Kenny McBride

British Wrestling's been all crap attendance-wise for the last ten years. For half of that, the FWA wasn't even in existence. Nevertheless, the reason it's been rubbish isn't because of tributes and false advertising, it's because the FWA's been brainwashing people and denying them TV deals. Gotcha.

Yeah, but that time when the FWA didn't exist was a down time for the business globally. And even so, people like Jason Harrison were able to draw big crowds to Walthamstow, while crowds in Croydon and Bristol were still pretty strong. The only difference is that the FWA looked to ECW and the internet for inspiration and fans, while Dixon and his ilk looked towards the WWF and Joint. Dixon's (and others') more consistent business suggests that his way may well be more effective, and while I agree that tributes, false/misleading advertising and poor quality shows do a great disservice to the industry, it's not like anyone in this game can get too sniffy about shady business tactics.Like I said anyway, my problem is with TWC's shortsightedness, not with the FWA's attempts to strengthen their position as the most thoroughly branded company in the country. Ultimately, that's the only way they're going to get the quantum leap if growth that they've been looking for all this time.

if all these other groups are so good, to the extent that they deserve TV deals too, how come British Wrestling's still in the shitter?

Because the FWA shouts louder? Because certain groups that had hope have had problems thrust on them? And maybe the point is not that other offices are producing TV standard shows (as I think even the FWA would admit that they're not completely happy with how their own product looks yet), but that even if they are, they're going to find it difficult to compete with the FWA if the FWA holds all the cards regarding availability on TWC. I don't blame the FWA for this at all - from their point of view it's a great move. It does seem rather silly (not to mention anti-competitive, which means it hurts everyone) from the point of view of TWC though. If WZW, SCW, BCW, ICW, GPW or anyone else starts producing the best booked shows in the world, with ECW-standard production values, they'll be prevented from getting on the channel because TWC is looking out for the FWA. Who wins there? The FWA and the FWA alone. AND IT'S TWC's DECISION! Don't get hot at the FWA. They did what anyone would have done. Try getting mad at TWC for their complete lack of interest in the rest of British wrestling. While I love the UKFF as much as the next guy, I don't think for one second that I could run any kind of company off the back of it. That's why I'd have English commentary on the Japanese and Mexican wrestling, why I'd demand high-end production values from every promotion, and why I'd be getting as hard behind as many British offices as possible, as they're going to provide you with your grass-roots support. How many people watch wrestling in Britain every week Herbie? Presumably you've done your market research, so come on...how many? How many live and how many on TV? And how many of those are FWA fans? Doesn't every company in Britain out-draw the FWA so far this year? What's wrong with the production values of WZW or GPW? It seems to me they do as much right in many ways as FWA, and so far this year have outdrawn FWA's biggest shows of last year. So which is the bigger company? The one that draws the most fans (and on lower costs, thus making them a more financially sound company too)or the one who shouts the loudest? I'm not saying that WZW is any more ready for TV than anyone else. I'm just raising a few points that certain people might want to think about. I also want to make it clear that I'm not having a go at the FWA with any of this - as I said, they've done what any smart company would have done. I just have my doubts about this channel that (a) can't work out what is actually successful in wrestling and thus is highly unlikely to know what to present or how to present it, and (b) seems to be run by and for smart marks (specifically the UKFF), and is thus booked to fail.