TALE OF THE TAPE
Big Daddy vs Giant Haystacks
| Category | Big Daddy | Giant Haystacks |
|---|---|---|
| Real name | Shirley Crabtree | Martin Ruane |
| Billed size | 6'6", around 26 stone | 6'11", billed up to 48 stone |
| Wrestling debut | Early 1950s, as Shirley Crabtree; reinvented as Big Daddy in the mid-1970s | Late 1960s |
| Where they worked | Joint Promotions, a fixture of ITV's World of Sport | Joint Promotions, later WCW as "Loch Ness" |
| Ring persona | The blue-eye: Union Jack leotard, crowd chanting "Easy! Easy!" | The monster villain of British rings |
| Signature move | Belly Butt and the Big Splash | The crushing splash |
Real name
Big Daddy
Shirley Crabtree
Giant Haystacks
Martin Ruane
Billed size
Big Daddy
6'6", around 26 stone
Giant Haystacks
6'11", billed up to 48 stone
Wrestling debut
Big Daddy
Early 1950s, as Shirley Crabtree; reinvented as Big Daddy in the mid-1970s
Giant Haystacks
Late 1960s
Where they worked
Big Daddy
Joint Promotions, a fixture of ITV's World of Sport
Giant Haystacks
Joint Promotions, later WCW as "Loch Ness"
Ring persona
Big Daddy
The blue-eye: Union Jack leotard, crowd chanting "Easy! Easy!"
Giant Haystacks
The monster villain of British rings
Signature move
Big Daddy
Belly Butt and the Big Splash
Giant Haystacks
The crushing splash
They began as tag partners and split into the defining rivalry of British wrestling's television era. Their 1981 meeting at Wembley Arena was the biggest British wrestling match of its day, and the pair sold out halls around the country for years on the strength of one question: could anyone actually knock the monster down?
The archive's profile of the man under the Union Jack leotard is restored atGreetings, Grapple Fans: Big Daddy, and the harder-hitting side of the same British halls is covered inRollerball Rocco.