This brings back so many happy memories from when I was a boy, it was real to me and laughed so much when I read that these two mates used to share a van together going to their wrestling gigs then pretended they hated each other whilst in the ring then jumped back in the van and drove home!
Anyone who is making negative comments about this, you simply don't understand the context of how this was built up to, and what mega stars both these guys were.
Me and my wee old granny watched this every Saturday afternoon. Oh please bring back them days looking back I never realised on them Saturday afternoons how much I was living the best times of my life .
Come back from the allotment on the back of my Dad's Honda, watched the last horse race, then grapple fans, football results, afternoon tea (egg and chips, my favourite), Dr.Who (Jon Pertwee), bubble bath (sailor matey), read an annual, lights out, 'till Sunday morning, off to Sunday School, change out of my suit, roast dinner, Sunday football on TV, play cards with my mum and dad, bath, early to bed, ( school next day). That was my weekend as a child....Best days of my life....Innocent.
this wasn't to dissimilar to mine, except my dad didn't have an allotment or a Honda, never watched the horse racing, never liked Dr Who, couldn't afford matey bubble bath, never went to Sunday school, but the rest exactly the same, except the cards, never played cards.
Sounds exactly like my innocent childhood too. But let's not forget Rolf Harris, Jim'll Fix it and Gary Glitter most weekends. When I look back, I'll keep the rose coloured glasses on I think.
I met Big Daddy when I was about 11 or 12, in Middlesbrough. After his match, where Giant Haystacks was due to be his tag team partner (he’d been diagnosed with cancer not long before and was very unwell), Big Daddy spent almost an hour signing autographs for the audience. Even sitting down I was looking UP at him. Spoke with him for a few minutes, having our picture taken (sadly now lost :-( ) and getting to shake his hand - one of the highlights of my life
My grandparents used to speak of these two as if they were Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. 🤣🤣 I showed this to my Nan just now and she said "they're not quite as good as I remember"
I cannot tell you the excitement I felt as an 8 year old when Dickie Davies announced that Big Daddy was on today's wrestling schedule. I thought he always won because he was the best. But of course they were great (and very exploited) actors who remembered their moves perfectly. I found out later that I was related to Giant Haystacks (4th cousin - it counts!)
I remember every Sunday after mass sitting down with my dad and brothers watching this, my dad would be in stitches but we would be taking it very serious if big daddy didn't win. The good old days, oh to be that young and innocent again. Still brings a smile to my face 40 years on.
They don't actually memorise most of the moves usually, only the most important moves in a match, for example the finish. The rest of the moves are "called" and improvised. Still its a very thankless and underrated proffession!
@@creation3313 Nothing as a kid seemed to make us think it was fake. I remember when Kendo Nagasaki removed his mask and it was essential viewing to see what his face looked like.
My parents got a visit from social services as I wrote an essay at school about "what we did at the weekend" and I wrote "Me and my sisters sat on the bed in my parents' bedroom and watched the wrestling" 😂
Wrestling fans from around the world, this is OUR sport, outsiders can make fun of it all they want, but we will ALWAYS LOVE the sport of professional Wrestling!
Such beautiful memories, I think this bout was shown early afternoon on FA cup final day. Normally 4pm Saturday, yep everyone had to be back home, for Mick McManus.
Saw them Both in the 70s in london they were massive. Got so surprised when going to Crystal palace found my self swimming with big daddy , every stroke he did the wave was sinking me . Great days
The funniest moment was when Daddy fell on the referee and pole axed him. Then two blokes dragged his limp body of the stage. Classic Saturday afternoon viewing on “World of Sport”
ahhhh british wrestling.....i miss it so much...remember eating penguin and club biscuits when I was about 7 yrs old watching this, then fish and chips for tea! .....man Australia is great these days but Ill always remember growing up in britain
My ex girlfriend was Rollerballs sister! her name was Lyndsey Hussey and Rollerballs name was Mark. Marks dad was also a wrestler and they owned a pub near Farnworth!
RIP Shirley Crabtree JR & Martin Austin Ruane as a kid i was glued to the TV 📺 every Saturday at 1630hrs Saturday afternoons will never be the same again
I remember i used to love watching this on a Saturday when i used to go to my grandparents while my mum and dad worked on a Saturday morning. I don't know if it was repeats as i would have only been months old in 1981 but i do remember Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks were the 2 everyone knew the most. I would give anything to go back to those Saturdays when my grandparents were still around.
Saturday afternoons on World of Sport. Wonderful stuff. The rivalry between Shirley (Big Daddy) Crabtree and Giant Haystacks was legendary and the legend that was Kent Walton commentating. My late Grandma loved her Saturday afternoon grapple
Giant haystacks real name michael ruanne was born in camberwell london to IRISH parents his dad was from co mayo but he was raered in manchester and when these 2 use to fight in 70s they use to bill it big DADDY England v giant haystacks ireland every match they had, his mum was from galway great men mick McManus I met him in greenwich about 25 years ago, listening to my father rip laughing on a Saturday watching these lads was magical , and big daddy real name shirley Crabtree brilliant
God Bless them both... both larger than life characters... ex wife cut Haystacks hair once when she was a trainee, she said he was an absolutely lovely guy.
I don't suppose anyone outside England will "get" this. World of Sport, Saturday afternoon before the football results. The brilliant Kent Walton (welcome, grapple fans.... Aye aye aye..,, he's a good looking boy.., etc). This was all part of growing up in The 1970s. 3 TV channels, spangles, the generation game, Concorde, flared trousers, L.Ps, the ford cortina, being taught technical drawing at school, the FA Cup taking up a whole day, vimto, vesta beef curry, mum running up the stairs to find her lucky bingo pen, kids getting fresh air as opposed to vegging in front of gaming machines. Hell.... Where did it all go wrong?
I tried to get big daddies autograph after his match with Giant Haystacks at the floral hall in Southport. He pushed me out of the way. Totally ignoring me. Giant Haystacks who was just behind him saw it, came over to me and gave me his autograph. Having a little chat with me, and rubbing my head with his massive hand. From that day I hated BD and became a big fan of Giant Haystacks.
I was a young kid on my holidays at Butlins, Skegness, when this took place. Back then the chalets didn't have a telly. If you wanted to watch TV you went to a communal room (1 for BBC1, 1 for ITV). Even 30 minutes before the fight, the TV room was absolutely jam packed ! Unbelievable - but happy times.
Haystacks and daddy had appeal from kids to grannies, crossed over into kids magazines, main stream TV shows like this is your life, these were mega stars. It's a part of our history that we should cherish.
This brings back memories lol world of sport Saturday afternoon. They were the days lol . Now days bs reality TV shows cookery what what evers shows and bloody repeats
These two were just huge unconditioned lumps barging into one another, my favorites were Les Kellet, Adrian Street, Bobby Barnes, Leon Arris, Kendo Nagasaki, George Kidd amongst others = we all knew it wasn`t sport in the real sense, but I loved the co-ordinate moves that entertained us with great humour............oh god I miss ITV`s world of sport days in the 70`s when these events were broadcast live from Catford or Walthamstow town halls at around 4.00pm on saturdays + just loved the old girls with there umbrellas battering the bad guys.🤣
fuck man you are so cultured im in awe please tell me more about the astounding matches but use small words please I dont think my brain could understand any word from 2000 onwards
Love @YllaStar95970's comments. Reminds me of watching the wrestling in the 70's here in Scotland. I also worked at Butlins (Ayr) at the time and every day was a holiday. Best days ever, wish I could go back in time and revisit those glory days. Bill
Took me back to sitting watching this as a kid with my dad eating our tea on our laps in the front room (the only time mum allowed it!) while this was on.
I remember seeing a picture of the two of them in Tv Times in what they ate in a day. Trust me I don't even eat that much in 6 weeks!
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My late father loved this on a Saturday afternoon. If I got puncture on my Raleigh grifter there was no chance of him helping me take the tyre off while the wrestling was on.!
We went to wrestling when we were kids and thought it was real ,everyone loved big daddy . Then American wrestling came over and that was a nail in the coffin for our boys .
I used to watch it with my grandma at 3pm on World Of Sport on a Saturday afternoon.. She used to really get into out and called the baddies "You dirty bu##er" when the good guys were getting their ass kicked. Les Kellet was my favourite for his comedy routines. Those were the days lol.
Golden years back then ❤ We had the best When England was great 150/80 Great wrestlers Great fun😂❤ Dont forget the Royal brothers ❤ Very skilled Much better watching these classics Better than these genders we have to day In sports All rubbish today Any way thank tube for these classics ❤
i was about 8 at the time I longed for haystacks to beat daddy one day as i knew it was totally fixed The voice of wrestling Mr Kent Walton maintained until his dying day that it was real surely he knew the wrestlers used to stay together in a caravan when they were performing Maybe he knew it would be bad for business if the truth was known Still great memories of better times Thank you for posting
Bret Hart states in his autobiography that Kayfabe must be maintained. To break it would mean the end of the business, and the livelihoods of all within it.
I’m 5’3” tall and weigh 116 pounds - I went into the men’s locker room not realizing there were giant muscle men inside. I was only the length of their legs. Looking up at how tall everyone was and how strong everyone was with their big muscles. They eventually looked down when they saw me. They flexed their big muscles. They then surrounded me and I tried to get between their big legs but I was too small and skinny. They enjoyed watching me trying to push them away. They were very nice and let me feel their huge muscles. Also they all had a chance to pick me up over their heads and shoulders. I will never forget that day.
None of the WWE stars past or present could cope being in the ring with these two. The pace and sheer volume of moves along with how long the match goes on for would be too much.
Really not sure today's WWE would be that big a problem for Daddy or Haystacks, all they'd have to do is stand there and survive the customary finish spamming.
Oh i remember watching this.. 81 i used to love world of sport right up until it finished in 88.. this was so popular on tv better than anything.. i loved haystacks.. but i always preferred watching Rollerball Rocco and dynamite kid.. great wrestlers legends.
Oh how I used to love giant haystacks!!!!! I remember seeing him and big daddy at an event. To my absolute delight, giant haystacks picked me up, I think I said something like, big daddy is a bully and I don't like him 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. It really made my day.
Might have been a load of bollocks but when you are 8 years old (in the 70s) it was real enough, don't know exactly how big haystacks was but I saw him live - he was like a walking barn door.
Even though ive seen thus fight a dozen times(1st when 'live' aged 8), that doesn't stop me cheering Big Daddy........bounce that Haystack, Big Daddy.....😂❤❤❤❤
the 1970 and 1980s will always be a golden era in wrestling and you can compare this to any main event at wrestlemania from that era and see it came from. As others have already said, just look at the crowd! That is entertainment!
It was all a show and choreographed very well. To most people, it looked real. But they were great entertainers, Along with Kendo Nagasaki (Peter Thornley who is still alive in Aug 2024), Mick McManus etc etc. Wrestling on Saturdays gave my parents something to watch and shout at the tv for.
God, wrestling used to be so simple yet in its simplicity it drove entire crowds of people crazy Nowadays you can't get a pop unless to do a triple moonsault covered in barbed wire off a ladder through a flaming table on top of a tank full of sharks with lasers attached to their heads.
Just realised Big Daddy was pretty much our answer to Hulk Hogan in that they were both the mainstream face of wrestling in their country down to popularity and image but by no means the best wrestler. Not a knock towards either by the way, just an observation, and both played a part in pro wrestling's popularity in the UK and US respectively without a doubt.
Those were the days, Sebastian Coe vs Steve Ovett, Daily Thompson vs Jurgen Hingsen, Björn Borg vs John Mcenroe and of course Big Daddy vs Giant Haystacks........ I want the eighties back.
Just look how choreographed this was. The referee deliberately stood behind Haystacks so he would “hit” him and then for the finale where it’s agreed that Haystacks will go over the ropes, look how he deliberately holds onto the top rope at the last second so he can throw himself over!