Talk:Shirley Crabtree

Are we sure Big Daddy was 6'6"?
I'm sure he wasn't. I met him at Bath in about 1978 and while he was taller than me he certainly didn't tower over me. 6'2" or 6'3" would be more the mark. Also, this page quotes his chest measurement at 62" and 64". One of these is probably wrong. :) Captain Pedant 10:22, 28 May 2007 (UTC)

WikiProject class rating
This article was automatically assessed because at least one article was rated and this bot brought all the other ratings up to at least that level. BetacommandBot 04:25, 28 August 2007 (UTC)

Big Daddy's brother
Is there any chance we could hunt down some information about Big Daddy's brother, Brian Crabtree? He used to be the Master of Ceremonies on most of the main wrestling matches on World of Sport, and was indeed MC on some of the matches Big Daddy participated in. Thor Malmjursson (talk) 23:22, 6 September 2008 (UTC)

Heel Big Daddy
I know Big Daddy was a heel when he first appeared as Big Daddy and he tagged with (none other than) Giant Haystacks. So shouldn't that be included in the artical? The C of E (talk) 16:57, 14 January 2009 (UTC)
 * It was added some time ago, as was the feud with Nagasaki.2.24.70.218 (talk) 19:51, 28 December 2022 (UTC)

Margaret Thatcher said...
"Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom was said to be a fan of Big Daddy, as was then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who is said to have quoted him several times during union negotiations in 1983 regarding the long-term unemployed."

This has to be a joke surely? While I can buy the idea of these two ladies liking him (wrestling was a very popular spectator sport among British women of that generation), the notion of Maggie T quoting Big Daddy during an actual political debate sounds about as credible as Gordon Brown quoting the Chuckle Brothers. 81.151.103.99 (talk) 18:55, 5 December 2009 (UTC)


 * Wrestling was VERY mainstream in Britain during the 60s/70s/80s. I remember Thatch once quoting Tommy Cooper during a Tory party conference speech, mocking Labour party reforms by saying they had happened "just like that.". So she was not averse to populist cultural references.2.24.70.218 (talk) 19:57, 28 December 2022 (UTC)

Is this a wind-up?
No, seriously. A guy called Shirley? Larger than life wrestler who was admired by the queen? Surely this is all an elaborate hoax, right? Right?165.12.252.113 (talk) 02:28, 14 December 2009 (UTC)


 * Nope, but just remember John Wayne's real name is Marion. --- Paulley (talk) 12:03, 16 December 2009 (UTC)


 * "Shirley" is a good old fashioned man's name in Yorkshire. HairyWombat 04:31, 12 July 2011 (UTC)

Halifax or Southport?
Will someone clean up if he died in Halifax as per the article, or Southport as per the sidebox? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.205.5.230 (talk) 22:06, 4 April 2011 (UTC)


 * Done. All the references I could find said Halifax. HairyWombat 04:55, 12 July 2011 (UTC)

Sandy Orford?
Was Shirley Crabtree's trainer this Sandy Orford? According to wrestlingheritage.co.uk, a Sandy Orford was a "This tough as nails Welsh heavyweight turned professional in the 1940s, though he later moved to Yorkshire where he owned a farm." Best Regards. DynamoDegsy (talk) 11:04, 12 October 2012 (UTC)


 * Yes, it was him. They were reunited on This Is Your Life. Orford also trained Shirley's father and brothers. 2.24.70.218 (talk) 20:00, 28 December 2022 (UTC)

Confusing end to his career
The article states: He continued to make regular appearances into the early 90s, still performing the splash and other moves from his repertoire and generally only appeared in tag-team matches where his sole involvement would be standing firm while opponents attempted to body-charge him and simply bounced off. So he still "performed the splash and other moves from his repertoire" yet "his sole involvement would be standing firm…" Does the sentence mean that when appearing solo he'd perform the splash (etc.) but in tag-team matches he'd "stand firm"? Maybe it should read "…generally only appearing in tag team matches if his sole involvement would be standing firm…" The whole sentence as it stands makes little sense, if you actually read it.213.122.225.221 (talk) 23:51, 13 December 2012 (UTC)


 * He almost exclusively did tag matches which, once he was tagged in, would consist of the opponents bouncing off him to make it look like he was bodychecking them, before he would splash one fallen opponent for the pin. What few if any singles bouts he did by this point would be over after about 30 secs of the above. Tag bouts could be stretched to up to 10min with long periods of Daddy's partner being beaten up by both villains before eventually making the "hot" tag to bring Daddy in (actually an old tag wrestling trope dating back to the 1920s in the USA.) 2.24.70.218 (talk) 20:10, 28 December 2022 (UTC)

Appeared or not?
The article says:

Crabtree was a former Rugby League player for league club Bradford Northern who never made an appearance. His fiery temper often forced him off the pitch early.

If he "never made an appearance" he wasn't ever on the pitch, so how was he "forced off the pitch early"? This needs work. Tonywalton Talk 21:55, 10 June 2015 (UTC)

page name
why is this page using his real name?Muur (talk) 23:11, 8 June 2024 (UTC)