Interview with Adrian Street

Recently former MC/Referee Ray Plunkett interviewed Adrian Street and here is what they had to say :-

Can you remember your first bout and who was it against

Yes I can, it was against ‘Gentleman’ Geoff Moran in a main event match in The New Addington Hotel, New Addington. August 8^th 1957. I was billed as Kid ‘Tarzan’ Jonathan – welterweight Champion of Wales. I won the match in 2 minutes of the first round.

Who trained you for the ring

Mostly I taught myself, - I guess that is why I was so bloody dangerous in my very early days, but I learned a lot from Chic Osmond who used to teach me in the YMCA in London, it was Chic who got me my first pro match. Then later I learned submission wrestling from Mike Dimitre.

Which halls did you like/dislike wrestling at

I liked wrestling at the biggest ones the best and disliked wrestling at the smaller ones the most.

How did the tag partnership The Hells Angels come about

Both Bobby and I were astute enough to realise that our styles and images complimented each other.

Who was behind the smart but outrageous ring attire for

both you and the Hells Angels

I must plead guilty for that one.

Which opponents did you like/dislike wrestling against

I liked wrestling against George Kidd-Jon Cortez-Al Miquet and very many others. – disliked wrestling Masambula as he wrestled like a three-wheeled-bicycle.

Did you prefer tag wrestling more than single bouts

I preferred single matches.

Did you ever referee any matches

Only once – at the Hippodrome in Great Yarmouth, - I was so bad at it that Dale Martins temporarily lost that venue.

Do you prefer the European style of wrestling to the American style

YES!

Did you find the travelling in UK tiring

Definitely, but in this business travelling is tiring whatever country your in.

Do you wish you had a different tag partner than Bobby Barnes in the Hells Angels

No – Bobby was the best.

I have had very many Tag-partners both in the UK and all over the States, some great, - some not so great, but Bobby Barnes without a doubt was the greatest.

Who in your opinion was the best referee in UK

The ones who were there to referee and not the ones who thought that wrestling was invented to make them look good.