It Was Twenty-Five Years Ago This Month.....

So.....

Twenty-five years ago this month (sometime in June 2000, I can't remember exactly when), the first ever Two Sheds Review wrestling column was published in an e-mail newsletter called The Wrasslin' Analysis. The last wrestling-related piece was posted in January 1st, 2017. Various things led to the end of the articles, mainly a general loss of interest in the wrestling world.

There were various reasons why I stopped writing about wrestling, including a loss of interest, finding other forms of entertainment, and work commitments among them. Not even the Covid lockdown and a huge amount of time on my hands could tempt me back.

I feel that I accomplished a lot in that time. As far as I know I was the UK's longest-running professional wrestling blogger, and at one time my work was syndicated to over twenty websites and newsletters, with an average monthly readership of half a million.

Sadly that didn't lead to other ventures as it were. Although there was some interest from wrestling magazines it never amounted to much, just one contribution that was never published. An editor once told me that he admired my longevity. Sadly that admiration didn't lead to any form of employment.

I didn't earn thousands working in the wrestling business. I actually spent more on expenses than I actually earned, because despite countless hours of hard work pay days were few and far between. But I did make a few good friends and learned a hell of a lot from my time there, and while I will always appreciated the support I recieved during one of the most difficult times of my life I will always be saddened by the way my time there ended, and with everything that went on afterwards.

So do I regret anything? No.

If there are some people in this world who didn't like what I said about their matches or anything during their careers, then that's their problem.

If the men and women whose careers I helped don't want to acknowledge what I did for them, if they want to write me out of their personal and professional histories, then so be it.

If people want to continue to hold grudges after all these years, and if they want to continue to say simply ludicrous things about me, then so be it.

But if there is anyone out there who, upon reading this, wants to drop me a line and say something like "thanks for the nice things you said about my match/company/etc back in the day" then please do. Who knows, maybe your soundbite will end up on the feedback page on my website.

So to all those who helped me over the years, I will say this: thank you one and all for everything you did. You will always be greatly appreciated, whether you just opened an e-mail and read my reviews or if you met me in person and had a deep and meaningful conversation with me, not just about wrestling, but about life in general.

Will I start watching wrestling again? Never say never.