In our continued series looking over archived footage that celebrates Yorkshire, today we see the first female all-in wrestling event that took place in Halifax’s Victoria Hall in 1965.
The short clip is presented by legendary broadcaster Fyfe Robertson and watches as the two female wrestlers, Mitzi Mueller and “Naughty” Nancy Barton, take on each other in front of a packed-out crowd. Mueller, especially, is now considered to be one of the figureheads and pioneers of British female wrestling.
The short clip also sees Robertson interviewing the organisers of the event as well as members of crowd to establish their thoughts on female wrestling, and the interviewees certainly provide an interesting, if not even surprising, representation of the views of femininity in the 1960s. Whilst one woman states, ‘it’s not feminine is it?’, another proffers, ‘anything they can do we can do better!’
The clip is part of the BBC’s archive project which will show content produced in and around Yorkshire over the past decades. The short clips will contain footage demonstrating significant points in Yorkshire’s history.
You can check out the clip below and make sure to keep an eye out for more archive footage to follow.
