‘British Bulldog’ exits the ultimate ring
Professional wrestler
TOMMY Billington (60) was a British former professional wrestler known as Dynamite Kid.
Billington, who was from Golborne, Lancashire, and his cousin, Davey Boy Smith, formed the British Bulldogs, a fan favourite tag team in the 1980s.
By the time he was 16, Billington was touring Britain to wrestle, and left for Calgary’s Stampede Wrestling when he was 20, according to the Daily Mail.
He also wrestled in Japan before moving to the WWF (now the WWE) in 1984 and becoming half of the British Bulldogs. The two, along with their English bulldog Matilda, were part of classic matches against Bret ‘‘The Hitman’’ Hart and Jim ‘‘The Anvil’’ Neidhart, of the Hart Foundation.
The British Bulldogs won world tagteam titles at WrestleMania II with a victory over Greg ‘‘The Hammer’’ Valentine and Brutus ‘‘The Barber’’ Beefcake.
During a 1986 event in
Madison Square Garden, Billington broke his neck and, despite being told that his career was over, continued to wrestle for WWF before finally resigning in a dispute over complimentary air tickets.
The Washington Post reported he continued to wrestle in Canada and Japan until 1991, and participated in his final match in 1996. He lost the use of his left leg in 1997 and suffered a series of heart problems before having a stroke in 2013.
Billington had been in declining health for a number of years and recently was using a wheelchair; his death on December 5, his 60th birthday, was announced by wrestling trainer Marty Jones.
Smith’s son, Davey Boy jun, called Billington ‘‘an inspiration to myself and many others’’, the Washington Post reported.