Latest editorial
Joe Bugner, 1974
AMONG the pantheon of fan-favourite British heavyweight fighters of all time, Joe Bugner is one name that doesn’t immediately jump out, which, given his record and legacy, belongs in the box marked travesty.
Though his was a career that stretched from the 1960s all that way up into the 1990s, Joe Bugner is most synonymous with the 1970s, along with such cultural artefacts as flared jeans and long hair for young male hipsters; T-Rex, Slade and The Glitter Band for those old enough to remember when glam rock was a thing; the three-day week and power cuts; and also such TV classics as Love Thy Neighbour, Bless This House, George and Mildred, and Grange Hill.
Joe Bugner — like John Conteh, John H Stacey, Dave Boy Green, and Charlie Magri — flew the flag for Britain throughout that tumultuous decade, but did so while being much maligned.
From Manchester pubs to global arenas, Ricky Hatton embodied working-class pride in and out of the ring, but his last round was fought in solitude, writes JOHN WIGHT
Vilified by the public after defeating Henry Cooper, Joe Bugner’s remarkable career and tragic decline reflected the era’s attitudes as much as the man himself, says JOHN WIGHT
Amid riots, strikes and Thatcher’s Britain, Frank Bruno fought not just for boxing glory, but for a nation desperate for heroes, writes JOHN WIGHT
In recently published book Baddest Man, Mark Kriegel revisits the Faustian pact at the heart of Mike Tyson’s rise and the emotional fallout that followed, writes JOHN WIGHT
