should the boxing booth make a comeback ?

[johnnykayo]

just looking on e bay and noticed a a complete boxing booth is up for sale for £25,000 ! i can only think it was the late,last booth proprietor ron taylors from cardiff. he was the last to travel with the booth intil he passed away a few years ago at the grand old age of 96 i only ever went to see his booth once and that was back in 1982 when herol bomber graham was giving a exhibition in nottingham goose fair and gotta say it was a really good as was packed out and many pros and ex pros worked on the booths. that day i remember seeing jackie turpin junior,he was also a wrestler and he boxed that day. but the best bout i seen was believe it or not two girls having a tear up as one was the challenger and one stepped up from the crowd,it was a fantastic scrap ! the fairground is now a dying trade as most youngsters wanna sit in front of a x box or gamestation now and play them silly games,it would be great to see the booths come back as that i witnessed great entertainment and i think it would be good for fighters as many great champions worked on the booths like farr,mills,turpin etc.

[reggaereggae]

In the day and age of health and safety.... Unfortunately I can't see it happening. In always found the history of the booths fascinating

[johnnykayo]

yea agree but wouldnt it be amazing to see such a great tradition comin back,like yourself fascinates me.

[TJ77]

I saw a doc on an Australian boxing booth recently.
It was very low rent and quite tacky.
I think it would be best left in the past.

[HomicideHenry]

I think the tradition of the Athletic Show being all but killed off is quite possibly the greatest disgrace to ever happen to boxing. It's bad enough we have an amateur system that is more expensive to get into than the pros and have to wait til 2016 to change the rules, its bad enough that 'Toughman' and semi pro boxing has all been destroyed because of 'do-gooders' who just happen to work in the pockets of multi million dollar promoters, and its bad enough that boxing has gotten so far out of the public eye and is considered a 'rich man's sport' when once upon a time it was considered an everyman's sport, etc.

Some of the greatest boxers of all time started out in the booth's and it would really be endless to list the cultural and social impact these shows had on the public at large. Not everyone is meant to be an amateur or pro champion or contender---- but everyone ought to have the right to put on an exhibition or spar now and then. As long as there is rules and a doctor on stand by or an ambulance, what the hell makes the difference. Least thats how I look at it.

[RockyJocky]

just looking on e bay and noticed a a complete boxing booth is up for sale for £25,000 ! i can only think it was the late,last booth proprietor ron taylors from cardiff. he was the last to travel with the booth intil he passed away a few years ago at the grand old age of 96 i only ever went to see his booth once and that was back in 1982 when herol bomber graham was giving a exhibition in nottingham goose fair and gotta say it was a really good as was packed out and many pros and ex pros worked on the booths. that day i remember seeing jackie turpin junior,he was also a wrestler and he boxed that day. but the best bout i seen was believe it or not two girls having a tear up as one was the challenger and one stepped up from the crowd,it was a fantastic scrap ! the fairground is now a dying trade as most youngsters wanna sit in front of a x box or gamestation now and play them silly games,it would be great to see the booths come back as that i witnessed great entertainment and i think it would be good for fighters as many great champions worked on the booths like farr,mills,turpin etc.

Was the fighters from the crowd on some or many occasion not fighters on the quiet ? It dosent take away from what you are saying and your opening post was very informative ty.

[hurlock]

Makes me sick seeing girls fight & what sort of men watch & enjoy it!

Homicide Henry you mention the semi pro circuit being ruined by doo good era etc? Enlighten me .
Ross minter used to put great little shows on a lot of poor fighters but was well organised & I think fw has stole his name in queensbury

[expe]

Makes me sick seeing girls fight & what sort of men watch & enjoy it!

Homicide Henry you mention the semi pro circuit being ruined by doo good era etc? Enlighten me .
Ross minter used to put great little shows on a lot of poor fighters but was well organised & I think fw has stole his name in queensbury

Would guess that the Queensbury comes from the Marquess of Queensbury rules, so really Warren has far more right to use it than Minter since it's actually professional boxing.

[kingmo]

Interesting piece about Ron Taylor

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituar ... aylor.html

[funso banjo baby]

great as a history piece

but as for the tats and staffs brigade....history is where it can stay

[JMac]

I've read about booth fighting but it was not something I think happened in the US and as a Yank I'm not that familiar with it. Did they actually fight in a booth? How big was it? Was it glass or what. Please enlighten me. Thanks.

[stevieb_8006]

My step dad used to fight on the booths from the age of fifteen. I love hearing all the stories. He once told me how they used to rub their boots in a sand like substance between rounds for traction, and they'd put itching powder in the opposite corners to provoke them during the next round.

He told me how a familiar looking, fat, old fella once got in and took him to school. Said only his fitness got him through it. I forget the guys name but he was a retired British champ and they went for a beer together after.

[palooka]

I've read about booth fighting but it was not something I think happened in the US and as a Yank I'm not that familiar with it. Did they actually fight in a booth? How big was it? Was it glass or what. Please enlighten me. Thanks.

A booth is a big canvas tent, like a big top circus tent that has a raised boxing/wrestling ring in the centre. The crowd stands around and house boxers and wrestlers will wait for a challenge or one will be thrown out by a barker. Some of the booths stipulate no professionals can face the boxers. A fighter coming from the crowd can make a little money if they 'win' or if they last the 3 round course.

I've seen a booth at Nottingham Goose Fair around 20 years ago; 2 mates got in from the crowd and had a go, it was called a draw; a man got in to have a wrestle with the house wrestler and was thrown all over in about a minute; I don't think the fellow knew how to wrestle and seemed really surprised how painful it was.

[misterpunch]

my first experience of boxing was in the booths - never forget it - a bloke I'm fairly sure was the very good British/Trinidadian ex-pro PERCY LEWIS was taking on fellas from the crowd and making mugs of them without really hitting at all. just great movement and little feints. it was great to watch even for a ten year old. I saw Percy walking through the street near the fairground a day later and I was awestruck. wonder where he is today!

[Gnome]

Boxing tents still exist in Germany - I jumped in the ring a couple of years ago against some Polish lad. Was great fun!

[chad]

Scotlands Flyweight World champion Benny Lynch reportedly worked the boxing booth in the late 20's, early 30's. It's believed this is where he honed his Jack-in-the-box attacking style and his incredile head rolling technique. Sadly he went back to the boxing booths when his career ended trying to earn money for drink.

[bripez]

Hopefully not.

Boxing Booths belong in a time gone by - along with the likes of boxers fighting for nobbins etc.

At the same time in history we had workhouses and sent kids up chimneys etc. it is easy for us today to get misty eyed about such "traditions" but I am glad that society has moved on.

[palooka]

Hopefully not.

Boxing Booths belong in a time gone by - along with the likes of boxers fighting for nobbins etc.

At the same time in history we had workhouses and sent kids up chimneys etc. it is easy for us today to get misty eyed about such "traditions" but I am glad that society has moved on.

I though nobbins were thrown into the ring after a particularly good fight, I'd like to see that brought back.