Unaired 2013 World of Sport Wrestling Pilot released

[The Reverend]

I was reading something about this just a few days ago in an old issue of FSM. Because they licensed the WoS logo they went all carny and made out it was going to ITV. 

ITV then actually put out a press release saying they weren't involved and it wasn't going to get shown on ITV etc. 

 

And that's what's wrong with Wrestling in this country. Always someone trying to make a name / quick buck without thinking ahead to the next guy who might have a shot. It's hardly going to fit well with the ITV execs that British Wrestling is basically someone willing to rip off their reputation to get ahead.

 

The other thing that grates on me with that footage is where are the ring mats and ringside barriers? Would it have killed them to invest in some - it just looks so low-rent.

[KingofSports]

For what it was, an LDN show presented to a largely family audience (à la Butlins), it's fine. Anything they may have had in mind over and above that, clearly didn't materialize and if nothing else, it demonstrates what wouldn't work for T.V in the current era. I see little point in critiquing it any further. It was fine for the audience it played to.

 

Come to think of it, I'm not really sure why the WoS logo would necessarily mean anything anyway, particularly as it's so far removed from the period in question. Granted, WoS facilitated the airing of matches, but World of Sport was a 4 - 5 hour, general sports show, which happened to include 40 minutes-worth of pre-recorded wrestling bouts, mostly promoted by 3rd parties. It may be a convenient generic term to use, but as far as I know, that's only been the case over the past 11 or 12 years (since TWC started to broadcast the old ITV wrestling). Prior to that, it was just (British) wrestling. Had it been on the BBC, presumably it'd now be known as Grandstand.