Jimmy Savile’s biggest fear? A Welsh professional wrestler by the name of Adrian Street, pictured with his Dad in the image.
Who Was Adrian Street?
Street, who hailed from a Welsh mining family in Brynmawr (his father a miner for more than 50 years), made a name for himself in professional wrestling as a “heel”, essentially meaning “the bad guy”. Primarily working in the United States, he played on the homophobia of the time (particularly in the south) by dressing in flamboyant outfits, wearing makeup and looking glamorous while dishing out hidings to the fan favourites. Crowds would boo him, and Street would love it.
Well, in 1971, he was booked on a UK show to face off against Jimmy Savile, the presenter who was hiding the worst kept (yet most protected) secret of all. Street, who likely went over the details of the match with Savile backstage, took an instant disliking to him after Savile is alleged to have bragged about sleeping with underaged girls. In the match, instead of following the script, Street decided to use the opportunity to give Savile the beating of a lifetime – which he did, even tearing out large parts of Savile’s hair. Years later, Street said:
“Had I known then what I know now, I would have given him an even bigger hiding. I ripped his hair out of his head … I drop kicked him so hard he landed on his head. I beat the crap out of him. I kicked him and smashed him and stomped on him. I put a submission on him that nearly broke his back. They shovelled him out of the ring and that ended the contest and he never ever wrestled again.”
He remains one of the biggest legends of the old school professional wrestling era and, today, deserves recognition as a true legend of Cymru.
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Niklas is the founder, owner, manager, editor, writer, video creator, voice over artist, and so forth, of Welsh Histories. He is passionate about the preservation of Welsh culture; the rejuvenation of the Welsh language and the promotion of Welsh history. Niklas currently resides in Pune, Maharashtra, with his beloved wife.