Music, lights, and a roaring countdown welcomed a crowd to St Columb’s Hall in Derry on Saturday night for the Foyle Rumble, a wrestling event featuring heroes and villains in leotards, masks, and kneepads. This Northern Irish version of professional wrestling comes with a unique twist, as many of the performers live with learning or physical disabilities and bring their stage personae into their everyday lives.
Building Confidence Through Wrestling
The program is designed to foster confidence and resilience by teaching participants how to wrestle and develop distinct stage characters. Keelan O’Hagan, a 24-year-old who performs as Kellio, stated that the project helped him overcome past bullying over his weight and attendance at a special school.
“I’ve been slagged and made fun of because I was overweight and went to a special school but I’ve proved that I’m somebody,” O’Hagan said, as reported by World News | The Guardian. To prepare for his role, O’Hagan adjusted his diet and fitness routine, adding, “He doesn’t step away from any challenge, he always accepts the mission. No matter what, he doesn’t quit. To anybody who has tried to bring me down, I’ve been able to get back on my feet and come back stronger.”
Brian Walsh, 44, who is blind, portrays Brian Brogue and defeats opponents using head locks, wrist locks, and pinning maneuvers. “Before, I wouldn’t have had the strength,” he said, according to World News | The Guardian. “The training was scary at the start, then I got the hang of it. To be a blind person who does wrestling is the best thing ever.”
The Foyle Rumble operates as a partnership between the Tuned In Project, a Derry-based NGO supporting disabled adults, and Complete Anarchy Wrestling (CAW), a promoter based across the border in County Donegal. Phil Conn, programme manager for the Tuned In Project, explained that the goal is to grant disabled participants greater agency and independence.
“We challenge them to be the best they can be,” Conn said, as featured by World News | The Guardian. “It gives them purpose and a support community. It’s a reason to get out of bed in the morning.”
Conn noted that participants undergo months of training and understand the real physical risks involved. “It’s a choreographed performance – if this was an actual fight, we couldn’t do it – but we’ve had students bruised and battered. The throws and hits have an impact,” he stated.
Growth of the Initiative
Following an inaugural event in 2024, Saturday’s show marked the third and most ambitious installment, drawing hundreds of spectators and dozens of performers, including some without disabilities. The production featured smoke machines, elaborate stunts, and a storyline opposing heroic figures against a black-clad entity named The Fault.
“It’s mad how far it has come,” Sean Curran of the Tuned In Project told World News | The Guardian. “Wrestling is great. It’s basically your personality pushed up to 11. We’ve seen them grow in confidence and sort of become the characters.”
The concept began when Curran hired Stephen Campbell, a gymnastics teacher and wrestling coach with CAW, to choreograph a stunt for a friend’s wedding reception. Campbell subsequently began coaching students at the Tuned In Project, observing their strong aptitude for creating characters and performing.
“They got more talented and one thing led to another,” Campbell told World News | The Guardian. Before Saturday’s event, Campbell encouraged the performers with a speech, telling them, “Tonight is your night. Fuck WrestleMania. They never had a blind wrestler.”
Kiernan McLaughlin, 27, who performed as a benign monarch named King Kiernan, shared his expectations ahead of the show with a shy smile. “I’m spearing somebody tonight,” he said.
SJ Murray, 25, who has a learning disability, acknowledged feeling nervous before her matches. “I’m petrified,” she said, according to World News | The Guardian. However, she noted that her character, Siren, is fearless, describing her as “a badass that is brave and protects the one that she loves.”
Murray has dedicated time to studying wrestling theory, strategy, and combat techniques. “You need stamina and to know what you’re doing,” she explained to World News | The Guardian, adding, “My family think I’m mad but support me no matter what.”
During the show, Siren successfully grappled opponents who attempted to flee the ring, before watching her nemesis leap over the ropes and crash to the floor.
