Norman Frederick Charles III (25 July 1941 22 August 2019) was an English professional wrestler who was known worldwide under the name Murphy the Surfie. Initially Charles competed both in North American and international promotions as part of

The Royal Kangaroos The Royal Kangaroos was a professional wrestling tag team consisting of cousins "Lord" Jonathan Boyd and Norman Frederick Charles III. The duo played off their Australian heritage which included using a boomerang as their weapon of choice. Boy ...

with his cousin

Jonathan Boyd Jonathan Barry Boyle (21 October 1944 – 7 August 1999) was an Australian professional wrestler who is known worldwide under the name "Lord" Jonathan Boyd. Initially Boyd competed both in North American and international promotions as part of ...

Professional wrestling career

Charles made his professional wrestling debut in 1960, wrestling initially in Australia before he and his cousin travelled to North America to compete as The Royal Kangaroos, a name inspired by the legendary tag team the

Fabulous Kangaroos :''This team is not to be mistaken for the similarly named team The Royal Kangaroos of Jonathan Boyd and Norman Frederick Charles III'' The Fabulous Kangaroos were a professional wrestling tag team who existed in various forms from 1957 until 19 ...

. Boyle and Charles worked mainly for

Pacific Northwest Wrestling Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) (also known as Big Time Wrestling and Portland Wrestling) is the common name used to refer to several different professional wrestling companies, both past and present, based in Portland, Oregon, United States. T ...

in Oregon, capturing their first

NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of ...

from Kurt and Karl Von Steiger on 11 July 1971, their first reign lasted only 6 weeks but the cousins would win the tag team title a further four times between June 1971 and December 1975. After working for Pacific Northwest, the Royal Kangaroos headed further north to join

Stu Hart Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian amateur and professional wrestler, wrestling booker, promoter, coach, trainer, football player and sailor. He is best known for founding and handling Stampede Wrestling, a ...

Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the prom ...

promotion. In June 1977 the duo defeated

Leo Burke Léonce Cormier (born June 29, 1948) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He was born in Dorchester, New Brunswick. He competed across Canada, in several American promotions, and wrestled internationally for both Puerto Rico's World Wr ...

and Keith Hart for the

Stampede International Tag Team Championship The Stampede International Tag Team Championship was the main tag team title in the Canadian professional wrestling promotion Stampede Wrestling. It was created in 1958 as the NWA International Tag Team Championship (Calgary version). When promote ...

but dropped it to Leo Burke and his new tag team partner Bobby Burke only a short time later. After their run in Stampede together the Royal Kangaroos broke up after a disagreement in Calgary Canada over differences in how to promote themselves. Charles remained with Stampede for some time while Jonathan Boyd returned to the Pacific Northwest.

Championships and accomplishments

*All-South Wrestling Alliance **ASWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with

* Big Time Wrestling ''(San Francisco)'' **

NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) member NWA San Francisco promoted a professional wrestling tag team championship under the name NWA World Tag Team Championship from 1950 until 1961 in and around their local territory until it closed. When Sa ...

( 1 time) – with

Cauliflower Alley Club The Cauliflower Alley Club is a non-profit fraternal organization, which includes a newsletter and website, comprising both retired and active professional wrestlers and boxers in North America. Established in 1965 by Mike Mazurki and Art Abram ...

**Other honoree (

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

) *

Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett. Founded in 1931, the promot ...

**Mid-Atlantic Brass Knuckles Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with

( 6 times) – with

*''Ring Around The Northwest Newsletter'' **Tag Team of the Year (1975) with Jonathan Boyd *

Southeastern Championship Wrestling Continental Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion based in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Dothan, Alabama from 1985 until 1989, owned by Ron Fuller. The promotion evolved out of the NWA-affiliated Southeastern Championship Wr ...

NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship The NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship was created in October, 1962. Since its creation, the championship has been defended in a number of NWA territories throughout the decades. Initially, the title was a part of Gulf Coast Championship Wrestl ...

( 1 time) **

NWA Southeastern United States Junior Heavyweight Championship The NWA Southeastern Junior Heavyweight Championship was a secondary title for wrestlers considered "Junior Heavyweights", that is weighing under 230 lbs. It was promoted in the Alabama, Florida, Tennessee and Mississippi region from 1975 un ...

(1 time) *

Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship The Stampede Wrestling British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling title for lighter wrestlers in the Canadian promotion Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion ba ...

(3 times) ** NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Calgary version)'' ( 3 times) – with

(1), Cuban Assassin (2) *Other titles **South Pacific World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles, Norman Frederick 1941 births 2019 deaths English male professional wrestlers Stampede Wrestling alumni 20th-century professional wrestlers Stampede Wrestling British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Champions Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Champions