First Tuesday The Wigan Hold

The Wigan Hold (1989, filmed 1988), about wrestling at Riley's Gym, featuring former professional wrestlers and Riley's Gym alumni Tommy Moore and Ernie Riley (son of Billy Riley)

[@kallepikku4991]

Great stuff. A real Catch wrestling gem. Thanks for sharing.

[@Boswell7717]

Wigan best little town in the country 💪🏻

[@jamesptah9993]

This is a Gem!

[@kurtvanderbogarde8402]

Tommy (Jack Dempsey) and Ernie were regulars on ITV Saturday afternoon in their day. Jack Dempsey cleared up just about every title there was at Welterweight - British and European (like both Dynamite Kid and Danny Collins later) the only EVER Empire/Commonwealth Welterweight champion and the World (European Version) Welterweight Champion. Ernie Riley was British Light Heavyweight champion - he and Billy Joyce dominated the title for about a quarter century 1952-1976, Ernie went to Spain and won the European Light Heavyweight title in '68, held it for a year.

[@samwelltayrlor]

Great upload wish I knew the song in the beginning

[@sanderson9338]

Started BJJ, Shooto, and all American wrestling. Greatest grappling art ever.

[@jimmyjakes1823]

0:24 That opening panorama of 80's Brit Bongistan makes post meltdown Chernobyl look like a cheerful place.

[@psxgunman]

Hard men leading hard lives doing hard jobs the hard way

[@garethhodgson5635]

Brilliant this thanks for sharing 😊

[@psxgunman]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@kurtvanderbogarde8402]

1:45 The Daddy match that Tommy and Ernie put the boot into can be seen in full here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nHWwlmyNlsiagZI Even Kent Walton is clearly unimpressed - "Not too much to do with wrestling, maybe ..."

[@simonemorris3550]

I hope the snake pits still going I hope catch wrestling is still alive and well in wigan

[@psxgunman]

It still exists in some form but like everything nowadays not as it was or will be again. Main difference now is the there are no miners left , too much health and safety etc. Catch as Catch can was a hard sport ruled by very hard men the real likes we will never see again.

[@sanderson9338]

Cheaper coal from Europe after 1918, oil in the 1960s, strikes in the 1970s and Privitisation endec coal not health and safety. Good upload, hard men refusing to do hard work the hard way brought Britian to a standstill because of the unions, that ended coal the political strikes.

[@ManchesterKungFu]

See THESNAKEPITWIGAN (youtube handle) for recent matches etc. Gym still coached by Roy Wood, Riley’s student. Tommy Moore’s (featured here) son Michael, who also trained under Riley, still pops in often during sessions.

[@conman7644]

nice... a good ol' fashion butt drag. If the kid would have been a bit older he would have lost a ring in there