the size of your opponent and then being able to dropkick them in the face means that anyone that’s able to beat me one on one is special indeed. But you won’t find many. To be the man you have to beat the man. But how do you beat a Monster?
What’s next for Crater? Have you got your eye on anyone in particular?
The whole WoS roster is on notice. With the tour in January and February 2019 I’ll be all over the country showing that I’m the biggest and baddest. Bring on anyone and watch them learn that Monsters Are Real. And who knows, maybe I’ll decide to take the WoS championship soon. It’s not like anyone can stop me…
See Crater and the rest of the WoS folk at the following venues:
Friday 18th January: Southampton O2 Guildhall, Saturday 19th January: Newport Centre, Friday 25th January: Stoke Victoria Hall, Saturday 26th January: Blackpool Tower Ballroom, Saturday 2nd February: Northampton Derngate, Sunday 3rd February: London York Hall
Check out the World of Sport website for ticket info!
Photo © Tony Knox
