Bartley Gorman V (1 March 1944 – 18 January 2002) was a

bare-knuckle boxer Bare-knuckle boxing (or simply bare-knuckle) is a combat sport which involves two individuals throwing punches at each other for a predetermined amount of time without any boxing gloves or other form of padding on their hands. It is a regulated ...

. A Welsh

Irish Traveller Irish Travellers ( ga, an lucht siúil, meaning "the walking people"), also known as Pavees or Mincéirs (Shelta: Mincéirí), are a traditionally peripatetic indigenous ethno-cultural group in Ireland.''Questioning Gypsy identity: ethnic na ...

, Gorman called himself "the

King of the Gypsies The title King of the Gypsies has been claimed or given over the centuries to many different people. It is both culturally and geographically specific. It may be inherited, acquired by acclamation or action, or simply claimed. The extent of the p ...

". Between 1972 and 1992, he reigned supreme in the world of illegal gypsy boxing. During these years, he fought down a mineshaft, in a quarry, at horse fairs, on campsites, in bars and clubs, and in the streets. Several of Gorman's relatives have become professional boxers in recent years, including Nathan Gorman, Hughie Fury, and

Tyson Fury Tyson Luke Fury (born 12 August 1988) is an English professional boxer. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion, having held the WBC title since defeating Deontay Wilder in 2020, and '' The Ring'' magazine title from 2020 to August 202 ...

Early life

Gorman was born on 1 March 1944, in

Giltbrook Giltbrook is a village in England situated approximately northwest of Nottingham and within close reach of junction 26 of the M1 motorway. It is part of Greasley (Giltbrook and Newthorpe) ward, which had a population of 6,076 in 2001, increasi ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, to a Welsh father and

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

mother, who were both Travellers. His paternal grandfather and great-grandfather were also boxers. Gorman had his first bare-knuckle fight at the age of 12.

Career

When he won the title of Bareknuckle Champion of Great Britain and Ireland, having beaten rival Jack Fletcher in a fight at a

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envir ...

, he was aged 28, was tall and weighed . On

St Leger The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...

day in 1976, Gorman was ambushed by an armed mob and almost killed. He had turned up expecting to fight a challenger by the name of Ricky "Top Hat" Donahue, but was set upon by the group, who had reportedly been paid £25,000 to carry out the attack. Bartley detailed in his book: "I showed up at 10.30am, the agreed time, but he (Donahue) was no where to be seen. Then from out of no where 25 guys appeared with crowbars and bricks. I was beaten senseless." Bartley Gorman and David Pearce signed to fight for the World unlicensed title after Pearce KO'd former WBA World Heavyweight Champion John Tate, in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. Gorman said; "Dave Pearce is the best gorger fighting man in Great Britain and I am King of the Gypsies, If I win I will challenge Muhammed Ali to fight for the title". This was made possible due to the links both fighters had with former Bareknuckle fighter and friend to Ali, Paddy Monaghan. The BBBoC threatened a worldwide ban on Pearce if he took part. Pearce was forced to decline and was left subsequently devastated.

Retirement and death

Gorman claimed to remain unbeaten until his retirement from boxing in 1992, with his last fight being a draw with Graeme O'Laughlan (Kennedy). Gorman lived on a traveller site in

Uttoxeter Uttoxeter ( , ) is a market town in the East Staffordshire district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is near to the Derbyshire county border. It is situated from Burton upon Trent, from Stafford, from Stoke-on-Trent, from De ...

, and lived there until his death.

In popular culture

For the 2012 film ''

The Dark Knight Rises ''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is th ...

'', actor Tom Hardy revealed that he used Gorman's voice as one of the inspirations for the accent of

Bane Bane may refer to: Fictional characters * Bane (DC Comics), an adversary of Batman * Bane (''Harry Potter''), a centaur in the ''Harry Potter'' series * Bane (''The Matrix''), a character in the ''Matrix'' film trilogy * Bane the Druid, a Gu ...

. Gorman has also been cited as the main inspiration for professional wrestler

Wade Barrett Stuart Alexander Bennett (born 10 August 1980) is an English-American professional wrestling commentator, actor, and former professional wrestler who holds both British and American citizenship. He is currently signed to WWE, where he is a col ...

's finishing move, the Bull Hammer Elbow. Gorman's autobiography ''King of the Gypsies'', written with the help of Peter Walsh, was completed just before Gorman's death. Shane Meadows filmed a documentary entitled ''King of the Gypsies'', interviewing Gorman about his life in 1995. The 1999 Comedy Drama ' A Room for Romeo Brass' featuring

Paddy Considine Patrick George Considine (born 5 September 1973) is an English actor, director, and screenwriter. He frequently collaborates with filmmaker/director Shane Meadows. He has received two British Academy Film Awards, three Evening Standard Brit ...

who played the part of Morrell based his accent on Gorman's.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gorman, Bartley 1944 births 2002 deaths Bare-knuckle boxers English male boxers English people of Welsh descent English people of Irish descent Irish Travellers from England Irish Traveller sportspeople People from Bedworth