TNA British Boot Camp is a British reality television programme focusing on the professional wrestling industry. The programme documented the careers of four British professional wrestlers seeking a contract with the American professional wrestling promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). The series was commissioned from TNA Productions by Sky UK and started airing on Challenge from 1 January 2013.[1][3][6]
| TNA British Boot Camp | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Reality television |
| Starring | See below |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2[1] |
| No. of episodes | 14[1] |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Jeremy Borash[2] |
| Production locations | Orlando, Florida, United States[1] London, United Kingdom Manchester, United Kingdom[3] Nashville, Tennessee, United States[4] Louisville, Kentucky, United States |
| Running time | 30 minutes (season 1) 60 minutes (season 2)[1] |
| Production company | TNA Productions[1] |
| Original release | |
| Network | Challenge[1] |
| Release | 1 January 2013[5] – 7 December 2014 |
| Related | |
| TNA Impact! (2004–present) TNA Xplosion (2002–2021, 2024-present) TNA Gut Check (2004–present) TNA Global Impact! (2006) TNA Today (2007) Before the Impact (2021–2023) | |
TNA British Boot Camp was both the first non-game show commissioned for Challenge by BSkyB and the first American professional wrestling programme exclusively created and broadcast for the British market. The commissioning of the series reflected a commitment by BSkyB to invest £600 million in British-made television content by 2014. The programme's executive producer is veteran TNA ring announcer Jeremy Borash, who created the show and edited the programme himself.[1]
Season 1
editSynopsis
editThe programme followed "four of Britain's most promising wrestlers" - Rockstar Spud, Marty Scurll and The Blossom Twins - who competed to receive a contract from TNA.[7] The wrestlers were mentored by veteran professional wrestlers such as Hulk Hogan and Rollerball Rocco.[8]
In the season finale of British Boot Camp, which aired on 22 January 2013, Rockstar Spud was named the winner, receiving a contract with TNA. Following the finale, all four wrestlers performed with TNA as part of the "Road to Lockdown" tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland.[6]
Cast
edit
Contestants
editMentors
editOther wrestling personalities
editProduction
editTNA announced on 5 September 2012 that it had completed filming of TNA Wrestling: British Boot Camp.[10] The series was originally scheduled to air in December 2012, but was moved back to January 2013.[3]
Reception
editThe programme was described as "a ratings hit for Challenge TV".[2] Rob Leigh of the Daily Mirror stated that "the show's post-reality show format is bang up to date".[11]
Season 2
editSynopsis
editThe programme followed "twelve of Britain's most promising wrestlers" who competed to receive a contract from TNA.[12] It premiered on Challenge, on 19 October 2014.[13]
Cast
editContestants
edit| Ring Name | Real Name | From | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Finals (London) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Babyfaced Pitbull | Sam Smitten-Downes | Leicester, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
|
| Cyanide | Alex Walmsley | Manchester, England | Eliminated |
||
| Dave Mastiff | David Minton | Dudley, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
Final six |
| El Ligero | Simon Musk | Leeds, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Grado | Graeme Stevely | Ayrshire, Scotland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals - was given a 2nd chance after being eliminated |
Final six |
| Joe Vega | Joseph Whittaker | Preston, England | Eliminated |
||
| Joel Redman | Joel Pettyfer | Exeter, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| King Rorster | Rory Bailey | Burton, England | Eliminated |
||
| Kris Travis | Kristoffer Travis | Sheffield, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Mark Andrews | Mark Andrews | Cardiff, Wales | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
WINNER |
| Martin Stone | Martin Harris | London, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Matt Fox | Matthew McNamara | St. Helens, England | Eliminated |
||
| Noam Dar | Noam Dar | Ayrshire, Scotland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
Final six |
| Nordic Warrior | Tom Newton | Manchester, England | Eliminated |
||
| Priscilla | Ollie Burns | Leeds, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
|
| Pyro | Unknown | Manchester, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
|
| Rampage Brown | Oliver Biney | Leeds, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
Final three |
| Richard Parliament | Richard Varty | London, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| RJ Singh | Ross Jones | Hertford, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Sexy Kev | Kevin Lloyd | Warrington, England | Eliminated |
||
| Sha Samuels | Shaaheen Hosseinpour | East London, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Simon Lancaster | Simon Lancaster | Grimsby, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
|
| Heather Schofield | Heather Schofield | London, England | Eliminated |
||
| Kay Lee Ray | Kayleigh Ray | Glasgow, Scotland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
Final three |
| Melanie Price | Melanie Conneely | Manchester, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
|
| Lana Austin | Leanne Austin | Manchester, England | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
|
| Kasey Owens | Kelly Robinson | Belfast, Northern Ireland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Leah Owens | Leigh Robinson | Belfast, Northern Ireland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Nikki Storm | Nicola Glencross | Glasgow, Scotland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Advanced to the Finals |
|
| Viper | Kimberly Benson | Ayrshire, Scotland | Advanced to Stage 2 |
Eliminated |
Mentors
editOther wrestling personalities
editWinners
edit| Year Won | Winners |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Rockstar Spud |
| 2014 | Mark Andrews |
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "TNA British Boot Camp on Challenge TV". Challenge.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 November 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
- ^ a b "Rockstar Spud Wins TNA British Boot Camp". Challenge.co.uk. Archived from the original on 15 August 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
- ^ a b c "TNA IMPACT WRESTLING to be filmed in Manchester". Virgin Media. 24 October 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
- ^ "TNA British Boot Camp stars get boozy in bar". Virgin Media. 15 January 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
- ^ "TNA British Boot Camp Starts 1st January". Challenge.co.uk. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
- ^ a b "Rockstar Spud wins TNA British Boot Camp". Virgin Media. 23 January 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
- ^ "TNA Wrestling And Challenge TV Announce A New Show to Air in the United Kingdom". Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
- ^ a b c d "Hulk Hogan to star in new reality show". The List. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
- ^ a b c d "Dixie Carter to Appear on TNA British Boot Camp". 18 October 2012.
- ^ Caldwell, James (22 July 2012). "Update on TNA's "Boot Camp" show". PWTorch.com. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
- ^ Leigh, Rob (4 January 2013). "Repping for Britain: TNA Wrestling British Boot Camp wrestlers have the opportunity to become worldwide stars". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
- ^ "Challenge Announces British Bootcamp 2". Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
- ^ "British Bootcamp 2 Premiere". Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.