Who is Dave Rayne?
He’s current booker and promoter of exciting British Indy “Future Shock Wrestling”
He’s head trainer of the Future Shock Wrestling School that yours truly attends
He’s one of the most entertaining wrestlers on the British scene
His dancing leaves much to be desired
I asked him 10 Questions!
1. How did you get involved in the crazy world of wrestling?
I woke up one day in a rock bottom. Turns out I was concussed and had just come too…
In all seriousness I think my involvement goes all the way back to the first Frontiers Of Honor Show, in York Hall Bethnall Green back in May 2003. It was the first wrestling show I went to in the UK that wasn’t “all-star†at the local theatre. Id seen some ROH on DVD, but no FWA. I was instantly mesmerized by just how good British Wrestling can be.
Luckily that night I bumped into a group of people that all wore “GARAGE PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING†t-shirts, this group included a very young, very skinny Joey Hayes, and a lanky lad that would grow to be Dangerous Damon Leigh. They told me there was training available in Wigan, which isn’t too far at all (not when you consider Mick Foley did a 14 hour drive to his training school back in the day) .
So off I trotted to GPW where I started my wrestling career under their “Old Regime†and three months later I was appearing on their shows. Looking back that’s just ridiculous, no one can be ready for a match in such a short space of time… luckily control of GPW has since changed hands and it has truly become a standard setter and a definite show to be on I’m happy about my involvement there.
2. What’s your involvement in Future Shock Wrestling?
Well with Futureshock it all goes back to my GPW days. There was a core group of us from the Manchester area and a couple of the lads saw an opportunity to start something for themselves. They got in touch with Alex Shane and arranged for him to come teach at a venue in the city centre. I couldn’t pass up the chance to learn from someone like Alex and to this day I don’t think I’ve met anyone with the mind for wrestling that he has.
Soon after Futureshock opened Alex wasn’t just teaching there but had taken over the handling of the place. Then when we were starting to develop and be ready for shows we started promoting. Slowly at first, 5 events over two years to begin with. After those two years Alex decided to move the school from where we were with “time†being rented for a few hours at the weekend, and we moved into our new facility in Failsworth. Which I have to say is one of the best training facilities I’ve seen in this country. Not only is our training available to us 24/7 now, but we also have full access to a fully protein/juice bar, a fully equipped weights and fitness gym hell even a sauna and sunbeds… which are fun and useful.
With the move in venue Alex decided to take a step back from the day to day running of the gym and shows, living in London made things awkward anyway, and that’s where I came in. In a roundabout kind of way you could call me the General Manager of Futureshock Wrestling. Only I’m not Teddy Long and we aren’t talking about a “character position†I actually do some real work… on occasion.
Holla Playa.
3. What would you say to someone who was thinking of coming to train at the school?
I would say they should read my lovely bit of corporate promotion on the answer above. They should check out www.myspace.com/futureshockwrestling and then they should get the arses to training so they can start following that dream we all share!
4. How did you end up with the “Retro Pop” character?
Well, as with all good characters in wrestling it’s just an extension of my personality turned up to 11. I AM that big geek who thinks he’s cool, the guy at every party or night out that can’t dance yet is the first person to get up and start.. who says Boogie, and yes I admit it, I wish it was still the 80s!
Plus the whole BOSH thing… well.. I like comics, and when batman and the Green Lantern hits someone that’s the kinda noise it makes.. BAM! KAPOW, BOSH! And that’s what wrestling is, it’s live action comic books. Heroes and villains in outlandish costumes trading blows and exhibiting super-human abilities!
Retro-Pop was originally myself and Chris Egan, a good friend back then and someone I met the very first day I started my education in wrestling. Things didn’t work out as far the team went.. and at the risk of plugging someone elses site, if you head over to the fight-network website I believe a Mr. JN Lister has written something about the fallout of that split in his End of year column from dec/jan 2007/2008.
5. Who are some of the best wrestlers that you think have come out of the school?
Would you ask a father which of his sons was best? Very harsh question their young man. At Futureshock we like to think we excel at finding what it is an individual brings to the table and we develop them around that. We don’t produce carbon copy guys who all have the same “style†and look.
But some of the guys that do get attention from elsewhere are Dom Travis and Simon Valour who are part of the “originals†(guys who have been around since the school opened) and then with the New generation you have Sam Bailey, Clinton Steele and Lethal Dose are definitely one of my Tag teams of choice in the UK today.
6. Is there anyone else who you modeled your wrestling style on?
Well obviously Alex Shane has had a big hand in the development of my wrestling and I’ve heard many a promoter and wrestler mumble “you can tell who trained youâ€. But I’ve also had the opportunity to train with some of the best British Wrestlers around, people like Doug Williams and Darren Burridge. Plus Futureshock plays host to regular seminars from some of the biggest Independent names in the world: Colt Cabana, D-lo Brown, AJ-Styles we’ve even had a Noah Seminar. So there has been a lot fo influence on me from some truly great talent.
But when all is said and done I keep getting compared to Scotty 2 Hotty.. I think it might be the dancing..?
7. When and where is the next FSW show and what have you got planned?
Our next Show is at our Spiritual home of Stockport’s Masonic Guildhall on Saturday May 3rd. The show itself marks the 3 year of the current Champions undefeated streak, as Dom Travis takes on Sam Bailey. I can’t say what is going to happen, but I can say that whatever I’m up to on the day it’ll be making sure that the title match is a fair contest!And I might possibly do some dancing too.
Our show after though will officially be Futureshock’s 25th event, which will be held at the Morton Jubilee Hall, Macclesfield. We have a great concept lined up for that though, so keep checking www.myspace.com/futureshockwrestling for details.
8. Who would you like to wrestle that you haven’t yet?
That’s a tough one. I really have a “dream†opponent, ill wrestle anyone and have a great time doing it. But I do have some people id love to wrestle, simply because I know that without any hype it will be a great match. I’d love to Simon Valour or Damon Leigh for example. I think I’d love to wrestler Alex Shane and Darren Burridge again though, as I’ve had that opportunity already but I’m a very different person now and I thikn the best way of measuring that growth is to see what I can do at that level of talent.
9. What does Dave Rayne like doing out of the ring?
Oh that’s an easy one, I like comics, Xbox, nights out living it up and night in cozying up on the sofa watching DVDs. If you like these things too then Ladies, feel free to get in touch ;)
10. What can we expect from you in the future?
The same thing you can expect from me right now, a great time! To me wrestling is all about experience and experiences, it’s all about what you bring to the table and what you take away from it. And I like to think I bring an open mind and big smile, and all I try to take away is the same positives.
In real terms I’d love to work some events in the south of the country, as I feel there is a huge divide between north and south, with the south getting a lot of attention and praise from Wrestling fans in this country, even though I feel the Northern Scene is as strong, if not stronger. I’d also love to bring my own flavour of fun to Europe one way or another..
Alex is you read this, you promised to take me to Amsterdam!
Let’s finish with some name association
1. Alex Shane: Guru
2. Brian Dixon: SHALL I?
3. Doug Williams: Awesome
4. Chris Egan: Twat
5. G-Man: Friend of Twat
If you’d like to know more about Dave and Future Shock Wrestling then visit
