All language subtitles for The.Beast.of.the.Bales.2024.720p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-FLUX

It is said

that within every man there is
an animal, a beast that simmers,

waiting to manifest

this creature caged
behind the bars

set by either
parents or society's

governing bodies.

Robert Louis Stevenson

in 1885 wrote about such
a phenomenon in the book.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

raising awareness
to this very fact.

This beast must never

overtake the
persona of its host.

It must remain confined.

However,

should the key to its cage be
turned, then the beast will rise

with the sole purpose to
dominate its surroundings.

Should external
forces hold this key,

chaos and disorder would rule.

It is for this reason,

and this reason alone,

the discipline
and self-awareness

be the jailors that hold
the key to the beast cage.

With both these
governing authorities

presiding over its release,
David Radford is such a man.

He's the jailer to
his inner beast.

However,

within this custodial
relationship,

there is but one
question that remains.

Who has the power?

Is it the beast or is it

the jailer?

This is my journey.

Hemsworth

A small village
in West Yorkshire,

nestled amongst like
for like villages

in that area.

Hemsworth first mentioned as
far back as the Domesday book,

in 1086.

Then through the ages, in the
middle of the 16th century,

it could boast its own
hospital and school.

As time moved on in the middle of
the 19th century, Hemsworth became

what was termed a
one industry town,

and that was that
of coal mining.

Now, this lasted
to the mid 1980s,

when the pits were
finally closed.

Yeah, it was a lively village.

And then when the mines
closed in the village

A lot of them men
worked down the pit.

So everyone's struggling for jobs
and it was like a little depression,

you know, and the entire
community was struggling

and at one stage was
classed as one of the most

deprived places in Europe.

And then the money come rolling in and it just
boosted it and brung it all back to life again.

Now, some men are born fighters.

They come into this world
kicking and screaming,

protest, shouting against the
handling of the attending midwife

on the 30th of May 1969.

Dave Radford was
born into the loving

Radford family,

As his mother, Shirley

and his father, Terry, held him.

Little did they know
or could even conceive

what fate had planned for him

as he negotiated
the maze of life

where he would emerge

to become Britain's middleweight

bare knuckle champion.

But to Dave, equally as
important as that title,

he would become an
ambassador for his sport

that the majority misunderstand.

Yeah, it’s good to be back dad.
I’ve drove up this morning,

This is where it started, David.

You were born here and we’ve had a
lot of good memories it brings back.

Yeah, everything.

Everything comes from this little
bubble in here, do you know what I mean,

I've just been up here now to put my clothes
in the little bedroom, and I'm thinking,

well, I have not
been any for years.

That little, little
bedroom like that.

That were my bedroom, you
know, absolutely brilliant.

But, 50 odd years of memories

Can you remember Benjy?

That black dog.

He were killing machine.

Can you remember
when he got lost?

When you took him to
the vet and he got lost

in Barnsley.

And vets must have
opened the door

and he got out.

And we used to go around for
a long time walking around

looking around, shouting him. And
we couldn't find him for 2 weeks.

And then we sat watching telly and he
walked what we were endeavoring to monitor.

They were interviewing someone

and he walked along, he
walked along didnt he!

Anyway, we got him back.

Yeah, I always remember
collecting my scrap

Bringing my scrap home and er,

Getting all in the garden
there, it were like a

And then I would ring Gordon up,
and Gordon would send the man up

with the pickup
and put in all on.

And I used to

make a decent bit of money
at that age of 14 year old.

But can you remember that
what that you call it, car

that old Ford?

The old Ford car.

Old scrap car.
Aye, old scrap car.

And you said, dad, can I knock
that to pieces and get the scrapman

to come and pick it up.

So you worked on that car for
about a fortnight chopping it.

Piece by piece

And then you sent for
scrapman and he says

20 quid

Aye, he said if you brought it
down whole, I’d have give you 30!

And I spent, I spent two
weeks chopping it up.

I remember coming home and
telling you I was going to become

a boxer in that gym, that
opened down in Hemsworth.

I remember going down first night, and I
never, never had a fight in my life really.

I think I had one at school and only won
that one because she had asthma attack

went down one at nights

These two young lads
think I was 16 at the time

There were two lads about 13

what already boxed and I got
in the ring with one of them

and I thought, I’ll
be all right here

and he give me a good
hiding and then I got in

with the other one, and
he give me good hiding

I’ll always remember walking home
thinking he’ll not do that next time.

But it happened for
six or seven months

They realize what
I'm doing then.

Yeah but I never thought David

When you little lad,
you were so placid

and so laid back.

I never thought in my wildest
dreams you'd have been a boxer.

I know. And I didn't
really know myself dad.

And then I didn't
know what happened

I always remember having a fight

bit of a do with someone on Crosshills
and it wasn’t supposed to have happened.

And it happened.

And I impressed this bloke

and he said to me he‘s opening
a boxing gym tomorrow, er Monday

and I walking up home
thinking he thinks I’m hard.

And that’s the only explanation I
can give I won't have a clue what got

I mean, I often wonder
about my friends at school

I haven’t seen them for years and
years, but they’re same as yourself.

You said there, never
would have thought

Who would have thought that I
would have been a fighting man

do you know what I mean

from boxing to cage fighting to bare
knuckle fighting to unlicensed boxing,

It was a surprise to myself,
you know what I mean.

I wonder if thats where I have inherited
my mining days from Dad, doing me,

you know, pipe jacking

and things, where
you’ve been an ex-miner.

Did you work at Hemsworth pit?

I worked at Hemsworth

I think I had seven
years at Hemsworth.

They used to call it
bread and herring pit.

Because there were no mechanism,

It was just ponies I
think we had two shafts

It was ponies down there then?

We’d had nearly 150

And it was pick and shovel.

You know what I mean like,

just braying at that wall
with a pick and shovel

We used to chip a
bit out of the bottom

What were er, Were
it timber heading

Did you have timber above you?

Oh yeah.

You got to do because you
couldnt take your coal

You couldn’t axe out coal.

Yeah, you know what I mean.
Yeah, I didn't realize.

Or pit ponies down like in
your time and when you were

Mining. Aye that’s

pick and shovel.

And then I went from Hemsworth

‘cause my brothers

I had two brothers,
they worked at Hemsworth

My dad worked at Hemsworth

and my Dad’s brothers
worked at Grimethorpe

They're was a big family of
us that worked at Grimethorpe.

And I did more or
less nearly 20 year

with both.

As Dave grew

both Dave and all
those around him

actually had no idea what
destiny had planned for him,

what role he would
need to fulfill.

So at this time he just remained
camouflaged with the rest of his friends

and peers, with ill fitting
clothes, kicked out trainers

riding bicycles that
were a mutation.

Life was hard.

It gave very little praise
and even less presents.

That was all apart
from his mother.

As Dave returned home
from school every day,

she would ask the same question,

And what's my little
man been up to today?

What the purse or the
wallet couldn't pay for

Dave's imagination funded

and never more so as it paid for
entry into Hemsworth's answer

to the complete adventure
pack for all children.

Or, basically the collection
of derelict buildings

just across the street
from where Dave lived.

Once here with his friends, he
would join the ranks of soldiers

fighting invading forces.

Now you could say

that was this destiny,
preparing Dave for the battles

that he was to have in the
future, in the Brickyard pond,

In the Brickyard pond,

in his vessels, with his
shipmates, he would fight pirates

and also watch as sea monsters,
try to capsize his vessel.

And here the necessity
to swim was met with.

Again, was destiny

preparing Dave with
upper body strength?

Dave Schooling, his education.

Well, I think it would be fair
to say that Dave's education

took more of a hands on route rather
than the customary, academic route.

His lessons included canoeing.

Now, again,

was this to prepare Dave
for throwing his weight

For moving his shoulders as he
put his paddle against the water.

But the other benefit
this gave, Dave,

was a somewhat
flexible timetable

which allowed him

to sneak back out
through the school gates.

To once again walk
through his front door

in silence

with the objective to
help his mother out

with the housework

as she is self slept upstairs

after finishing a night
shift at the local hospital.

At the time in Hemsworth, there was
a man that lived on the streets.

His name was Cyril.

People would either
walk past him at best

or cross the road to avoid him.

Not Dave.

Dave would go home,
make a cup of tea

and take it back to Cyril.

He would then give Cyril

the best gift one human
can give to another.

And that was the gift of time.

Dave would sit and listen to

Cyril, listen to the stories
that he would tell the boy,

and in doing so,

acknowledge that Cyril
was a human being.

Yeah, this was Blue Bell pub.

I’ve had many, many a fight in there
and outside, and on this ground.

Never ever caused it, I've
always had to defend myself

My first ever fight there

was when my sister
Gail rung me up

and she says ‘you
need to get down here’

‘there's some trouble’

So I come down

and erm,

there were all big gang
should around and everything

they were having a
go with my brother

It finished up, this fella

saying you know, and everyone
were laughing and things

So I stood there and said,
He’ll not fight you, but I will.

Well, everybody laughed then

A skinny little thing

but I were sober

For some reason, I don't
know where it come from

I hit him and knocked
him to the ground

and everyone was

It just went silent,
it went silent.

A change in events, a
collision of circumstances.

Now most renowned people
can trace this back

to were fate, nudged
them to take a specific

fork in the road

and to walk a path

that would lead them
to their notoriety.

The young Dave Radford, up
until this point in his life

had remained camouflaged,

grouped amongst his friends.

For the first time, Dave Radford

heard the beast, his
inner beast growl

as it passed the cage
and clawed at the bars

as the young Dave Radford

held his fist
skyward and marveled

at what he attained

Again,

Fate had played its hand,

It placed somebody
in that crowd,

Dave's friend,
Shaun Higginbottom.

Shaun approached Dave and informed him
that his father had opened the boxing gym

and advised Dave to attend.

But I was thinking to myself,
this lad thinks I’m hard

Do you know what I
mean, So I went down and

I ended up

starting my boxing
career down there, but

I didn't know how to hold
my hands or anything, and

I got a good hiding every
night when I went down

And then I started
getting better and that

and then when things starting
happening, whereas I was

you know, still only a skinny
little lad, a eleven stone lad

So whenever I was
out and people saying

He’s a boxer

They wouldn’t have
it, these big lads

and they’d forever

Take mickey out of me,

It’d always finish up fighting

Do you know what I mean

I’d end up having
to hit someone.

It worked every time for me,
you know, worked every time.

But,

When I started bare knuckle fighting
and it came on YouTube and things

People seen me then

and I'd be able to
go out and relax.

So people,

Didn’t want to hassle me then.

Do you know what I mean,
Didn’t want to hassle me then.

And they didn’t want to know.

But I’d get a handshake
rather than a stare

and it were nice, and thats

I didn’t want trouble,
do you know what I mean.

But er,

like I say,

you don’t have to go
looking for trouble

It happens anytime

Do you know what I mean.

And when Alan opened

YMCA

of course it were a new
thing in the village.

So everybody wanted
to have a look

and I went down

and you walked through the door

and that’s when I

when I first got to know you as
the would be boxer a type of thing.

I wish you would have turned
round to Alan and said

He’s barred!

And I wouldn’t have
gone through it!

But yeah I mean,

well, looking back now it’s
how we met and we started

we did a lot at Alans and then

starting doing a bit
of training at yours

if you remember,

we used to do some
pad work upstairs.

Yeah upstairs, I’d
converted all the attic.

Yeah

Carpet down and

done walls out and that

do a bit of weight training
and that wouldn’t we

not too much like,
but a bit of punch bag

didn’t we, and hand pads

hand pads

yeah

That was as well as going to gyms
though two or three times week.

That were extra like, wasn’t it.

Yeah, different gyms. Yeah

I was,

I remember you saying
from that moment I knew

that you were going to be a
fighter, you know, I did like.

Yeah, that's what I knew.

Yeah. Yeah.

But, you seen me
with the pro game

Another fighter I got on with

I think it was my first,
first professional fight and

He got in ring and

and a few people
comments saying, you know

what's this boy

It’s like a welterweight
getting in with a heavyweight?

Well, I was stood with your dad

He came out first

like he come out first
and he walks to ring

I looks at the dad, the dad
looks at me as if to say

he's come out to wrong fight

He's not fighting
our Dave surely?

But he was...

and can you remember Dave

Manager said I'm sorry Dave,
I won't do that to you again.

Yeah.

Afterwards

I wonder how many times he
should apologise again and again

‘cause I got to do more
than once Pete didn’t I

Yeah, yeah.

But

Dave, you never lost a fight

That was fair 50/50
you never lost one.

Yeah.

You only lost against
bigger kids and

but the thing is
what it is, Dave,

they look at the boxing record and it
says Dave Radford beat by so-and-so,

but it don't say so-and-so were
three stone heavier than Dave.

It just said beat by

So they don't see
it, Dave do they

They just read a
record and think god

Look there, you know what I mean

Yeah.

They don’t know truth

Yeah, I had some

had some very bad mismatches
Pete didn’t I really...

I bet, I bet,

75% of the fights
Dave were mismatched

Yeah.

But not mismatched in
your favour though, Dave.

It was always mismatched
in opponents favour.

Want it, know what I mean.

Yeah

Two stone

I bet some of them were
two and half stone heavier

You know and

Well you see with it

If I’m fighting a guy
that’s two stone heavier

I've got everything on
me I’ve got the weight

I've got the clinch
I’ve got everything but

All it is for him is
he’s beating me and

he’s going up the rankings here

and I'm going lower down because

I've not won but

It doesn’t show you there
that I’m fighting a guy

I'm up against it all

Do you know what I mean

No, yeah.

I don't know if
you remember Dave

We went to one show
and we got weighed in

Can you remember a kid called
Alan Pennington from Liverpool?

Right broad scouse?

No

He gets on scales, chuffing
hell, chuffing hell

I’m 11.4

That's right. yeah.

He said

He said, well what did
they put you down as?

11.2

Ah well go on then,
we’ll make it 11.3

Yeah.

So they put him down at 11.3
and we saw him get on the scales

at 12 stone four.

Yeah, that happened
a-lot didn’t it.

It happened all the time

It is scandalous

And that's all just to let the

to make sure fights
happen that night

because crowd had
paid to get in there

and if there was
only 3 fights on

when there should be 15 on

I just seemed to be on the back
end all the time didn’t I really

I mean

and you never
complained Dave once

I was managed wrong do
you know what I mean, but,

best thing that
happened to me was

meeting Trevor Carrigan,
you know, brilliant

two great trainers there, James
Walker and Trevor Carrigan.

All he was bothered
about was boxers.

He wasn’t bothered about, you
know, making money or whatever.

And that's how it was.

Well, but I mean, he got me the Duran
fight, you got me, you know, Copenhagen

Yeah.

I were looked after with
him, he got me Belfast and

Yeah.

He got you some
decenters didn’t he

Yeah.

He got me up to
9 in the country.

One of the fights
that stick in me mind

when I fought Dave Larkin

Dave Larkin

Yeah.

Now, Dave Larkin had
a good, good manager.

I think he was Micky Duff

He was

A lot better boxer than
me and everything because

He’d been doing it
a lot longer and

He fought and been
managed properly.

Very good amateur career.

And I was thinking, I
ain’t gonna win this one,

but

I wasn’t bothered about that

It was the villages

Do you know what I'm saying

His village, our
village and things and

I always remember,

big crowds, yeah

It weren’t just boxer
against boxer was it,

It was village against
village wasn’t it

Yeah and I was
thinking to myself,

I didn’t want this fight,
I'm thinking, no, no, no.

But, I took the fight.

If you’d have lost that everyone
else would have linched you

yeah, yeah

I’d have been like
Guy Fawkes Village.

But erm,

anyway, when that happened,

Dave were a, as I say, a very
skillful boxer and everything

and I just couldn't believe
on the night it went my way

and I ended up winning
on points, but erm

I did not think that
were gonna happen.

Well we used to train at a few
places didn’t we, we used to do

obviously, YM with you

when we first started

then over to Batley in Dewsbury

But then we’d also
do my loft, didn’t we

Yeah.

And then can you remember Dave when
we used to go above King's head

Me and you and then Eddie
faces started coming and that.

But it was always Pete

It was always after
work wasn’t it because

Yeah.

Still had to work, doing a

working

eight, nine hour shift and
going straight home, bathed,

straight to the gym again,
do you know what I mean

Most of them boxers in the gym,
they've been in bed all day.

Yeah.

So they would have more
energy wouldn’t they, and

Thats how it was.

On our nights off
not going to the gym,

I’d be up at yours in the loft,

Yeah.

We'd be doing a bit
of light weights.

Yeah, bit of light weights

I always remember it
was never heavy weights

We had a punch bag up like

Punch bag up and hand pads

bit of sparring

It's always our favourite
isn’t it, hand pads

Yeah.

It’s always our favourite
exercise isn’t it.

Yeah.

Your getting your
power out there.

Yeah. You get your power.
You get your timings.

Yeah

You get your speed

you get the lot don't you.

But going back to work,

As I say I’ve worked
with you over the years

But erm,

I remember being at Barnsley
I was pipelaying there

I was on 10 hour shifts

and I get up in the
morning and I used to

a 4, a six, a eight
and a 4 run a week.

You know on a morning
I’d get up at 5am

running

get back, have a bath

I’d go in my car,
start work at 7am

I'd finish at 5pm

get in my car

still in Barnsley, I’d go
down road and park it up,

James used to come pick me up

and then I’d go from
there to Huddersfield.

Pro-Gym there, I
used train in there

I get back about
half nine at night

get in the car and come home

I’d be out the house 18
hours some of the times

and, not a lot of
boxers did that

I mean, a lot of years wasn’t it

Probably going back what,

about 35 years since you walked
through that door down there

Yeah, yeah.

When's the next fight tha’ say

I like that ending...

I love that ending...

Hey, you think I'm joking?

Don’t you

You think I'm joking?

Don't let Michelle here you,
don’t let Michelle hear you.

This is where my first gym was

I think I was

maybe

19 / 20, or something like that

But this place itself

It were my drinking
place when I was younger

and I've had a lot of fights
here do you know what I mean

People from other
villages that erm,

that needed disciplining, do
you know what I mean because

they’d come and they’d

see a small little
lad like me and

looking at my reputation

what I had they couldn't
believe it sometimes

Do you know what I mean

I’ve fought many a
fight in this pub and

George and Bell across the road

but yeah I did a lot
of fighting up here but

I remember one day

I think was me and nasty
Neil Neil Coleman we was

fighting on the floor

we were giving each
other some fists and was

smothered in blood

and door opened

and I just managed to look
to the side and there was a

A fella with a

youngish lad, maybe 12 or 13.

And when I looked again they was

They were like that.

And then we carried on

And then we’d finished

I could hear these

going down the steps

So I jumped up and went
after them and said ‘hey’

‘What do you want to join?’

He said I’ve come here for
my son to join, he said.

But this is wrong
place for me, he said.

Wrong place for him, he said.

But I said, No, no, no.

You've got it all wrong.

And I explained to him, but yeah, I've had
some very nasty sparring sessions up there.

You know what I
mean, very nasty and

Neil Coleman, Gav Keane

There's er,

I started with young
George, I mean,

young George Probert was up here

Mark Oates

On a Sunday morning sometimes

I’d shout Mark or
Mark would shout me

Do you fancy a couple
of hours like but,

Nice and steady, we both
agreed nice and steady.

So I'd say yeah, anyway

Probably Mark would get me in a

we were fighting
on the floor then

He’d get me in a move and I
couldn’t get out of this move.

And I wasn't going to tap...

the only way I could get out of
it was maybe drop head on him.

So I’d drop head on him

and that were it then

and then

4 or 5 elbows into chops
he’d to get me then

Sunday dinner would
be in the bin and

soup again because I couldn’t
open my mouth to get my

dinner in, chew my ‘taties

but erm

yeah this has been
absolutely a god-send to me.

You know, being on
my own doorstep.

Now, Dave may have
found his first gym

a place where the

underdeveloped and ill
coordinated limbs of this juvenile

beast would learn
and be developed.

The place was within
the bull ropes.

Their strength gained

and their movements
coordinated by pitting himself

against outmatched opponents.

Now, Dave's development as
a boxer got to such a point

whereby the custody
of this young fighter

needed to be given to
somebody who had the ability

to see his full potential,

as well as the aptitude

and the skill to place
Dave onto a world stage

where everybody could see
the level he had attained.

Now, that man, being no
other than James Walker.

We got an offer for a
real step up for Dave.

And this guy called
Davey Johnson

Everyone was talking about him.
They thought he was the new

Herol ‘bomber’ Graham at
the middleweight division.

He was, hit you and you
never hit him, he was

moving all round,
beautiful skills

really really really good boxer
and we were fighting with him

I think it was a ten round
or an eight round, a fight.

And, and we started losing the fight
because Davey Johnson was a better boxer.

Far better boxer.

But

Dave's determination
and Dave's belief.

I remember we went out
for the round and he was

and it was Davey Johnson was
just getting the better of him.

I said, you’re gonna have to get
to him and he knocked Dave down.

And it wasn't the
strength of the punch,

it was the accumulation of
lots of punches, you know.

And I said to him,
determination, determination.

And he got a bit frustrated
because he couldn't.

And anyway, they came into
the corner right above us.

And they were there and
Dave just let this left go

and he was just up, just
pop and it went that far

and it crumpled
and he was gone and

Dave knew it hurt him.

And Davey Johnson, he
was fine in the end.

He went to hospital, unfortunately,
but it was unbelievable.

And it was like, wow, well,
you know, this is amazing.

And he beat Davey Johnson.

He had his strength

That was his strength he
had his determination.

But he could, his
hands were dynamite

he could hit with both hands and they
were and they were heavy hitting hands.

And Dave had a fantastic jab.

One of the best
jabs I've ever seen.

Real solid jab, they hurt.

The hurt as hard as
any most people's

right hands.

And then we got a
fight with a kid called

Martin Jolly

What a tough lad
Martin Jolley was

Classed as a journeyman

But if you beat Martin Jolley
you were a good fighter.

He was so tough and I knew it was
going to be a tough fight for Dave.

I knew it was, and we
trained hard for it.

And again, I said to him,
It's all about that jab.

It's all about that

that devastating punch.

And he beat Jolley and
he sickened Jolley.

And in the end, Jolley came up to me
at the end of the fight and he said,

he says, I've never
been as hard with a jab

and Jolley as fought the majority of
the middleweight champions in England.

And he said, ‘I've never
been solidly hit as hard.’

And for that kid to say
that was, was amazing.

And then we got the
call to go to Belfast

and we went over and we were fighting
the next big thing, Danny Ryan

and Danny could punch with both
hands, but he was a little bit

like Davey Johnson, very
slick, very good boxer.

The first time I fought
him, I got a draw with him.

It was very close and I got
the draw but I did break my

break my hand in the second
round so I fought, I fought

another 4 rounds with a broken
fist, I think it was a 6 round fight

and yeah, Danny was a nice lad

But then I went to Africa,

I come back from Africa and I jumped
in with Danny again for the second time

and he stopped me
in the second round.

And he put me down.

I got back up saying I slipped,
which I thought I had slipped.

But when I've watched it back now I
know he puts me down and then Referee

joined us together,
we fight again. And

He ends up stopping
me, Referee stopped him

He’s a cracking lad is Danny

You know I had a good erm,

A good conversation with
him, we talked about his

obviously Irish are my
grandmother are both Irish, so

we had a good crack
together, it was alright.

Once again, fate
would dial the phone,

but this time it would be James
Walker that would pick it up.

And the voice coming
out of the earpiece

would offer Dave a
monumental point in his life,

as well as a
fantastic opportunity

in his boxing career.

So, of course, when
I put phone down,

where are you?

And if I remember I was ringing around
everyone ringing your dad, ringing home

and no one knew where you were.

I was at my sister's plastering

I’d got a couple
of week off work

and she wanted some work doing

and I was plastering
her kitchen.

And I was halfway
through, I’d got it

I got it on the
wall and everything.

I think you rung Michelle,

you said, you know,
I’ve got you a fight

We have to fly tomorrow,
It’s South Africa,

I says, ‘South Africa?’

He says ‘yeah’, I says

‘yeah, no worries’, he went

‘well don’t you wanna
know who you’re fighting?’

I says ‘Who am I fighting?’

He went, ‘Roberto Duran’
I went, ‘he’ll kill me!’

But, you packed your
bag as quick as anything

and to your credit, you never
asked how much the purse were

we were just down and

and straight down to Heathrow

and we drove

from the airport to the
center of Johannesburg

and we got out the van. And

and we got out the van. And

it was the scariest thing
I've ever done in my life

walking if you remember.

I remember that it was

It was a very scary place, looking
over my shoulder all the time wasn’t it

Well, it

You could hear you
remember those gunshots

all the time

and then it was gloves on time.

Do you remember that? Do you
remember when the gloves went on?

Yeah, I remember then

that's when my head
went into shape.

And I said right, you
know, this is it now

I'm going out to war, and now I
remember I always go into that mode,

you know, when I put the gloves
but I was very nervous, you know,

it didn’t matter because
them people didn’t know me

but it was who I was fighting
do you know what I mean

and I’m just thinking
to myself, you know

I've watched this man on television
and I always thought he was a beast

Do you know what I mean and then
I'm getting in and fighting him.

So yeah but, I was

very, very nervous.

I mean, it was let's be honest,
he was number three in the world.

And you were, I don't know,

200 in the world at that point,
the world before you fought him.

So then the knock on the door came
and it was time for us to, to go in.

And the security guard opening
the door and just being hit

by the cameras and the
lights and the people.

And we came down and
they walked us through.

But yeah, that took it for me.

It was breathtaking looking at
the crowd and everything and that

But then I’m mooching around there all of
a sudden I looked at the side of the ring

and who were at ringside there, one
of me heroes, marvelous Marvin Hagler

suffering Jesus

I was gobsmacked.

And same as when
Duran got in the ring

the first thing I want to go
over and shake his hand and say

you know he was one of
my heroes as well and

and I was fighting
him, so it was

So I had to keep myself
in that zone and you know,

forget it all day,
forget it all. And

but yeah, it was

in that ring it was

It was a dream, you know,
what you see on television

and fighters get into ring and there's
all this crowd there and everything

and it happened for me do
you know what I mean and

yeah it was

amazing, it was brilliant

but to fight in that heat

and to fight 3 minutes
rounds, and to fight Duran

I was thinking to myself this
is, this is not looking good.

This is not looking good
specially with the heat but

Like I say, ding ding,
round one started

When I was fighting Duran, I was
struggling with the heat and breathing

but it was different class.

You know, a world title
level you know to a British

title more or less type of
thing or someone in the top ten.

It just seemed to
be his body movement

He’d come to the
body bang to the body

and you were tense,
you had to tense up

to take this shot, big
hard shot to the body

and then he’d more or less know

he might stick a jab in me

knowing then

I could breathe

to get my air

soon as I’ve to, breathe

your man would
drop downstairs and

come in again, do you know
what I mean, and it was

his skill level

knowing when I breathing
when I wasn’t breathing,

when to hit me, when not to
hit me, when I needed that air.

Your man would drop down and
put it in again so that I got

short breaths, you
know what I mean?

And that's a different level
altogether, you know, world champion

You know what I mean?

I think five time
world champion.

I end up having an hernia
operation after that.

I ended up

He hit me low, er,

three or four times

I noticed when I was getting
in the shower I got a

lump and I'm thinking,
you know what is this

he bust the wall of my stomach

and I ended up having
an hernia operation.

And a lot of fighters
will agree with me on this

you can get up from
a good chin shot

but you won't get up
from a good body shot.

When you get one in
the rib cage there

A good body shot your not
getting back up from that

before 10 do you
know what I mean?

This one I went

into a dressing room
afterwards, erm,

To meet, to have a
proper meet with him.

Absolute gentlemen.

These gloves.

These gloves what you’ve
hit me with a few times

These are the original gloves

I fought Roberto
Duran in these gloves.

They gave him me
them on that night.

They gave me them, to put on.

I went to Duran's dressing room

and they agreed I
could have the gloves.

And your man signed them there

they're better than anything.
You know what I mean

they're better than anything. And
they've got his DNA on, my DNA on

They are the original gloves
I fought Roberto Duran in, and

They might have a bit of
Michelle’s DNA on, ‘cause

She’s hit me with them
a few times, haven’t you

There’s this one here

Hemsworth boxer,
verge of top ten.

I always wanted to

I've always wanted
to get in top ten,

you know, I used to buy
boxing news and read it and

look at ratings and
things like that and

my dream was to
be in the top ten.

And I fought Duran and then
ended up being in the top ten.

So I was really, really
pleased with that.

The Roberto Duran fight
propelled Dave up the rankings

and the wave that he rode and allowed
all in the boxing world to see him.

But as we know,

all waves at some point
must come crashing down.

And when they do so,

they change the landscape.

When Dave's wave
came crashing down,

the view of his boxing career

changed forever.

The accident broke Dave's bones,

but it also fractured
his boxing career.

When I had that
accident at Huddersfield

that were a bad situation that.

Yeah, yeah.

Well I remember
when that happened

getting a phone call,

off your ex-wife called me and will I take
her to hospital, you’ve had an accident.

So again, I flew through

seen you laid there

absolutely devastated because the fine
fit young man that went to work that day

was in just in a
horrible place, to me

you were on death's door.

They reckoned it would
have killed any normal man

They reckoned it would
have killed any normal man

It probably would have.

Say I was down, down
the shaft, 48 foot deep.

So we're digging, digging away.

And then every now and
again, you sink the shaft.

You push the shaft from the top.

But every time we're pushing the cage
would come down, we'd get in the cage.

Then we'd go out of the shaft

But anyway, the top man
had gone away to the toilet

and then Patsy shouted to me,
he said, ‘We're going to push’

So I give him thumbs up.

I carried on because usually it take
about 5 minutes for cage to come down.

So I'm walking away and then all of a
sudden I put jackhammer into the ground

and John got out of the machine

and

I never looked up, but I was
waiting for the Cage to come down.

Then all of a sudden,
the shaft dropped.

It went

John went ‘Borrrr’

and I laughed at him, I
remember laughing at him.

But I didn't know
what had gone off was

Patsy said to your
man, I'm going to push

Well he’d

the top man had gone to
tip, gone to the toilet.

So the engineer walking by

so he pushed a button
to push the shaft

and not knowing, you know,
what he should have been doing.

And as the shaft dropped

there were some metal shoes
that weighed just about 2 stone.

And they fell in

there were four,
but two were on rope

they weighed two,
two and a half stone

er, one

hit me on top of my head

but luckily enough
them helmets George

You know what what I mean, you
think that they’re nowt are they but

Yeah.

That saved me

That hit me on top of
my shoulder and broke

broke my collarbone, big
plate in my collarbone

my jaw, six vertebrae’s
in my back I’ve crushed

but I was the lucky one

John bless him, he

he ended up paralyzed like,
he’s in a wheelchair now but,

No, it was a sad
time, it was horrible

to see two fit men
going to work one day

one mistake from one man
that has knackered two lives.

I woke up and looked

and there was about this
much water in the shaft

it were all red

There were paramedics here, so I
don’t know how long I were out.

Well, fire service
had to get you out.

I was looking around
thinking, what's going on?

And then that just got John in
a stretcher who, took him out.

Anyway, the story behind it, when
whatever the inquest, the inquest

them shoes what fell in

the weighed two and a half stone,
and were traveling at 60 mile an hour

and weighed just over a ton.

Well I lucky enough

Well unlucky enough to go visit the
site and I looked into the shaft

and it was, I don't know
how many meters it was

but it was scary the fact that
something of a substantial size

and weight could fall off the
hydraulic ram that it was connected to.

It could have been a simple safety
pin that stopped it doing that

It nearly killed two men.

Paralysed one man, that’s

Yeah.

But anyway that was work experiences
and you live and you learn

That, as I say I were a

young fit man then that

professional boxing license
was took off my straight away

so I had no license

Obviously your license got taken
away from you, your boxing license.

Which you loved boxing,
training, fighting.

So you had to move
on to something else.

Well, what could I do, British
board of boxing control

took your license away from you.

Never asked if they could

No, no, they didn’t have to,
with the condition of you.

Eventually went I

when I could walk and get myself back
right, I had to try and clear me head

because I was down and depressed
because I couldn’t work

I ended up going for long walks.

And I remember

Sunday morning taking me daughter
for a walk, I was taking Becky.

We got to the gate and I
looked into the cul-de-sac

and I saw a car on fire...

Part of Dave's rehabilitation.

To aid him back
to a full recovery

was to take a daily walk.

On one particular morning, he set
off with his daughter Rebecca,

with the aim to walk
to the local shops.

Now, as Dave exited his front
gate, he would normally turn right

on this particular morning

he actually looked left

there in the street was a parked

car stationary without
its engine running

and he couldn't

understand what drew his
attention towards this car.

But as Dave approached, he
started to see thin wisps of acrid

smoke escaping from the vehicle

through the window seals.

As Dave approached the car, he
looked through the blackened glass.

The sight that met his
eyes stopped his heart

and lifted his stomach.

There in a child seat,

was a small child, motionless,

Dave frantically opened the door

and with a strength that
he could not fathom,

assisted by the heat of the flames,
he held both sides of the child seat

and ripped the melting
plastic straps from the car.

He held the child in the
street, wishing the fresh,

clean air would fill
the child's lungs.

Dave's next action was to
run back down the path.

That only seconds
earlier, he'd walked up

to dial 999

and contact the
emergency services.

Now, it is said

that there is a
plan for all of us

a predetermined screenplay

that at times we
cannot understand.

Now, if that block of
steel hadn't had fallen

or if Dave hadn't been in
the bottom of that pit.

Would have been anybody

to pull that child
from the burning car.

And if, in fact, there was,
would they have had the strength

to rip the child seat
from the anchoring straps.

I remember I went to Doncaster

and I was in the dressing room
with Neil and Gavin and I just said

So whats up with him, he said

His opponents not turned up.

I went, oh right.

So I just went over
and I said to him,

‘Are you all right?’ He said,
‘My opponents not turned up’

I said, ‘What do you
weigh?’ he went, ‘14 stone’

I says, ‘I’m 14 stone, I‘ll
fight you’ He say’s ‘what?’

I says

‘what it is mate,

I've been to shows and my
opponents not showed up in boxing.’

I said, but it does,
it's upsetting.

I said, But I’ve done a bit
of cage fighting training

but if you wanna have a
fight tonight, I’ll fight you

You sent me to
the car for shorts

And I’ve got a pair of shoes on

And I mean, I had my shoes

We’d gone to watch

Then I walked in and

First ever cage fight you gave
a good account of yourself.

Yeah, I ended up beating
this guy, but erm,

I’ve took lot of
fights on short notice

When I fought

Michael Bisping,
that was another one.

You realise that he went
on to be a UFC champion.

He never did, did he?

The thing is with
you, you turn up

You don't care what the man is on
the other side of the, your opponent.

You’ll just turn up,
and have a good go.

Give a good account of yourself.

Like you say, although
you lost to him

He’s turned on to be
one of the greats.

But you’ve never turned
a fight down yet...

No, but I wish I’d have
stopped at home that night.

Well, you’ve seen it how
it happened, when you go

when you go to these
bareknuckle fights.

And it’s, when it first
started a long time back

in nightclub, F-club

You’d go and your opponent
would turn up so it’s

Well you look same size
him, you fight him.

You know nothing about the
man, nothing at all. But

if he

If your game enough.

If you want to fight you
have a fight and that’s it

It’s

Win, lose or draw

Yeah, it’s

taking part and

having a good old scrap

to walk away and people say

'That were a right scrap
that’ that time you know it’s

I want to win every time but If I don’t
win, as long as it's talked about that fight

do you know what I mean, it’s

it’s erm,

giving people the money's
worth, do you know what I mean.

Dave Radford in
side control here

and he’s tapped! He’s tapped!

Mark Goddard what’s he doing?
looking at the ring girls?

Come on Mark, the
guy has tapped.

Oh nice.

And there we go, he’s seen
it now he’s stepped in

beautiful, beautiful
on one hour’s notice

Dave’s been in there with
everybody, he’s a good fighter

a tough guy, a hard man, a
very hard man, well done.

When you’re used
to having all that

well do I call it punishment?

What I'm saying all that,
all that aggression,

the fighting and
things like that.

And then all of a
sudden to say it stops

you don’t do it anymore

It doesn’t just stop

You know what I mean,
you carry on, yeah, er

So yeah I got no license

so I ended up training
people actually, and then

when Neil and Gav
Keane come down

They asked me, you know

with a bit of boxing skill

because we are cage fighters, and I
asked, ‘What’s this cage fighting about?’

Anyway, they

showed me what is was about

you know,

kicking and things and it was a
lot harder than what I thought

do you know what I mean, and er,

Then I ended up

training with them
at Andy’s place and

having, having a

you know some brutal sessions, you
know kicking shin on shin, blocking

Oh, It was savage but

I jumped in and
ended up fighting

Ian Rush

and then I fought another guy

He were well up there but
I can't think of his name

but when I, when I
jumped in with Ian Rush

I beat the man, I beat the man.

And then for some reason I
ended up fighting him again.

And what happened, what
happened with Ian Rush

Second time I fought him

He put me in a chokehold,
a rear naked choke.

And he started squeezing and

obviously you’re gonna go to
sleep, your on the way to your bed.

And what your man did

He got me in this choke,
I was going to sleep

I thought, I ain't. I'm not
tapping. I'm not tapping.

So I went to sleep.

But when I come round I
was shaking, I was shaking.

So I always thought to myself, if
anybody gets me in that choke again,

I felt embarrassed.

So I thought, I'm going to
I'm going to definitely tap.

And I fought this other guy really
up there I can’t think of his name

you know, skillful.

And then he got me on the floor
and put me in a rear naked

and he put me in
a rear naked choke

and he was sending
me away to sleep

and I tapped like this
and he wouldn’t stop.

And I were going to my bed

anyway, when I

when the referee stopped it, I jumped up
and I kicked off because he didn’t let go.

He showed you disrespect,
but he showed it to you.

Yeah,

So I was a bit
annoyed over that but

I tapped because

I was embarrassed when I
went to sleep last time.

When I come around I was
shaking it and I just though no.

Nigel Benn, I got
in with Nigel Benn

It was all for charity, for
a young lad bless him, he’s

You know, it was

money to be raised.

And we knew when Nigel said to
me, don't you try knocking me out.

I knew straight away, I’m not
gonna mess about with Nigel Benn

or he’d put me to sleep.

If you’d had seen him
training in that gym

In that dressing room

You wouldn't be
messing with him.

No, that’s what I’m
saying, I knew for a fact

so that's why it was just

playful stuff because

I knew if I tried to try
a silly shot with Nigel

He’d have put me away to my bed
straight away do you know what I mean.

So I just

No, its respect in it.

And that’s the big thing.

And it don't cost a penny that
respect, you know what I mean and

And that's, that's why
a lot of these fighters

It’s the same with the
bare knuckle fighting,

A lot of people
look at me and think

you must be nasty horrible
people and things like that

No, it’s, you don’t have to
be nasty horrible to be a

to be a fighter, do
you know what I mean?

But people don't realise
afterwards that I'm all right

The first day when I'll get
up, the next day I'm all right

for me, for some
reason, the third day

when I've had a good scrap like

same as James McCrory

yeah, James McCrory
the second fight,

It was, you know, brutal and

that’s my medicine

that’s your love,
that’s what you need

Yeah it's, just it’s weird.

I once travelled down to
Hinckley with Dave Radford.

He picked me up he was

invited

They were having a few of the known
fighters around the ring it was at a

working men’s club in Hinckley

and, er,

Dave said, well, I don't
have to pay in here because

he said they know I’m coming,
I've got a seat ringside.

I thought, well, I'd
like a seat ringside.

So as Dave got

to the door to where
the security men were

he just said to
him, Dave Radford?

Yeah, he said yeah yeah,
I know who you are mate

in you go

I said, ‘Dave Radford’s trainer’

He said yes, in you
go, go and get a seat.

So we’ve finished up both
sitting ringside and, er

just before the first
bout word came about

one of the fighters
had not turned up and

Dave just went, erm...

I'm just trying to think if
I've got any shorts in the car

He said, only I don't want
to, I’ve got my best jeans on

I don't want to
get blood on them.

I said, Well. Why are
you going to fight?

He said, Well, if you don't turn
up like I'll I'll stand in for him.

I said, ‘you don't know
who you're fighting, Dave.’

He said,

I don't bother about that.

He said, Not really,
don't really concern me.

I said.

Surely you want to know. He said,
no, I'm not really bothered.

Anyway, it turned out like
it was a heavyweight bout.

Fame and glory my
lad, fame and glory.

Get it done, Radford.

And the man who’d not
turned up was fighting a big

I would think about 6 foot 4

man, who must have
been about 17 stone

I said ‘oh but look at
the size of him Dave.’

I said

and I said

the size of him don't
worry you Dave? Not really.

He said, I’ve fought big en’s
before, he said they look even bigger

you know when you knock them
out and they’re laid down.

I’m gonna tell you a story.

When I working in Barnsley, Barnsley
town center, we’d sunk a shaft

And anyway, we got this
shaft sunk and job done.

And boss said to me, ‘what,
you like at block paving?’

I said, Oh, I'm perfect, so

It was a really big area
it was to block pave.

Anyway, Saturday afternoon

I'm working away there and

we've got this big harris
fencing around, you know,

obviously to stop people
walking by us and things.

So when we are
working away there

I could hear this bit of
noise, I was on my knees

putting blocks down
and what was this noise

I looked to the side and
there was a man there

He got the old queer fella
out and he was having a pee

I looked up at him and
he was just staring at me

you know, giving me the eyes

and there was about 6 of them
that were sat on a bench.

That's where they come from.

So, anyway, your
man had finished and

I looked at Darren,
and I said, Darren

‘Where are the CCTV cameras
around here?’ and he says,

I don't know why he says

I’m gonna go off my
head in a minute.

And anyway, I've got a
Stihl saw at the side of me.

And as this saw was
at the side of me

I could hear these two

fella’s talking with
these other fella’s

and he’s saying

if I take that saw off
him, can you sell it?

He says, I'm telling you
now, I can sell it...

You know

He said well,

get it off him and we’ll
have a bit of money off it,

then all of a sudden the lad
turned around and he said

I'll go in there and
give him a good hiding

and we'll take the saw.

So I looked across, and says
‘give me a good hiding?’

he says, ‘Yeah.’

And I jumped up, pulled my
helmet off, pulled my top off

and went running around and,
your man who tried peeing

He came towards me first

and I banged him with
a beautiful left hook

he dropped to the floor,
the other one who come

straight forward I hit him
with a lovely right hand

and other one grabbed hold of
me, both grabbed each other

He was trying to bite
me, he was doing this

but

What happened was, when
he was trying to bite me

I was pushing him away, and
he was pulling towards me

Your man who I’d hit
with the left hook

Who were crumbled on
bank, side of the bank

He were getting up?!

I kicked him in face
to make him stop down.

And as he went down again,

this guy was pulling me
towards him and I was pushing,

I just let go with my hand

Bang!

I dropped in with head

So as he fell down,

he fell onto the harris fencing.

So when I banged with that left hook,
and kicked him, your man still got up

he jumped in the compound
to me and as he jumped in

I heard this

someone talking and when I looked
it was two traffic wardens.

They said to this lad

I wouldn’t go in there
if I were you mate.

Anyway, he come towards me

and I was shaking right hand

He were looking at right hand and
soon as he looked at right hand

Bang I let go with left hook

Bushka, he’d gone, again

anyway

as I’m messing around
with the fencing these

three blokes picked
themselves up

but police were,
police were coming

anyway they just
run off these fellas

and Sunday morning, I were
working away me and Darren

and these two policemen

come walking by
and your man said

‘Do you have any more
trouble with them go off?’

I went, ‘No, ’ I says

They never came back.

He said ‘no they didn’t
come back, we locked the up’

I said, ‘Oh, sound, sound.’

He says, ‘bloody hell,
you can fight can’t you?’

So I said ‘yeah I was
only defending myself.’

He said, we were
watching it last night on

CCTV camera, and he were pointing
up, it was just above us, camera.

And I laughed and I says

‘Is there any chance of
a copy of the video?’

He said, don't push your luck.

Dave was now fully aware as to
the presence of his inner beast.

He was also aware of its capability,
its capability to mete out

discipline to those that
required such a life lesson.

Now, Dave

would be the jailer to
this hidden persona.

It was he that would decide

whether to turn the key in
the lock of the cage door

anti-clockwise, granting
this beast freedom.

He would then use
self-discipline as the referee

to call time on its liberty

before once again turning the
key in the lock on the cage door.

But this time it would be
in a clockwise direction.

The beast needed a cause.

He needed an outlet.

And the exercise yard

the jailer discovered,
was in the shape

of a ring of bales,

an arena for bare

knuckle fighting.

Now, in order to
understand this sport,

as well as its code of conduct, there
is actually no one better placed

to do so than that renowned
bareknuckle boxing promoter

Andy Topliff.

Where did it all come from?

Basically, it started off
with Elizabeth the 1st

Now Elizabeth the 1st

she allowed pirates, right.

She allowed her sailors

As such, there was no such thing
as a paid army in those days.

You got paid when you were
at war and that was it.

And we was at war with
France for over 100 years.

So we was always
at war with France.

That's just standard.

Elizabeth the 1st,
the first she actually

she allowed Sir
Francis Drake and so on

to become pirates.

They had these great big swords
and they had great big spears,

you know, on their ships.

And they had all these big fancy
weapons which on the battlefield

would scare the hell out of you.

But the Brits were well
known for always winning.

And the reason why is
because Sir Francis Drake,

he basically worked
out in his head, that,

don't use big swords
don't use big spears

just use knuckledusters
use small swords

but teach every single man
on the ship how to fight.

He had to know how to box.

If their weapon fell on
the floor, they had to know

how to get the guy, heatbutt him,
knock him out and do the business.

Okay.

Anyway, when these soldiers
all came back home,

they didn't have anything to do because
you only got paid when you at were war.

So basically the way they made their
money was by fighting in taverns.

You know, the pubs

They used to go into these pubs

and they used to have to
fight for the money. Now,

when the Civil War
happened, they realised

that they were onto
something here.

They made something
called the new model army.

And that was the Royalists.

And then you had the
parliamentarians.

Now every single soldier had to

learn how to fight

if the weapon got dropped
on the battlefield

if they dropped their
weapon, they had to learn.

And it was called milling.

And it was because
the old millers

years and years ago,
they were tough blokes.

And milling stayed with the Brits
in the British Army ever since.

And what it was when these guys

came out of the army, as I said, you
know, they had this big civil war.

And at the end of the Civil War,
there was all these soldiers

who every week were very
good at milling or boxing.

And boxing never used
to be glove fighting.

And it used to be bareknuckle
that was boxing, you know,

these soldiers, when they came
out, they had nothing to do.

And again, exactly the same
as in the Elizabethan times

with Sir Francis Drake’s sailors

You know,

the country was at this time
it was absolutely adrift

with ex soldiers,

you know, parliamentarian
soldiers who milled.

So they, in this time,

it was different because
there were so many them.

You got your champions and
you started getting you know,

your super heroes and your
really well known guys.

And before you knew it, you'd have
newspapers writing about certain

bareknuckle fighters.

When I was younger, I always used to
read about the old, bare knuckling days.

You know, back then and
they’d fight for hours.

But they were men of honor.

You know what I mean,
they were gentlemen.

And when they won,

They used to have
a bit of cloth here

Your man would take
the cloth away.

It were his, that
was trophy in a way.

I think Bob Fitzsimmons
comes into mind.

I think he had maybe
about 106 fights

and knocked, I think
half of them out.

He was someone I always
read about and he were a

gentlemen do you know what I mean all
them old type fighters were all gentlemen.

But they would fight for hours.

Yeah Andy Topliff, he was the first man to
bring bare knuckle boxing back, publicly

since the late 1800s.

He put a lot more rules in it

Set it a lot more
safer should we say.

A count to 20 If you
get knocked down.

And he cared for the fighters,
and he thought about the fighters.

He weren't there for the money.

He thrived on the
sport like I did,

He was very educated on
bare knuckle fighting

The new middleweight, UK
champion, Dave Radford!

I first met Dave Radford

It's quite an interesting
story actually.

I'd heard of Dave Radford
through many, many years.

Basically, he’d become a bit
of a legend to me, you know,

I wanted to fight him when I was younger,
even though I didn't know the guy.

He was the only
name I kept hearing.

You know, who the f♪♪♪ is
this Dave Radford, you know?

But the very first
time I met him

It was Harry's bar, he
come up the lift and

And as soon as I saw him, I saw these
big high cheekbones, big smile on him

because he's got such a lovely smile
and what a gentleman he is, you know?

Yeah, yeah.

Hello my mate, you know, big
hand shake, you know it was

it was a nice moment
for me anyway.

And he said it was
for him as well.

So when he fought James McCrory,

he was like, Andy you know, make
sure you get me someone who’s

good because I never can find
anyone you know, everyone I find

I can just, I can knock
them out straight away.

I want a proper fight, you know?

All right, then
I'll do as I can.

Now, Dave Radford’s always
said, Andy, you're the one man

who's always got me beat!

He said, he said

any other time,
he says, I'll win.

He says but you,
is like me demon.

You know, we have a laugh, you
know, because unfortunately,

every time he’s stood on my

my pit, he’s lost.

But that's not the case,

You know, don't get me wrong, Radford’s,
he's one of the hardest men I know.

You know, he's a legend,
as far as I'm concerned.

For bare knuckle, the
man can take pain.

You know, I'm glad that
I didn't fight him.

Quite frankly, because, my God, if
he's like that, when he's his age,

God knows what he was like
when when he was a young man.

You know what I mean...

He took McCrory on

I think, I think it was a bit of
an eye opener for him when he lost

and it was actually,
it actually was his eye

which did him
because unfortunately

where McCrory was wearing wraps

you know, bust his eye

quite badly

that's actually when he

you know, it got called
because his eye was that bad

and he just went. I remember,
I felt so sorry for him

and he just put his arm, hand up

the guy and fortunately the guys who came
down with him, they couldn't believe it.

You know, the guy
had never been beat.

You know, it was a
shocker to us all.

It was a shocker to me.

I was shocked. I
felt, I felt for him.

But we had a new champion, James
McCrory, you know, fair play, you know.

But then, Radford
wanted it again

And my God, did he perform?

He didn’t get it, but thats life, but
he's still the legend and he still

and this is how legends
are made you know.

You don't have to win
to be a legend yet

sometimes it's the,
the guy that loses

maybe put a bit more
heart in, you know

I mean, he

S♪♪♪

The second fight
he had with McCrory

Never seen a fight like it,
never seen a fight like it.

Wow. What a fight.

If only I had a time machine.

Yeah, I know.

I know it were hard for you

I never, ever wanted
you at my fights.

But you said it were
harder being at home

because you know, your
thinking as he fought yet as he

going in, is he being hurt
and things like that, but,

when you came

I just said, well
you can come in

I think, was it the last
3 fights you've been to?

Yeah

but you just didn’t want to see

I didn't want to
see you in there.

I didn't want you to
know you're in there.

And I said you keep
out it way, but,

How were it for
you, what did you

I preferred to be there.

I think it was really hard to sit at
home just waiting for a phone call.

And if nobody rung.

Oh, is it because
you've been hurt or?

Yeah, I found that
very difficult.

I know the extreme that he’d go to,
he will never give up in a fight.

And he's just a true warrior.

Me and Dave have been
together ten years

this year.

I think a lot of people don't
realise what a lovely kind man he is.

But also I think

people are pretty easy to judge

when you hear, Oh, you’re
with a bare knuckler

and this and think oh you
know, what sort of guy is he?

But he's the most gentle,
loving man I've ever met.

And it's took me a long
time to find a good man.

And he certainly is one.

This were back end of my career
my last gym should I say.

Up here, in top of the Alpha.

Brilliant set up, I had

full boxing ring
in there, full size

bags were there

and we ended up running a
little amateur boxing club

from here, and there were a few lads
in village that had a few fights.

Which were good, but I did a

hell of a lot of training for
my bare knuckle fights up here

with Craig Smith.

You know, my sparring with him,
do you know what I mean so,

another place were I’ve shed a
lot of blood up here as well. But

the best thing, best thing
what ever happened for me,

was

I’ve had a few good people at this
pub, do you know what I mean, I’ve had

Roy Jones Junior

Smokin’ Joe Frazier, I
mean that’s unbelievable

One of my main men
to come here was

Roberto Duran, he came here to open
the gym for me, do you know what I mean

big Tim Witherspoon’s
been in here

I’ve done a lot
with Tim Witherspoon

It were nice, It were my
dad’s birthday the other week

and Tim sent him a text
message, happy birthday, Terry.

So that was, my dad was

really chuffed with that
like, do you know what I mean.

Craig, how many times

We’ve been up here and had
a decent session, you know

How many times have you
busted my nose up here?

Well it's, it weren't

That was the problem with it, we did that
many rounds and if your nose weren’t bust

You weren’t happy was you.

I know that, yeah

I had to break your nose
or bust your nose or

knock your tooth out, otherwise
you weren’t happy were you?

You don’t ever, have
to pay for that either.

How much was it?

I’m sure it was £1200

I told ya!

I remember it, that when

you picked me up and you says

you know, I’ll meet you
at 10:00am, picked me up

You picked me up.

I just had tooth
fitted day before.

Anyway, goes down to
the top of King’s head.

And I said, erm,

Oh, jeez, I forgot my shield.

I think I got one glove on,
I says I forgot gumshield

He went, it's alright, we'll take it easy,
we'll take it easy, I bet it wasn’t 60 seconds

His tooth was knocked out!

Tooth out!

It was!

It was fantastic as well for me

It was an honor for me to
be in there with you mate

because I looked up to
you, you were my hero

I followed you all the way
through from being a baby and

And it was just nice
for me to, learn.

And I did, I had to learn or

Otherwise it was hard work that.

Yeah but we come on together.

As I said, we did the sparring and
that and then it got to the stage where

we could really have
a good go each other.

Yeah, after you’d let
me hit you for 3 years.

But I said, the thing is,

after so long

Id give you four or five
rounds, then I’d say right,

You know, let's,
let's go up a bit.

But we stepped it up and when we stepped
it up then, we, you know, it was bang on.

And that's, how I've learned,
and that’s how you’ve learned.

Getting ready for fights and
things like the bare knuckle,

you know, the bare
knuckle fights,

I couldn’t have done it without you because
just a phone call, you were there for a spar.

And that's when I
needed that sparring

and you know, I’d fight
at short notice and

Yeah! That 2 weeks notice

2 weeks notice!

Then little did you know

as time went down I got the bug
and all, so I got it as well.

You give me the
bug, the disease.

Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

It were good wasn’t it

Yeah, but we, erm,

Like I said, said we

nobody would know

like when we used to come up here, door
would be locked because nobody would

nobody would come in

we would walk out of here absolutely
smothered in blood and things like that.

And people think what's going off
here, they did not know and it was just

you’re hungry for the medicine.

You know what I mean,
and thats how it is

But we've had some good things
and we've been we've been to,

you know, some good fights and watched
good fights and you’ve seen me fight

And you ended up then
being my corner man

Oh, dear.

And then, which were good.

The only thing I regret or were
every time I got back to the corner

you’d smoother me with water

you need water, you need water, it’s
good for your brain get some water

You didn’t even want
to drink water did you?

I know

I never ever wanted
to drink water, no.

Absolute legend this man.

Fought Roberto Duran
back in the day.

But I’ve got to say, what
a lovely, lovely bloke.

Real gentleman.

The man himself
there, James McCrory.

James carrying his
belts in there.

Two guys who are now close, a
hardened handshake, the hug.

Two good guys there.

Yeah when I fought James McCrory

I break this here,
as well as this

but you already know
at the time anyway

All I’m hearing is
you shouting uppercut

because that was the only thing I could
catch him with bang bang, with left hook.

And it was working

But everytime I was bringing
that uppercut I was thinking

Arghhh, I’m thinking...

don’t through an uppercut,
don’t through an uppercut.

And all I could hear
was you shouting

Uppercut, left hook, uppercut!

But it’s so natural because

It’s natural for you to shout,
you knew what I needed to do

and what I needed to do, but

Your hand was broke

But you forget
about them things.

Oh, suffering Jesus bang, bang.

I kept thinking,
don’t throw it again.

And you’re shouting,
and George is shouting

you know, uppercut

Why did you throw the uppercut?!

And then we gets
back to the corner

and then I'm talking away

and you’re sorting me out with
the cuts or whatever and I’m

not, not

saying anything about my hand but you can
see I look down at my hand and shake my hand

halfway through the fight, but

It’d gone and
finished up I had to

put my hand up

you know, I’d just can’t

That was a war that...

We’ve had many a good time up
here do you know what I mean.

It made me a man.
You made me a man.

But you must have
had it in you Craig.

You must have had it in you.

It’s same as myself, I’ve never

never been into fight game when
I was younger and everything but

there’s something in a man to be able to
do what I've done you know what I mean?

Same with yourself, we’ve

did gruesome sessions, do you
know what I mean, we’ve had.

They were bad, they
were heavy sessions.

And there were a
lot of blood spilt.

And there was big, big
respect, big friends.

And you when you look up to
somebody like I looked up to you,

It was a privilege for me
to get in there with you.

Yeah, that’s magic that.

And share it mate, honest
it was like my birthday!

Yeah, yeah.

You had time for
me to start with.

Yeah, because you
was helping me.

Yeah, but I know,

But then, it got to the stage
where you got a bit of a fix!

That's what he were planning on
all along, just getting his fix.

As usual getting hit,
that’s all he’d like to do.

He’s not bothered about hitting anybody,
he doesn’t want to hurt anybody.

He just likes getting hit!

Hungry for the medicine.

Roughly how many fights have you been to
Dave I mean, bloody hell, you’ve been to

I’ve had 163 fights

So you must have been
to hell of a lot because

you started with me and

You know, a long time back, how
many fights have you been to?

I’ll tell you what right, I was averaging
a few years ago, we was at 100 to

to 120 fights a season.

Jeez.

Like

and how many fights have

I've been to yours? I've been
to every fight you've ever had.

Yeah.

You know, I mean, so it's a hell
of a lot of fights, ain't it?

That's the thing.

And it's like anything else,

It's not that fight that
does the damage so much

its the 163 fights
you've had previous.

It all, fights

When you're fighting year in, year
out, it catches up doesn’t it.

It does yeah. I’m
you know, damaged me

I'm damaged in them ways my
memories, memories terrible.

But nar, 163 fights

But you've got to account for as well
all the sparring that I’ve done for them.

Oh, yeah.

Maybe 8 or 9 rounds
a night sparring.

Yeah.

And that's without your
professional fights ain’t it.

And that’s hell of a lot.

Like I say, It just all adds up

and it's a lot of
punishment ain’t it.

Oh, definitely.

A lot of punishment you
take over the years.

And it’s like I've always said

how good a man was five years
ago can be totally different

five years later, it's
like a running dog.

It can be fantastic.
The bee's knees.

Five years later, it's a
different thing altogether.

It's the same with a
fighting man, ain’t it.

You've only got that set
time and that's it, aint it.

You can stay too long
in the fight game.

It’s same myself now

I always say, I do a
little bit of training

what I do, but to me I've always said which
is true, I've got a good 10 minutes in me

But you've always to have that,

always to have that, bit of
training with you because

because if not my, my name
now with this fighting

everybody wants to have a little
go do you know what I mean and

You've done it there's
nothing to prove whatsoever.

I told you this years ago and if you
remember I kept telling you to retire.

Didn't I, because you've
fought some epic battles

proper hectic battles.

And out of all the fights
I've seen and I've seen

some serious hundreds and
hundreds and hundreds of fights.

You got to think

I went to my first bare knuckle
fight when I was 11 years old.

Right.

And the most epic battle that stands
out without a shadow of a doubt

when you and James Gypsy Boy
McCrory fought at the F club.

That was one hell of a fight.

And I'm in company of
a lot of fighting men.

And a lot of men say that was
one hell of an epic battle.

When you pay for
watching a fight,

That's a fight you want to
watch, do you know what I mean?

Let's face it, it's
20 years now gone by.

We've been the closest of
friends now 20 years, right?

September 2005, when I
bought my man to fight you

Yeah, yeah.

And my man had beat so
many men at the time.

Big lump of a man as well.

A big lump of a man.

And like I say with it, you
nearly killed my man at the end.

Yeah, yeah.

He told me, he
pulled up in the van

he said to me, ‘is
he here Plattsy?’

I said, ‘he's here.’

He said, Dave, I'm
going to kill him.

I’m gonna kill the b♪♪♪♪♪♪ he
says. Right, that was my man.

And he didn't care whether he killed
you, took your life or what my man.

And then, like I say with it,

you fought it out

and you done my man didn’t you.

You have lived a
proper sporting life.

You are the Napoleon
of Southern sports

and it's been an honor to
be a good friend to you.

Good man Dave.

See you again my lad.

Good luck, bye.

At the next sporting event.

Good man.

Yeah, I've retired
now, erm, ish...

I’ve moved from

my job which was up north and
moved from the job down to

Kent, so I’m working in
Kent for a long time now.

So what I've done, I've
got this place in Aylesbury

and it's a lovely
place, lovely pad.

Yeah I miss, I miss the
fighting game, I mean

but, I’ll be honest with
you, I don’t go to any shows.

Because I’ll still be jumping
in, do you know what I mean, but,

I do miss it, hell of a lot.

But mainly now I’m
concentrating on my work,

which I've always done. I
keep saying I’ve retired.

There’s one or two people I’d like to
fight who can give me that good fight.

But it's having
that time off work.

It's not the money, you know,
for the fighting and things.

But I just, I do miss it.

I do miss it.

The new middleweight, UK
champion, Dave Radford!

Someone shouted me the other
day, asking me to fight.

And the money what
they offered me.

I get in a month anyway at work.

And so that doesn’t
interests me.

And I don't fight for money.

I fight for the enjoyment, It
sounds funny saying enjoyment.

I like to have a good old scrap

So that people will
talk about that

If I knock him out first round

It’s over and done with

Nobody really talks about it.

But if you have a brutal,
you know, good old scrap,

then it's talked about for a long time
people will say, the second fight with

James McCrory, brilliant fight.

If I could fight again, I want
the exactly the same fight as that

to happen.

And that's what makes me want
to fight again still because

I think there’s another
couple of fights left in me.

But it's having that
time off work and things

I’m happy in a way with work

but I’m like that with
the fighting game.

My plans now for future is,

you know, I've always been 100% with
work so I'm going to be happy with work

I’ve a lot

hell of a lot to do with
this place down here, we’ve

we've done inside.

And now there’s hell of a lot of work
to do on the outside, on the land.

I've got some road
chippings over there.

There's, there's only 60 tonnes.

So I won't take me long
with the wheelbarrow.

Trouble is that might get you fit and
you might want to come out of retirement.

But then we've

got erm, within next couple of years
we are planning a wedding aren’t we

Yeah, yeah.

We just got get a
date ready haven’t we.

A date.

And you've asked George
already to be your best man.

George to be my best
man, the screaming skull.

We did say we were just gonna
have a quiet wedding, but,

you can’t have a quiet wedding
when you have a family like mine.

I'm now going to ask you to think back
to the very start of this biography,

to the question that was posed,

that being, who holds the power?

Is it the beast or
is it the jailer?

However,

whoever holds the
power to hold the key

that will grant
the beast freedom

allowing it to rise, to manifest

for one of two reasons...

either in the defense of others,

or to meet a mutual challenge.

But be assured,

this does not
signal the final act

or the last page turned.

There will be other
chapters to come.

As with most things in life,
there is often a caveat,

a disclaimer, and Dave
Radford holds one himself.

One that is best said
using his very own words.

Those words being.

Please don't take my
kindness for a sign

of weakness