There is a big feature on Europe’s Pro-Wrestling: EVE in today’s edition of Fabulous, which is a supplementary magazine found free inside Britain’s The Sun newspaper.
The three page spread focuses on last October’s EVE vs Ice Ribbon tapings, which reporters from the magazine attended, and features quotes from promoters Dann and Emily Read as well as stars Alpha Female, Erin Angel and Kay Lee Ray.
A few highlights below:
Women’s wrestling is enjoying a boom in the UK, according to Pro Wrestling Eve, the UK’s only all-female wrestling promotion company.
Set up 18 months ago by husband and wife team Dann and Emily Read, a former wrestler herself, they’ve organised tonight’s event and say interest in women’s wrestling has never been greater.
“People are beginning to respect female wrestling and take it seriously. They recognise the work the women put in to prove themselves the equals of male wrestlers,” says Emily.
Emily and Dann are quick to dismiss any comparisons to the American scene.
“Mention female wrestlers and most people think of American WWE ‘Divas’, which is the female division of World Wrestling Entertainment,” says Emily.
“But some of those women are models chosen from swimsuit catalogues, then taught to wrestle.
“They look like Barbie dolls and the focus can be on that as opposed to how good a wrestler they are. Our wrestlers are dedicated and their focus is on athleticism. We don’t care what she looks like as long as she can deliver.”
The women are paid to take part, the amount depending on experience and the length of the matches. However, no one goes into female wrestling to get rich quick, with fees ranging from just £30 to £500 a show.
An interesting excerpt on Alpha:
Most UK-based female wrestlers can’t afford to make a full-time career of it, although Alpha Female (real name Jazzy Gabert), is an exception.
“I got into wrestling when I was 18 and went full-time five years ago,” she says. “I’ve given up everything for it. I don’t touch alcohol, I have just a few friends and I haven’t had a boyfriend in years. I travel all over France, Turkey, Spain and Italy, so there’s no way I can hold down a relationship when I’m away so much.”
Alpha Female practises her moves Alpha Female practises her moves
But she’s not doing it for the money. “As a wrestler, I’m pretty poor – last year I only earned around £8,000, but it’s worth it to do what I love.
You can either pick up The Sun newspaper today or check out the article here.
Thoughts: It’s a big coup for EVE to be featured in Britain’s biggest selling newspaper, so congrats! Also, I thought that the piece was very well written. A lot of these mainstream pieces on wrestling can tend to be “fluff”, but I enjoyed reading this piece. Be sure to check out the article!
A look at the spread below:
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