‘The British Bulldog’ Davey Boy Smith was another wrestler who gave me so many happy childhood memories. He was a huge fan favourite! Larger than life and every young boy wanted muscles like the Bulldog! I think being from our neighbouring England, us Irish felt a closeness to Davey that perhaps we did not have with other wrestlers. He offered hope that sport-stars from our side of the world could reach the very pinnacle of the wrestling world. He also had a wicked sense of humor, that was perhaps sometimes lost on others from a different side of the world.
I have many stand out moments when I think of Davey but it’s no surprise that top of my list is SummerSlam 92’. That epic battle against his brother-law Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart. I never wanted to see Bret lose but if he had to lose to anybody, I would only choose Davey! It was one of the all time classic wrestling matches and my own personal favorite. It was the only time I ever recall an Intercontinental title match being the headline main event ahead of a World title match. That’s a testament to both men. The Bulldog was crowned the new I.C champ and he did it in his own back yard in front of 80,000 fans at Wembley Stadium. I’ve been to Wembley stadium many times since then, for football (soccer) matches and I often fantasize in the middle of a cup final about how Wembley must have looked in the flesh that day!
Davey later suffered a broken back which led to an addiction to morphine and ultimately his passing in 2002. It’s truly heartbreaking the amount of pain and suffering the bodies these incredible athletes go through over the span of their careers - all in an effort to entertain us, the fans. Everything is so wrong about that! I do often wonder if and how the health and safety rules and regulations have changed since those days but I’m certain Davey would not have had it any other way. He truly loved what he did. He loved training and he loved wrestling. He also loved putting on a show for his adoring fans. It deeply saddens me that his beautiful family lost their father and husband at such a young age but I know they take a huge amount of comfort from the love and support of Davey’s worldwide supporters and the legacy he has left behind will ensure that the The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith will forever live on.
It was a wonderful surprise that Davey’s wife Diana Hart Smith and I established contact early in 2018 and I’m proud to say we have established a close friendship ever since. It was with the greatest of honor that I portrayed Davey on canvas for his family on a few occasions with the most recent being a special tribute piece for Davey’s induction to the 2020 WWE Hall of Fame. The painting was due to be on display at the event but given the crazy year we’ve all had, the event has been postponed until 2021. Perhaps one day, some kid will look at my painting and say, “Hey, there’s a mistake with the year!” … Good luck to the person explaining that one! Creating a portrait of a dearly departed really is a deeply personal thing for me. It’s also a little nerve wracking. The task of recreating not just an icon of wrestling but a father & husband. Trying to accurately capture and pay tribute to someone who is truly missed and loved by their nearest and dearest. It’s a lot of pressure. Self inflicted pressure but pressure that brings the very best out of me as an artist. I thrive on it.
Considering 2020 has been the most bizarre year, I really have had many positive things to be grateful for too, including the exciting opportunity to recently interview my dear friend Diana about her life in the crazy world of professional wrestling. It really is a fascinating and in-depth interview that is a must watch for any fan. (For anyone who has yet to see it, check out the ‘IN-DEPTH’ page of my website).
Getting back to Davey, I’d like to share a memory from my school days… This is something only an Irish person would relate to so allow me to explain a little. I remember one day coming into school proudly wearing my new Davey Boy tee shirt. I was 10 years old. The tee shirt had an image of Davey in superhero mode, climbing the turnbuckles with his left leg on the middle rope and his right leg on the top rope. His arms were outstretched above his head, with his latissimus dorsi muscles creating a giant web under his arms. With his Union Jack cape across his shoulders and flowing down his back, he looked every bit of a real life Superman. I always loved this image of Davey but one day I thought it would land me in hot water in school…
You see, I had this teacher. An incredibly proud Irishman (as am I) but this guy had a very old school mentality. It’s no secret there’s a lot of history between Ireland and England. We are all very aware of it. Even at that young age, I knew the importance of knowing about our history but I always felt in order to move forward, we cannot hold on to negative feelings towards our neighbors. I once had a heated debate with this teacher about my views of England. This guy (who will remain nameless) was a very bitter man, filled with a lot of hatred and he tried to force his opinions upon us but even at 10 years old, I’m very proud to this day that I would not allow him to manipulate or force his beliefs upon me. This ‘teacher’ did not know the difference between patriotism and down right bigotry. He hated to see any kid wearing an English club football shirt or God forbid a pair of Reebok classics sporting a tiny Union Jack on the side. I stood firm with my argument that anything that happened all those years ago belonged in the past. Yes, we should be very aware of our history but the problems of the past were not created by the people of today and holding hatred in our hearts was never going to be the answer to a brighter tomorrow. Even at 10 years old, I knew I was right and I would not be told otherwise.
So, if I’m honest, I wore Davey’s tee shirt for two reasons that day… To show support of an athlete I always admired and to completely wind up my neanderthal teacher! Anyway, we were in the middle of routine exam when I felt my teacher walking slowly towards me. His shoes always made a unique sound and you always recognized his walk while you had your head down but eyes up, much like a skilled boxer trying to perfectly time his counter-punch. He stopped in front of me for what felt like a very long 10 seconds before I looked up at him. He squinted his eyes and focused on the image on my tee shirt. I was ready for a war… but then he slowly leaned closer and said, “Davey Boy, huh? … Yeah, my son loves him too”. He then smiled and walked away. In fact, from that moment on, that teacher was a completely different person towards me. I think he genuinely respected this strong minded 10 year old kid and for me, this went far beyond the strength of any powerslam or delayed suplex. Davey broke boundaries and United Nations.
For me, this was the true power of the Bulldog.
Family man. Davey with his beautiful wife Diana, daughter Georgia and son Harry.
The crowning moment. Davey wins the Intercontinental title in front of 80,000 of his compatriots at Wembley Stadium.
Reunited: Bret, Diana and Davey celebrate one of the most iconic moments in wrestling history.
Applying the finishing touches to Davey’s Hall of Fame painting.
Queen of Harts - Interviewing Diana on episode 7 of ‘IN-DEPTH’ with Eugene Horan.
Iconic. Davey Boy in true superhero mode.
‘Brute’ strength. Beefcake knows what’s coming next!