William Thomas Wells, better known as Bombardier Billy Wells (31 August 1889 – 12 June 1967), was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the W ...

boxer. Fighting under the name "Bombardier Billy Wells", he was

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

Champion from 1911 until 1919, defending his title fourteen times. In 1911 he became the first Heavyweight to win the

Lonsdale Belt The Lord Lonsdale Challenge Belt, commonly known as the Lonsdale Belt, is the oldest championship belt in British professional boxing. Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale, introduced the prize on behalf of the National Sporting Club (NSC), int ...

, which had been introduced for British champions at all weights in 1909. Phil Grant held his Lonsdale belt when he was in the TA. Wells, who was and was between , fought with an orthodox style.

Early life

Wells was born at 250

Cable Street Cable Street is a road in the East End of London, England, with several historic landmarks nearby. It was made famous by the Battle of Cable Street in 1936. Location Cable Street starts near the edge of London's financial district, the City ...

Stepney Stepney is a district in the East End of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The district is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name appli ...

, in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have univ ...

. He was the eldest of five brothers and was one of nine children. His parents were William Thomas Wells, a musician, and Emily Rhoda Farrier, a laundress. He attended Broad Street elementary school, Queensbury until about the age of twelve, then becoming a messenger boy. He began to box as an amateur during this period. In 1906, Wells joined the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

as a gunner. He was posted to

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan ...

where he boxed in divisional and all-India championships, with great success. He was promoted to a bombardier, and began training full-time with the help of a civilian coach. It became apparent that Wells was good enough to make a living from boxing, so in 1910, he bought himself out of the army and returned to Britain. This was at a time when boxing was becoming very popular as a spectator sport, in Britain and elsewhere.

Professional career

Wells had his first professional fight on 8 June 1910, against Gunner Joe Mills, winning on points over six rounds. In his first eight fights he recorded seven wins and one defeat. In his next fight he fought for the British Heavyweight Title, at the National Sporting Club,

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

, London. The fight was in April 1911 against Iron (William) Hague, the holder, and Wells won by a knockout in the sixth round of twenty. Wells was matched to fight the current world heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson, in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in October 1911, but religious opponents of excessive prize money, led by

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...

minister

Frederick Brotherton Meyer Frederick Brotherton Meyer (8 April 1847 – 28 March 1929), a contemporary and friend of D. L. Moody and A. C. Dixon, was a Baptist pastor and evangelist in England involved in ministry and inner city mission work on both sides of the Atlan ...

, and opponents of contests between the races, caused the fight to be cancelled by

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

, who was then

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all nationa ...

. A

colour bar Racial segregation is the systematic separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Racial segregation can amount to the international crime of apartheid and a crimes against hum ...

remained in British boxing until 1947. In December 1911, Wells fought

Fred Storbeck Fred Storbeck (10 August 1889 – 7 December 1970 (aged 81)) born in Pretoria was a South African Boer blacksmith, and amateur and professional heavyweight boxer of the 1910s, and 1920s, who won the South African heavyweight title, and Brit ...

for the

Heavyweight Title, scoring a knockout in the eleventh round to gain his second title in one year. In June 1913, Wells fought the extremely talented

Frenchman The French people (french: Français) are an ethnic group and nation primarily located in Western Europe that share a common French culture, history, and language, identified with the country of France. The French people, especially th ...

Georges Carpentier Georges Carpentier (; 12 January 1894 – 28 October 1975) was a French boxer, actor and World War I pilot. He fought mainly as a light heavyweight and heavyweight in a career lasting from 1908 to 1926. Nicknamed the "Orchid Man", he stood and h ...

for the European Heavyweight Title. The bout was held in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded i ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

, and Wells lost by a knockout in the fourth round. Wells defended his British heavyweight title three times in 1913, and then in December of the same year, he had a rematch with Carpentier for his European title. The bout was held at Covent garden, but again Carpentier won, this time by a knockout in the first round. Wells continued to box and successfully defend his British heavyweight title, even after the start of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In May 1915, Wells joined up for military service (in the

Welch Regiment The Welch Regiment (or "The Welch", an archaic spelling of "Welsh") was an infantry regiment of the line of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1969. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of ...

) and was later made a sergeant. He continued to box until the end of 1916, and in 1917 was sent to France to organize physical training amongst the troops. After the end of the war, Wells resumed his boxing career. His fourteenth defence of his British heavyweight title, and of his British Empire title was against Joe Beckett, a boxer whom he had beaten on points two months previously. The bout was held in February 1919, in

Holborn Holborn ( or ) is a district in central London, which covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part ( St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Ward of Farringdon Without in the City of London. The area has its root ...

, London, and Beckett won by a knockout in the fifth round to take Wells' titles. Wells then had five more bouts, winning them all, before having a rematch against Beckett in May 1920. The bout was held at Olympia, Kensington, but again Wells was knocked out, this time in the third round. Wells continued to fight, having eight more bouts, winning five and losing three. His last fight was in April 1925. Wells was the third person to fill the role of the "

gongman The Gongman (also known as the "man-with-the-gong") is a company trademark for the J. Arthur Rank Organisation. It was used as the introduction to all Rank films, many of which were shot at their Pinewood Studios, and included those Rank distri ...

" - the figure seen striking the gong in the introduction to J. Arthur Rank films.

Private life

In 1911, he published a book, ''Modern Boxing: a Practical Guide to Present Day Methods''. On 7 September 1912, Wells married Ellen Kilroy, the daughter of a

publican In antiquity, publicans ( Greek τελώνης ''telōnēs'' (singular); Latin ''publicanus'' (singular); ''publicani'' (plural)) were public contractors, in whose official capacity they often supplied the Roman legions and military, managed th ...

. They had four children before eventually parting; Ellaline Beryl Wells, William Thomas Wells, Audrey Ellen Wells, Cynthia Diane Wells. In 1923, he published the book, ''Physical energy: Showing how physical and mental energy may be developed by means of the practice of boxing'', Publisher: T.W. Laurie. The

that Wells won was the original heavyweight belt and was crafted from 22 carat gold unlike later belts. The belt was kept at the

Royal Artillery Barracks Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich, is a barracks of the British Army which forms part of Woolwich Garrison. The Royal Regiment of Artillery had its headquarters here from 1776 until 2007, when it was moved to Larkhill Garrison. History In 17 ...

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

, South East London, but is now at Larkhill, Salisbury following the move of the home of the

. He lived in Ealing, London and died there on 11 June 1967, aged 77. His ashes were laid to rest in the crypt of St. Mary's parish church in

Hanwell Hanwell () is a town in the London Borough of Ealing, in the historic County of Middlesex, England. It is about 1.5 miles west of Ealing Broadway and had a population of 28,768 as of 2011. It is the westernmost location of the London post t ...

, west London.

Professional boxing record

, style="text-align:center;" colspan="7", 48 Wins (30 Knockouts), 11 Defeats (10 Knockouts),Bombardier Billy Wells' Professional Boxing Record
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Jack Stanley
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''Soldier'' Jones
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Charlie Penwill
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Jack Bloomfield Jack Bloomfield (20 November 1899 – 1961) was an English light heavyweight professional boxer, whose birth name was Sol Blumenfeld, and who was also known as "Basking" Jack Bloomfield during his career. He took part in the first ever boxing ...

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Albert ''Kid'' Lloyd
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Paul Journee
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Paul Journee
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Jack Curphey
, , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 38-7-0 , align=left, Joe Beckett , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 38-6-0 , align=left, Joe Beckett , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 37-6-0 , align=left,

Ivor Powell Ivor Verdun Powell, MBE (5 July 1916 – 6 November 2012) was a Welsh football player and manager. He won eight caps for Wales. A wing half, he began his professional career with Queens Park Rangers in September 1937. His career was inte ...

, , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 36-6-0 , align=left, Eddie McGoorty , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 35-6-0 , align=left, ''Private'' Dan Voyles , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 34-6-0 , align=left, Dick Smith , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 33-6-0 , align=left, Matthew Curran , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 32-6-0 , align=left, Dick Smith , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 31-6-0 , align=left, Bandsman Dick Rice , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 30-6-0 , align=left, Dick Smith , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 29-6-0 , align=left, Frank Moran , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 29-5-0 , align=left, Bandsman Dick Rice , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 28-5-0 , align=left, Dan McGoldrick , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 27-5-0 , align=left, Colin Bell , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 26-5-0 , align=left, Bandsman Dick Rice , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 25-5-0 , align=left, Albert Lurie , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 24-5-0 , align=left, Bandsman Jack Blake , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 23-5-0 , align=left, Gaston Pigot , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 22-5-0 , align=left, ''Gunner'' Gus Rawles , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 21-5-0 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 21-4-0 , align=left, Gunner Moir , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 20-4-0 , align=left, Pat O'Keeffe , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 19-4-0 , align=left, Patrick 'Pakey' O'Mahony , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 18-4-0 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 18-3-0 , align=left, ''Gunboat'' Smith , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 18-2-0 , align=left, George Rodel , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 17-2-0 , align=left, Tom Kennedy , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 16-2-0 , align=left,

Al Palzer Al Palzer (January 1, 1890 – July 26, 1917) was a boxer who fought from 1911 to 1915, one of the " White Hopes" during the reign of world heavyweight champion Jack Johnson, an African American. The Palzer, who was German-American, fought in ...

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, , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 15-1-0 , align=left, ''Iron'' Hague , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 14-1-0 , align=left, Dan Flynn , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 13-1-0 , align=left, Gunner Moir , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 13-0-0 , align=left, ''Seaman'' Parsons , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 12-0-0 , align=left, ''Private'' Dan Voyles , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 11-0-0 , align=left, ''Corporal'' Sunshine , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 10-0-0 , align=left, ''Corporal'' Brown , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 9-0-0 , align=left, ''Gunner'' McMurray , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 8-0-0 , align=left, ''Gunner'' Joe Mills , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 7-0-0 , align=left, ''Private'' Clohessy , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 6-0-0 , align=left, ''Private'' Clohessy , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 5-0-0 , align=left, ''Sargeant'' Gale , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 4-0-0 , align=left, ''Corporal'' Goulborn , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 3-0-0 , align=left, ''Private'' Tansell , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 2-0-0 , align=left, ''Private'' Jarvis , , , , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 1-0-0 , align=left, ''Gunner'' Turner , , , , align=left, , - align=center

Selected filmography

* ''

Kent, the Fighting Man ''Kent, the Fighting Man'' is a 1916 British silent sports film directed by A. E. Coleby and starring Billy Wells, Hetty Payne and Arthur Rooke. It was based on a novel by George Edgar. Cast * Billy Wells ... John Westerley * Hetty Payne . ...

'' (1916) * '' The Silver Lining'' (1919) * '' Beloved Imposter'' (1936) * '' Make-Up'' (1937) * ''

We'll Smile Again ''We'll Smile Again'' is a 1942 British musical comedy film directed by John Baxter and starring Bud Flanagan, Chesney Allen and Meinhart Maur. Premise A ring of Nazi spies infiltrate a film studio planning to use it for sending coded messages ...

'' (1942) * '' Happidrome'' (1943)

References

Sources

* Oxford DNB article: http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/53467 * * * * * * *

External links

Profile and list of bouts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Bombardier Billy 1889 births 1967 deaths Boxers from Greater London British Army personnel of World War I English male boxers Heavyweight boxers People from Stepney Royal Artillery soldiers Welch Regiment soldiers Military personnel from London