Ramblings of an Englishman

Look I know it’s only halfway through 2026 and here I am looking at 2027. But I’m thinking and when I think I have to write it down so the ideas leave my mind. As this one states it’s all about changes I’d make to AEW and their PPV line up in 2027. Look next year is 8 years for AEW the format has been added on and fixed in place (mainly in terms of having your AEW UK show in August whatever it’s called more than anything). Originally Double or Nothing was the top show and then replaced with All In. For 2027 I want to reflect on how I’d change things around a little bit and just explain that reasoning. I’m not on the business side of AEW maybe some of this is impossible I dunno but it’s fun to just speculate. As a caveat I won’t be removing any PPV or changing the names. I don’t think AEW will despite my issues with Forbidden Door as a name. All In Starting with All In and I’d take another break from it being in the UK. Ticket sales aren’t exactly booming and I think Wembley has been a ...

​Sitting here away on holiday thinking about wrestling. I know doesn’t seem like I do much else. But we are in full Forbidden Door season for AEW which I was fortunate to be at last year in the O2 and well is the idea of ‘Forbidden Door’ redundant now?  If you look at what this show meant to being with it was the first union of AEW and NJPW following years of tension. After AEW was founded the president of NJPW at the time Harold Meji felt slighted by the departure of The Elite as well as other key talents to the new promotion in America opting for closer bigger paydays. New Japan saw The Best Friends gone just as they were looking to push Trent as a singles talent and mainstay Lance Archer to name a few.  I wasn’t really until the build up to Wrestle Kingdom 14 and Chris Jericho vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi that Tanahashi said should he win and get a shot at the AEW title he would walk through ‘The Forbidden Door’ to win the title. While Tanahashi didn’t win that day I think it went...

2026 looks to be a record breaking year for seeing wrestling live. I got the bug last October to attend more than just the AEW PPV in August and whenever New Japan does Royal Quest and it has led to me going to a lot more shows mainly RevPro's Live in London series at the Porchester Hall. This is also a special year regarding to this as it is 20 years since I went to my first show it was an LDN show in 2006. I'm counting this as I and Cagematch cannot find records of the show I was at while I was at the Bognor Regis Butlins in 2004 (or 2005 can't remember). So this is an anniversary year for wrestling and has somehow had a call back.  So far this year I have been to the below shows. RevPro Live In London 103 - 04/01/2026 RevPro Live In London 104 - 01/02/2026 RevPro Live In London 105 - 01/03/2026 Pro Wrestling EVE 146: Wrestle Queendom 9 - 08/03/2026 RevPro Live In London 107 - 03/05/2026 RevPro Live In London 108 - 07/06/2026 This already ties me with the amount of shows ...

Despite my currently reservations towards the company I will always have a soft spot for TNA. In England I've been there with them since they were on Bravo long since that channel has stopped coming up on the TV guide. The first match I saw was the Electrified Cage match scrolling through the channels back in 2007 and to be honest probably would've been it if not for Kurt Angle and Christian Cage in the Lethal Lockdown probably would've been it. But man, that match left an impression on me with an immediate love for AJ Styles and Samoa Joe.  I bring that up as it's 20 years next year that I found out about wrestling beyond WWE, sure WCW was alive in my time but I was pretty young I remember the toys being on sale more than Nitro and the first I can really remember of WCW was the 2001 Invasion PPV (and the Jeff Hardy vs. RVD match on that a fan of both right away). From watching that show I ended up going to the Brentwood show of their first UK tour and then onto Wembley...

God I hate when news breaks while I’m in the office. This morning New Japan has announced that their largest shareholder, Bushiroad Inc. has concluded a share transfer agreement as of today with TV Asahi Corporation and CyberAgent, Inc.regarding Bushiroad’s shares in our company. In other words, Bushiroad out with TV Asahi getting a bigger piece of the pie and CyberAgent coming in.   I find this fascinating it is a time for takeover in wrestling following on from Nikki Cross and Big Damo’s purchase of both Britain’s Progress Wrestling and America’s Defy wrestling it reflects a changing landscape of new owners and maybe new ideas. CyberAgent is an interesting name. Their subsidiary in CyberFight is the owner of NOAH, DDT & TJPW so this is a real conglomerate of wrestling companies under one banner when you remember that New Japan owns World Wonder Ring Stardom as well (edit: apparently BushiRoad owns Stardom again? I don’t fucking know at this point). While minority owner compar...

Another rotation of AEW PPVs done and it brings us to the second biggest show in the AEW calander in Double or Nothing, the eight one in its history and you could argue the biggest one since that very first AEW show. Taking place in a packed stadium this should be a great match. I am glad this year that Double or Nothing isn't main evented by a match to get a title match at a different show. Instead, this year will be highlighted by a huge world title match and several grudges, so let's go match by match as ever. But you know who cares about wrestling really? ARSENAL WON THE LEAGUE!!!!!! Buy-In 5-minute Tag Team Eliminator Match: Divine Dominion (Megan Bayne and Lena Kross) vs. Zayda Steel and Viva Van I enjoy the set ups of this matches. Gets Divine Dominion over as dominant force and when someone eventually surivies or beats them it gets them over huge. Look if Brawling Birds are to win it at All In I'd still have someone before hand go the five minutes. Be it Maya World ...