On professional wrestling

Former wrestler Dwayne 'The Rock Johnson'

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have a confession to make.

I am a fan of professional wrestling.

I first started watching wrestling at the age of five. This was right smack in the middle of the World Wrestling Federation's (WWF, now WWE) "New Generation": an attempt at revitalising their product following the departure of top stars to rival company World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

At that age, I thought everything was real.

In 1994, at the 'Royal Rumble', the mysterious 'Undertaker' was ganged up upon by a group of villanous wrestlers and "disappeared". In reality, he'd taken time off for an injury, but I truly thought he was an undead zombie whose spirit would return to haunt the villains. The special effects for his disappearance were incredibly hokey, but it managed to frighten the wits out of my young self. 'Undertaker' would return a couple of months later and exacted his revenge on those who had dared cross him. I ate it all up, although my interest waned when schoolwork began to pile up and my parents decided letting their son stay up late to watch wrestling broadcasts wasn't such a good idea.

I began to watch wrestling again around the year 2000. This was the tail-end of the so-called 'Attitude Era' of the WWF. The company, in the mid-90s, had a surfeit of wrestlers in silly gimmicks (often based around a professional theme, which included wrestling dentists, binmen, and plumbers), and fans were not responding well to them. WCW had begun to beat the WWF in television ratings, and WWF chief Vince McMahon's response was to openly acknowledge the predetermined nature of the "sporting" contests and emphasise the "entertainment" aspect of his product. This new "sports entertainment" was loud, brash and sometimes extremely vulgar. The WWE has since moved away from this approach and rebranded itself as a kid-friendly, PG-rated programme. Some long-time fans have lamented that this has resulted in a neutered version of the edgy, exciting shows put on a decade ago, but I still watch it.

Why? Simply put, it's exciting. The French writer, Roland Barthes, discusses pro-wrestling attitudes in his book 'Mythologies'. Barthes argues that professional wrestling should not be read as contests of sporting excellence but rather as a performance akin to a theatrical spectacle, where the audience is captivated by the fight of Good vs Evil. And it's this basic fight of good and evil that draws me in every week into watching. Storylines unfold at a rapid pace - families are torn apart by betrayal; love relationships blossom and grow sour, and the hero must overcome seemingly impossible odds for the abstract notions of justice and goodness to triumph. Wrestling has sometimes been called a "male soap opera" - and while I generally hate the term as it sounds so cliche, it's probably true.

Darren Aronofsky, director of the critically-acclaimed 2008 film 'The Wrestler', has been quoted as saying that the worlds of wrestling and ballet are extremely similar and "they both make incredible use of their bodies to express themselves". Indeed, there is much to say about the artistry of creating the spectacle. A few years ago I read the autobiography of the legendary Canadian wrestler Bret Hart, whose 1992 match with his brother-in-law "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith is widely regarded as one of the greatest ever. Hart writes that Smith, nervous at wrestling in the main event in front of a vociferous 80,000-strong Wembley crowd, had taken a large dose of cocaine and told Hart he was unable to work the match. Hart managed to get his brother-in-law to change his mind, and acted as his guide during the match. Indeed, watching it now, I can't really tell if Hart is fibbing or not, which probably proves how good a job he did. The match ebbs and flows as the two wrestlers try and outdo each other to win their prize (the Intercontinental Championship). Hart locks Smith in his deadly submission hold, the 'Sharpshooter', but Smith resolutely refuses to give up and eventually escapes. Seconds later, Smith reverses a pin attempt into one of his own, and wins the title. The Londoners in the crowd celebrate, and Diana Hart-Smith enters the ring and embraces first her husband, and then her brother. The two men shake hands, the vanquished warrior acknowledging the superiority of his opponent. It's a simple story, really, but it's beautifully told.

Sadly beautiful moments in wrestling can be tarnished. At Wrestlemania XX in 2004, Chris Benoit defeats two other competitors to become the World Heavyweight Champion for the first time. Benoit, a hardworking professional, was arguably the most talented performer of his era. As he celebrates in front of his family in Madison Square Garden, his best friend and World Champion Eddie Guerrero comes from backstage to join him, both men shedding tears of joy at having achieved their respective holy grails. A year later Guerrero was dead after a heart attack, and Benoit would ruin his legacy after murdering his wife and son and then killing himself. It's probable that no one will ever be able to explain Benoit's horrifying actions. The former wrestler Chris Nowinski argues that Benoit's brain had been affected by a series of concussions - indeed, one of his signature moves had been a diving headbutt off the top rope. Another theory suggests that Benoit was a victim of "roid rage", and in the aftermath of the tragedy the WWE suspended and occasion fired a number of its performers for steroid abuse. To Vince McMahon's credit, he has tried to create a safer working environment for his wrestlers, banning certain moves that involve blows to the head and operating a tough policy on drug abuse, although as "independent contractors" his company does not provide health insurance for wrestlers.

Wrestling really isn't all just about two or more sweaty men in tights pummeling each other. It's really a lot more than that. Sure it's melodramatic and downright stupid at times. And there's an unsavoury dark side to it as well, although I'd argue that the WWE at least is taking steps to curb this.

Ultimately, like my housemate with Coronation Street, it's something that I've grown up with and I still find oddly compelling even today.

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