The History of the TWF(last updated in January 2009)The TWF began on February 8th 2000 when a group of 8; "AJ" Jeffers, Crazy Thunder, The Red Dragon, Mr BIG, Sumo Samurai, NJS and Matthew D. Jones wrestled a show at the TJS Centre under the banner "Tremains Wrestling Federation". Initial investment was provided by local businessmen, such as Doug Edwards - who would become crucial to the TWF's eventual success. The lights were done using extremely basic equipment and the stage was made out of leftovers from school plays. But, the wrestling talent was extremely impressive. News soon spread of this up-start promotion, and soon other promotions, such as SCW (Spinney Championship Wrestling), which were literally based up the road, began to take note, having their matches and talent on TWF Cards. The TWF was very lucky to have a TV outlet from the beginning, including that first show, entitled Grit BasH, shown in the UK on Sky Sports. They followed up with Raw is War on the Friday, where the men now known as Frekishi, The AshTaker and The Terminator made their first appearances. Notably, they were the first SCW men to make the jump. Following this, another show entitled Monday Nitro aired and saw the debut of Team EV. In part due to the success of these initial shows, and also the financial & organisational difficulties the promotion was having, SCW closed, leaving the TWF to stand alone as the #1 promotion in the South Wales area. If you watched a TWF 2000 tape, you would notice how much the show has changed. From basic sets, to storylines with no purpose, language that now would not be acceptable, attire that was wild and out-there, participation from the crowd to an amazing degree… well, the only thing that has stayed the same is the quality of wrestling itself on the show, which has always been top tier. The original TWF logo, used from 2000 to 2002. In late 2000, the TWF itself ran into money trouble, thanks to over exuberant spending on sets, transportation, and funding some building projects. There was talk of having shows only at the Brynteg Arena to cut costs, but suddenly at the 11th hour, as the TWF was almost certain to go into administration, Douglas Edwards, Mr. BIG's grandfather, saw the TWF's potential and bought the company from the TJS Centre-ran consortium that originally owned it. Had the TJS Centre consortium, which included the original power figures Mr. D and Mr. H kept a hold of the TWF, the promotion would have been renamed BCW to reflect their new home, and the promotion would lose even more money demolishing the new 30,000-seat TWF Arena which had finished completion, or selling it off at a time when there was nothing to sell it off to. Of course, it was not to be. With Mr. BIG as World Champion and the likes of Dead Cool, NJS, Underfire and Triple J, among others on the talent roster, the TWF was on a roll. After Edwards's takeover, a new influx of stars steadily began to flow into the company as Mr. BIG was still ruling the roost, roster-wise and backstage, with his more vast experience than a majority of the wrestlers making him a focal point for most backstage activity. The new influx of stars was as a result of an expansion that was enabled using new capital from the new owner. This included the construction of The Asylum training complex in Laleston and the opening of BCW, but as a development federation for the TWF, based at the Brynteg Arena and where many TWF stars made their biggest steps and others helped recover from injury. Many groups who were on the brink of entering the full TWF roster trained for a few months there and eventually joined the roster. The most well-known of these groups included "The Boyz", featuring Hawke, High Voltage, Gareth Cole, Frekishi and Karl Davies. Mr. Edwards, the TWF's out-going Chairman at the time made frequent appearances. FX flexed their muscle against the likes of Revolution, BCW and Team EV. The show was a burgeoning product and ratings gradually grew and grew to such a degree, what began on Sky Sports 2 was now on Sky Sports 1 and consistently being the top rated show on the network. In mid-2001, Marz bought substantial shares in the company, as the TWF was entering difficulty backstage. During the period of Marz's ownership, the TWF's top star, CEO and top contributor backstage, Mr. BIG, toured America, and sought acclaim in EWC along with his best buddy and #2, NJS. That promotion closed after two shows, and NJS quickly returned home, with Mr. BIG about to follow suit, when he received a call from Chicago-based Xtreme Wrestling Federation, an up-start promotion that had got a TV deal. Mr. BIG said the only reason he got that phone call was because he flight back home was delayed. The rest is history. The TWF struggled without him, whilst the XWF became one of the biggest promotions in the history of professional wrestling. PPVs and TV Shows were cancelled time after time and "many" crises with Marz at the helm began, with many wondering if the TWF could sink to new lows. Marz seemed intent on having matches with no real wrestling action, but frequently featuring segments with talent in awkward situations, turning the TWF into the Jerry Springer Show. Many TWF superstars attempted to rebel, but when they did, Marz's backstage power quashed them, using his new power as head of the board and chief writer, seeing them often booked to lose in matches that under other guidance, they should really have won. That guidance included the fans. The TWF was in a slump. Fans were turning away and simply not coming to events. TV Ratings dropped, sales of merchandise dropped, and the amount of column inches in newspapers was increasing, but on a negative scale, with stinging criticism of the Marz regime. The TWF Logo, briefly used in 2001 for the ill-fated "Invasion" storyline. March 4th 2002. You really need to say no more. Of course, we do need to explain that on this episode of RAW is WAR, High Voltage, a signing from 'The Boyz' collective, who was trained by both Mr. BIG and Marz when the BCW expansion took place and The Shott, aka Underfire, the TWF's then two top active wrestlers, fought in a Hardkore Match. Through out the broadcast, Voltage dropped hints that a former TWF superstar would return, which Marz said was not going to happen because if they did return, he would have to know about it. But who showed up shocked the ENTIRE world. Many people expected for it to be Triple J, who had left a few months earlier for contractual reasons. As Shott was ready to finish off HV in the match, the lights went off as the worlds "YOUR TIME IS NOW" echoed over the arena… "JUST THINK ABOUT IT!". The crowd went bananas! JR and the King, then announcing for the TWF, at ringside stood up in awe and could not believe it. As the fireworks went off, Mr. BIG appeared on stage! He ran down to the ring and hit The Shott with his XWF finisher, The BIG Storm, aiding HV to victory. Never had so many people been so relieved. It was said that night changed the TWF forever. Mr. BIG was not intending to return, but did so because his last XWF pay check on February 26th and one of the conditions of his XWF contract was he had to be in the US whilst the XWF was open. He left the XWF when it closed down and was able to return, just in time for that famous night. It is likely, had he not returned on that night, the TWF would have gone under. That night remains one of the greatest in TWF history and among the highest rating TV broadcasts in professional wrestling history. We later learned that Mr. BIG had been appointed TWF CEO by Marz, and so began "The Golden Era". With Mr. BIG, using his experiences in North America and his Economics degree, and Marz at the helm, the TWF suddenly became the hottest thing in town. Despite, still to this day, never getting the local press attention the TWF richly deserves, it did attract international attention. As Bridgend locals dismissed the TWF as a flash in the pan, ratings began to rise. Talk of tours took over discussion backstage, just as the TWF took over discussion at water fountains through out the world. The TWF toured all over the UK, and in 2002, held shows in Europe, whilst still undertaking its annual Floridian excursion. New arenas were being built; the TWF was inescapable from South Wales during this time. But, Marz began to get jealous at the attention Mr. BIG was getting, not helped by a backstage war between Mr. BIG's favoured talent and Marz's, set up KAWF, which would later become TECW. Suddenly, the TWF roster became depleted as the promise of big money bonuses sent many to TECW. However, TECW had weak storylines from a writing team more used to writing film screenplays than wrestling shows. As TECW was winning ratings, the two engaged in a contract war, with the TWF signing, among others, Jody Fleisch, The Sandman, New Jack & Terry Funk to deals to appear on shows. Of course, there were certain few who didn't jump… Mr. BIG, NJS, AJ Jeffers to name a few. TECW's grip on wrestling tightened so much that on Wednesday nights, when both companies had a show, TECW were getting higher ratings, purely due to the one-off appearances of stars outside of wrestling, who usually only showed up at ringside. TECW's cockiness was so much so, that TECW talent paraded their belts on TWF TV when they were booked to work there! The TWF grew sick and threatened to sue TECW for breach of contract with many wrestlers double booked for Wednesday night shows, but Marz infamously claimed he had the backing of Vince McMahon, with whose backing he could "sue to the TWF back to the dark ages". During this period, Marz also famously was quoted as saying that the TWF copied the WWE's every move, to a point where he accused the RWF of being a joke and just another fad. Mr. BIG simply laughed that off in many harsh promos, saying that Marz was the one instigating a brand extension in TECW, hiring GMs and treating both shows separately, while the TWF has always been one brand. Backstage, the TWF was beginning to get back some of its stars, such as Team EV because they were infuriated at their treatment in TECW. Marz, who was still being paid his TWF wages, was giving himself big money bonuses in TECW at the time, meaning he was one of the richest men in the UK. However, the TWF stopped paying Marz's wages and banned him from shows for a short while. The war intensified, with insults being traded on and off-air for many months. The biggest boo-ya of them all, was when Mr. BIG pinned TECW World Champion The Shott on Grit BasH and handed the belt to his protégé, The Assassin, who had joined TECW days earlier. A few days after that, Mr. BIG and Assassin famously threw the TECW belt in the trash. Ironically, after Biggie and Assassin threw the championship in the trash, which was the last we heard of TECW (which would later become NCW), a roadblock stood in the company's way of getting revenge on the TWF. The xTreMe Wrestling Alliance saw five elite promotions work together to secure their futures. NJS, who always admired Mr. BIG's promotional qualities, set up XCW, and the two promotions formed such a strong bond; they set up the NWA for 2000… the xWa. Slowly but surely, NCW was faded into the background, as the xWa expanded. The TWF got really serious about it, invigorating a whole identity change. From the promotion that spelt "hardkore" with a "K", the outlook changed slightly, with less emphasis on gimmicks, more on the superb talent that was on show. The seriousness showed on March 16, 2003; when the TWF officially announced that the Tremains moniker was to be dropped for a new name. Many feared the worst, thinking that the TWF would finally change its name. These fears were not realised. At a press conference held prior to No Way BacK, the TWF's birthday show, Mr. BIG infamously said "Well, you've feared the worst… we're changing… to TWF". Of course, he meant the Total Wrestling Federation, and unveiled the new logo, which was an updated version of the old TWF logo. Fans breathed a huge sigh of relief. The xWa then held its first supershow, a massive event to be held thrice-annually, with the biggest names from xWa promotions fighting for the top prizes in big arenas or stadiums for the most prestigious belts in the business, including the xWa Championship belt and the xWa Tag Team Championship Belts. Not forgetting the Total Wrestling Federation World Championship. On the afternoon of June 25, 2003 however; one of the TWF's biggest aims was achieved. Sky Sports News reported through the day that an announcement that would rock the world of wrestling would take place, and it did. At 3:04pm, The Shott, NCW Vice Chairman, took a rostrum at the NCW Dome and announced that NCW had secretly called in administrator’s months earlier, and was to be wound up. Suddenly, the world was shaken. The TWF had won. Champagne flowed, although in reality it shouldn't have. The TWF's survival was now assured. The dirty tricks of NCW could never be played again, for it was over. On the following broadcast, Mr. BIG, Mr. Edwards and Doug Edwards buried NCW in a grave and proclaimed that although the TWF "lost the battle", they did win the war. The "classic" TWF logo ‐ used from mid‐2002 to early‐2004. Throughout 2004 & 2005, the TWF continued to grow in strides. 2004 marked the first time in TWF history that all Pay-Per-View events were shown on their originally planned dates. In 2005, the TWF held it's first ever shows in the Middle East and Canada, held it's first shows in almost 4 years outside of Florida in the US, and signed long-term carriage deals for shows in Germany, Canada, the USA and the Middle East. As wrestling's popularities reached new lows, the TWF's popularity reached new highs. With the launch of the TWF Web and Discussion Forums, the TWF reached new markets, with TV deals in the Middle East and a TV Network, the xWa Network, now known as the xWn set up on both sides of the Atlantic. The train showed no sign of stopping. But, during the summer of 2005, speculation grew that the TWF as we knew it was going to end. At the end of one of the greatest professional wrestling cards of all-time, Summer Break VI, the TWF’s entire roster embraced in the middle of the ring to signify the end of an era. The TWF was not heard from for many months. Suddenly, Bridgend slipped into economic depression, proving Mr. BIG's statement from years ago that Bridgend needed the company more than the TWF needed Bridgend. The TWF Towers remained open, but slowly staff were being told not to come into work. The state of professional wrestling lead many to believe that TWF had finally shut up shop forever. Biggie knew that he would be the one to end the company and that he did. But, even he would be surprised at how bad things got as no-one heard from the TWF in months. Speculation was rife… was it all over? Had things finally run their course, just as Biggie had predicted in 2000, or was there something bigger waiting in the wings? The first fans knew of "the future" of the TWF was at a press conference at TWF Towers on March 12 2006. News was ablaze that something was going to happen, and it did. Almost a year to the day after he announced his retirement, Managing Director Mr. BIG announced that he had single-handedly negotiated a one-off show at the Somerfield Arena to be broadcast on Pay-Per-View called "One Night Only". If it was a success, Biggie proclaimed, the TWF could return in 2007. The internet was set ablaze with rumours and speculation about the event. When it finally happened, it managed to keep most happy. Old faces made returns, titles were defended, and torches were passed on. The overwhelming feeling was that the event was a big success. Nothing was said for the rest of 2006 however, leading fans to believe that Biggie had leaded them onto a false impression. But, on December 20 2006, the bombshell was finally dropped. At an RWF event, Mr. BIG, the man who helped resurrect that company in 2004, announced the biggest news in Welsh wrestling: the TWF was coming back. There would be a show in Orlando, the TWF's adopted second home, on January 7 called "When Worlds Collide" and the TWF would return full-time from there. Finally, all was right with the world. But, there was still one big piece of news left to be delivered. The TWF logo from 2004 to 2007. With Mr. BIG returning to regular competition, a new figure was needed in the TWF, with the absence of Mr. Edwards from the company. With many names linked, the most noted of which were Chris Jericho, Bret Hart, Terry Funk and Dusty Rhodes, a new TWF Commissioner was to be appointed. The show after Deadly MindGames would put to rest the rumours, when former TWF Broadcaster Paul Heyman made his first appearance in almost four years to announce that he had been voted by the TWF Board of Directors to serve his own brand of justice to the company. However, there was still more to come. The company had negotiated to bring back one of the stars from the pre-2007 era who held out due to personal reasons not to return in January, and his return would be made at that May pay-per-view, Last Man Standing. Speculation was rife as to the man's identity, with names of all kinds being tossed around as to who it could be. On May 20, 2007, The "Judge, Jury and Executioner" of the Total Wrestling Federation was revealed. The Assassin returned to a deafening roar and told the crowd in a heartfelt promo that he was glad the company was back and wanted to be the TWF World Champion once more. Upon his return, capitalising on his popularity, The Assassin made himself one of the most unpredictable superstars in TWF history, and fans flocked to see his every move. The TWF was reaching even greater heights than "the Golden Era" with Mr. BIG and Marz at the helm. The Assassin, along with old stalwarts such as Mr. BIG, Mastermind, Marz and Frekishi were joined by up-and-coming talent such as Disturbed, Zero, Eric Herrera and Hades. Ratings were flying through the roof. Despite awkward scheduling on Sky Sports, the TWF was out-rating the Premier League football coverage. But after getting messed around on Sky Sports, Mr. BIG struck a deal. The TWF would finally be available on Freeview. Sky Three would be Grit BasH's new home, its third channel in under three years. And, from August, it would be broadcast in high-definition, with the TWF becoming the very first wrestling company to do so. The TWF logo used from 2007 to 2017. The TWF continued its amazing climb from death bed to media sensation until one night in September. Many fans now refer to September 23 as "Black Sunday". The Assassin finally worked his way to a re-match with TWF World Champion, Mastermind at a sold out Staples Center in Los Angeles, the TWF's first ever West Coast PPV. After brawling for over thirty minutes and tearing the house down, TWF Commish Paul Heyman walked down to the ring. Heyman suddenly got in the ring, and suddenly, the three men smiled. Mastermind laid down for the Assassin! Assassin became a TWF World Champion once more, but Heyman announced that he was sick of the politicking that took place and decided that he needed to put a little fear back into the TWF. He would reform his Dangerous Alliance stable with the two biggest TWF stars - Mastermind & the Assassin. The men were prompted booed out of the arena and had beers, cans, bottles, toilet rolls and a whole host of other unpleasantries thrown at them. The roster was disgusted. They wanted Mastermind & The Assassin suspended without pay and banned from the company. But, Biggie refused to listen, which draw much ire from fans and wrestlers. Mr. BIG did know what he was doing however, at least in a business sense. The incident got EVERYBODY talking and suddenly ratings were going out of control. The first Grit BasH following Take No Prisoners recorded the highest ever ratings for a satellite broadcast, with over 10 million viewers, which destroyed ITV's Rugby World Cup coverage. More new stars began to appear, with the likes of Mick O'Brian, Sebastian Gross and Justin Polaris taking the professional wrestling world by storm. The TWF was on another roll. The roll continued when in November 2007, the TWF held it's first non-Summer Break 4-hour show, a special Dangerously Serious that was later voted professional wrestling's card of the year. The TWF managed to sweep the board at the Wrestling Observer and PWI Awards, winning international recognition. Mr. BIG was the winner of PWI's Wrestler of the Year, whilst The Assassin took WON's award. The TWF also won both publications Promotion of the Year award. The recognition however would lead to a snowballing of a minor incident. Sophie, Mr. BIG's best friend and valet fell pregnant, and Mr. BIG agreed to leave as Managing Director to help her with the pregnancy along with Sophie's fiancée. Paul Heyman had other ideas. Heyman swooped in, and in the words of many - "jobbed Biggie out of the company". Heyman claimed that Mr. BIG's booking of Dangerously Serious (despite critical and commercial acclaim - it became the TWF's biggest selling DVD release) was bordering on insane and used an economist to prove Biggie was losing the company money. The board went against Biggie and he was voted out of the board, with Heyman to be his replacement. Biggie commented backstage that he hated his position as MD however and was glad to be rid of it. Heyman completely shook the company, adding a company uniform, forcing wrestlers to arrive to all engagements in formal suits and renamed Dangerously Serious "November Pain", which many long time fans equated to "selling the naming rights to Buckingham Palace". These long time fans were surprisingly outnumbered, however, by those who wanted Heyman to succeed. A bigger surprise was to follow - the fans would turn against Mr. BIG for the first time in eight years after he publicly denounced the new ownership at the TWF's first TV show of 2008, leading to a famous promo he cut at the TWF's first pay-per-view of 2008. Many Heyman supporters called the promo "White Sunday", as Biggie announced he had finally turned his back on the company he founded and loved. BIG correctly claimed that without him "[South Wales] would be in economic squalor" and then proclaimed that should the Board of Directors call him up "after Heyman screws you all over… this time, there will be no knight in shining armour to pull it out of the doldrums like I did the last time I came back and turned this company around (referring to his return in 2002). And if there is, he's a fucking idiot". Mr. BIG left the company and toured the world, where he sold out venues based on his name alone, and fought incredible battles against some of the industries biggest names, which gave him many more fans the world over. Mr. BIG then released a book detailing the previous 12 months of his life entitled "Degrees of Sanity: The Whole Story" with Biggie describing in amazing detail what happened regarding Black Sunday - revealing for the first time he approved it taking place and saw it as an opportunity to elevate The Assassin and Mastermind. As ratings went sky-high, the decision drew plaudits backstage but Heyman was jealous of Biggie's success, and what Biggie described as "any one slip up, and Paul E would try and dissect it, tell-tale to the board and make me seem like the guy who wanted to ruin this company, when that was what he wanted to do". The Paul Heyman era TWF logo, used from January to August 2008. Paul Heyman set out to prove his critics right with his appointment and he did so in the first few months of his tenure as owner. Heyman was already popular with the fans for removing "that old, overrated, bigheaded talent less piece of shit", Mr. BIG. Viewers were reeled in by new names such as Jack Beam, Mike Haggar and Victor Ortega, whilst old hands such as The Assassin, Jean Claude Van Slam and a returning Marz giving old viewers a familiar name to support. However, support against Heyman evaporated after a number of incidents. Slowly, Heyman began to book matches strangely similar to previous feuds, which drew the ire of fans. He also removed the TWF World Champion from the main event of Pay-Per-View cards, which did not happen in 2007. Heyman's booking also left a lot to be desired, drawing parallels with late WCW booking under Vince Russo, and NCW booking in it's earlier stages. Attendances were down, despite going to new markets for the first time - including the company's largest ever tour of the UK (which still completely missed North Wales and Scotland). However, the incident that made Heyman infamous was when he learned of the miscarriage of Sophie in March. Heyman viciously mocked the emotional young woman with a tirade against her and her boyfriend, who she had split up from as a result of the miscarriage. The fans slowly who cheered Heyman at first booed him, and Heyman still continued, despite Sophie becoming an emotional wreck as his words continued. Eventually many roster members broke wrestling protocol and charged down to the ring and refrained Heyman from speaking any longer. Heyman even tried to force Sophie to wrestle whilst pregnant, but he brought further bad press on the company when the Health and Safety Executive informed him they would prosecute the company if they did. The capitulation of the company occurred at the moment Mr. BIG predicted it would in his prophetical speech in January, forcing many fans to jump to the conclusions that Biggie still had a connection to the company - this was disproved when the Dangerous Alliance mocked Biggie (despite both Assassin and Mastermind continuing to credit Biggie for starting/saving their lives/careers) by parking a white elephant in his old TWF Towers parking space. When Mr. BIG found out of the TWF's fortunes, he said he stopped speaking to Sophie as a result of his tour and hadn't watched the TWF when he left but famously said "Hate to say it… but I told (the Board of Directors) so". Slowly things got from bad to worse. As mainstream press picked up on the story, the returning NJS wanted no part of it and in a brilliant promo, denounced Heyman's ownership shortly after his return, claiming "You booed him when he left, but he was the only guy who could control this place - and now look at what we have in his place". The tide quickly turned against Heyman and his yes-men, with many superstars refusing to wrestle under his ownership, which meant suspensions were handed out freely, but the suspended talent quickly turned up elsewhere, using a clause in their contracts to appear in other shows. In July 2008, it was announced Heyman's contract would not be renewed. Speculation was rife that Mr. BIG would return to the company, but he repeatedly shot down the rumours citing his hatred for what he felt the TWF had become and knowing he would not be welcome back. NJS entered negotiations, but pulled out, as did Marz. At Summer Break IX, it would be announced who would succeed Heyman. To the surprise of the whole industry, Deadman defeated The Assassin in a hallmark moment for the TWF. However, his victory was achieved in a manner not thought possible, as Sophie made a shocking return, distracting Assassin after slapping some of Heyman's Dangerous Alliance cronies. NJS joined his family in the ring to celebrate Deadman's victory, whilst Sophie watched on from the aisle, as the under-capacity Millennium Stadium crowd made up for the lack of people with an emotional outburst of noise. Sophie made an address at the first show back, announcing Heyman was gone that, once he recovered from his neck/back operation, Mr. Edwards would return as TWF Chairman once more - stating Edwards would lead the TWF out of the darkness and back into the light. Sophie would assume the role of his secretary for the time being and she announced that Edwards's first decision was NJS would be back with the company in a matter of weeks once contractual issues were finalised. NJS lead the TWF into yet another golden age which was highlighted when he sensationally turned on his brother at Dangerously Serious in 2008, becoming a heel for the first time in many years. NJS's role in resurrecting the company was aided by his great supporting cast such as his associates in The Entourage. Sophie lost her Commissionership job back to Alexis Polaris however, and Alexis rules the TWF presently with an iron fist, as Mr. Edwards announced his retirement from active ownership due to his health. Lower down the card, new stars were coming through, giving hope to the TWF's fans that the company can continue to entertain in the years to come. |