Terry Downes, BEM (9 May 1936 – 6 October 2017) was a British middleweight boxer, occasional film actor, and businessman. He was nicknamed the "Paddington Express" for his aggressive fighting style. At the time of his death, Downes was Britain's oldest surviving former world champion. He held the world middleweight title (the version recognised by Europe, New York, and Massachusetts) for ten months from 1961-62.

Early life

Terry Downes was born in

Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddi ...

, London. His father Richard worked as a mechanic, and his mother Hilda in a department store.Maume, Chris (2017)
Terry Downes: The ‘whirlwind’ boxer who was king for a day and retired aged 28
, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 13 October 2017. Retrieved 18 December 2017 Downes boxed as a junior for the Fisher ABC.Rawling, John (2017)
Terry Downed Obituary
, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 8 October 2017. Retrieved 18 December 2017 He moved with his parents to the United States in 1952, while still a teenager, to live with his trapeze artist sister Sylvia, who had lost an arm in a traffic accident, going on to serve in the

US Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

from 1954–56, being recruited after boxing against them for the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

. In the Marines he won several amateur trophies, including the all-services championship and the Amateur Golden Gloves. He missed out on selection for the US Olympic team, being ruled ineligible on residence grounds, and after his term of service, he returned to London and turned professional.

Professional boxing career

Managed by Sam Burns, Downes won his first two pro fights before a defeat to future world champion

Dick Tiger Dick Tiger (born Richard Ihetu; August 14, 1929 – December 14, 1971) was a Nigerian-born professional boxer who held the undisputed middleweight and light-heavyweight championships. Tiger emigrated to Liverpool, England to pursue his b ...

. After building up a record of 16 wins and 3 defeats, Downes won the British middleweight title, vacated by Pat McAteer's retirement, by beating Phil Edwards on 30 September 1958 at the

Harringay Arena Harringay Arena was a sporting and events venue on Green Lanes in Harringay, North London, England. Built in 1936, it lasted as a venue until 1958. Construction Harringay Arena was built and owned by Brigadier-General Alfred Critchley under ...

, London. In 1959, Downes lost and won back the title from John "Cowboy" McCormack. On 5 July 1960, Downes successfully defended the title against Edwards again. Downes lost his first World Title shot to

Paul Pender Paul Pender (June 20, 1930 – January 12, 2003), was an American boxer and firefighter from Massachusetts who held the World Middleweight Championship. Early life Pender was born in the Boston suburb of Brookline, Massachusetts, the son of Wi ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

in January 1961. The following July, however, Downes fought Pender again, this time in London, and defeated the American in front of a raucous

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

crowd, with Pender retiring at the end of the ninth round with cuts over both eyes. Downes was recognised as world champion by '' The Ring'' magazine in August 1961, and was named Sports Writers' Association Sportsman of the Year later that year. Pender won the title back the following year, defeating Downes in Boston once more, this time on points. Downes responded to the loss of his title by winning his next seven bouts, including a win over

Sugar Ray Robinson Walker Smith Jr. (May 3, 1921 – April 12, 1989), better known as Sugar Ray Robinson, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1940 to 1965. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. He is often regarded ...

in September 1962. Robinson was, however, 41 at the time, and when asked after the fight how it felt to beat a boxer of such esteem, Downes famously replied, "I didn't beat Sugar Ray, I beat his ghost." Downes moved up to

light heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruise ...

in 1963, winning his first three fights at the weight before facing

Willie Pastrano Wilfred Raleigh Pastrano (November 27, 1935 – December 6, 1997) was an American former professional boxer who competed from 1951 to 1965. He held the undisputed WBA, WBC, and ''The Ring'' light heavyweight titles between 1963 and 1965. Earl ...

for the world title in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

on 30 November 1964. Downes was knocked down twice in the 11th round, while reportedly well ahead on points, and Pastrano retained his title when referee Andrew Smyth controversially waved it off – it was to be Downes' last fight. Downes was famous for a number of quips. After a particularly brutal fight early in his career against

, Downes was asked who he wanted to fight next. He replied, "The bastard who made this match", in reference to

Mickey Duff Mickey Duff (7 June 1929 – 22 March 2014), was a Polish-born British boxer, matchmaker, manager and promoter. Early life Duff was born Monek Prager to a Jewish family in Tarnów, Poland on 7 June 1929. His father, a rabbi, helped the family ...

. Downes fought six world champions and beat three: Robinson, Pender and

Joey Giardello Carmine Orlando Tilelli (July 16, 1930 – September 4, 2008) was an American boxer who was the world middleweight champion from 1963 to 1965,. He adopted the name Joey Giardello (the name of a cousin's friend) in order to join the U.S. Army whil ...

. His record was: 44 fights, 35 wins (28 KOs), 9 losses.

Acting career

Post-boxing, Downes acted occasionally between 1965 and 1990, usually appearing a thug, villain or bodyguard. One of his more prominent roles was in

Roman Polanski Raymond Roman Thierry Polański , group=lower-alpha, name=note_a (né Liebling; 18 August 1933) is a French-Polish film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, two ...

's 1967 film ''

The Fearless Vampire Killers ''The Fearless Vampire Killers, or Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are in My Neck'' (shortened to ''The Fearless Vampire Killers''; originally released in the United Kingdom as ''Dance of the Vampires'') is a 1967 British comedy horror film directed b ...

'', in which he played "Koukol", a hunchbacked servant. His other film credits included appearances in '' A Study in Terror'' (1965), ''

Five Ashore in Singapore ''Five Ashore in Singapore'' AKA ''Singapore, Singapore'' and ''Cinq gars pour Singapour'' is a 1967 French/Italian international co-production film based on the 1959 novel by Jean Bruce. Filmed on location in Singapore in 1966, it was the last f ...

'' (1967), ''

The Golden Lady ''The Golden Lady'' is a British thriller film directed by José Ramón Larraz and starring Christina World, June Chadwick, Suzanne Danielle and Desmond Llewelyn. Filmed in 1978, it was released in 1979. Plot Julia Hemingway ( Ina Skriver, cre ...

'' (1979), ''

If You Go Down in the Woods Today ''If You Go Down in the Woods Today'' is a British TV film comedy released in 1981, written, directed and starring Eric Sykes, also featuring Fulton Mackay and Roy Kinnear amongst a cast of dozens. The film, produced by Thames TV, was described ...

'' (1981), and the

Derek Jarman Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman (31 January 1942 – 19 February 1994) was an English artist, film maker, costume designer, stage designer, writer, gardener and gay rights activist. Biography Jarman was born at the Royal Victoria Nursing Home ...

film ''

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...

'' (1986).

Films

*'' A Study in Terror'' (1965) - Chunky *''

'' (1967) - Koukol, the Servant *''

'' (1967) - Sgt. Gruber *''

'' (1979) - Trainer *''

'' (1981) - Woodsman *''

'' (1986) - Bodyguard

Other business interests

After his retirement, Downes owned a nightclub. and worked as a boxing manager, working with British title challenger Colin Lake in the late 1960s.

Personal life

Downes and his wife Barbara (nee Clarke) were married from 1958 until his death in 2017. They had four children and eight grandchildren, one of whom includes prominent football writer and comedian James McNicholas. They lived for many years in a large detached house in Milespit Hill,

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18, ...

, London NW7. Downes was awarded the

British Empire Medal The British Empire Medal (BEM; formerly British Empire Medal for Meritorious Service) is a British and Commonwealth award for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown. The current honour was created in 1922 to ...

in the

2012 Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours List 2012 was released on 16 June 2012 in the United Kingdom. on 11 June 2012 in Australia on 4 June 2012 in New Zealand, He died on 6 October 2017, aged 81.Sandomir, Richard (2017)
Terry Downes Dies at 81; Middleweight Champion Was Britain’s Pride
, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', 13 October 2017. Retrieved 18 December 2017

Professional boxing record

References

External links

*
"The Fighter at Home with Yogi Bear"
''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'' profile from 1962 {{DEFAULTSORT:Downes, Terry 1936 births 2017 deaths Middleweight boxers World boxing champions United States Marines English male boxers People from Paddington