Professional wrestling’s origins started as part of circus acts in the 1800s as both part strong man exhibitions and part art and showmanship. At the time no one in the audience knew for sure that it was showmanship and that the “random” guy in the crowd that challenged the wrestler were actually working together as part of the performance. Of course, there were times that legitimate fans challenged the wrestler, so the wrestler had to be able to handle himself, so the illusion wasn’t ruined. It was all about putting on a show, a spectacle and to entertain the audience.
Although many things have changed in this business since its humble beginnings there are a few things that will always remain constant: good vs evil, storytelling, characters and providing the audience with pure spectacle and entertainment. Even though the audiences of today know it is all part of a show, the goal is still all the same to be an attraction, to get the audience to pay to see the show and to leave the audience with a sense that they were glad to have watched the performances.
Finding The Character:
There have been a lot of wrestling persona and characters over the years with many of them drawing inspiration from perhaps wrestling’s past like Ric Flair taking over the Nature Boy gimmick from Buddy Rogers and making it his own with his own interpretation on it. One could argue that the gimmick of flashy robes which has been used by Buddy Rogers, Ric Flair, Macho Man Randy Savage, Seth Rollins, Dalton Castle, Goldust and so many more can trace their roots back to Gorgeous George.
It isn’t so much that you are stealing or copying off of a previous gimmick, it is all about finding a character that you can fully embrace and make into your own. Finding that persona that you believe in so strongly that you embody it and the audience can see and connect with it too. Arguably, the greatest gimmick of all-time is the Undertaker. Mark Callaway may have been given the gimmick by the WWF, but he embodied it and made that character everything it could be. The character was so beloved that even now all these years later his 1990 debut, if that gong hits the crowd will lose its mind.
Almost five years ago, I wrote a piece on Danhausen, a character and gimmick created by Donovan Danhausen on his own on the indies. The character was unique and different and he fully embraced the delusional character and had fun with it and in turn the audience was entertained and had fun watching him. He used social media in a way no one else did to find an audience and to connect with the fans in a unique way. So, fast forward to today he is one of the biggest merch sellers in WWE for 2026 when he just debuted in February and arguably no one has had a better year in wrestling. Danhausen knows his character and refuses to compromise it as the character you see on WWE television is the same one I first saw in ROH, AEW and the indies prior just with a bigger stage and more production.
I say all this because just like Danhausen five years ago, there is another talent on the independents that I have seen that has the same commitment to the character and gimmick that he has created, and his name is “The Spectacular” Charles Crowley. Crowley obviously has drawn his inspiration for the character from wrestling’s true origin and roots the circus, yet he has found a way for the audiences of today to be connected and entertained by it. He has also like Danhausen did, he uses social media to further expose the character to a wider global audience outside of the UK independent scene and to promote upcoming shows and matches he will be a part of just like the talents of the circus era he is the huckster or ringmaster recruiting the audience to join him under the big top.
Crowley Knows His Character:
My first exposure to Charles Crowley took place the weekend of WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas, I have told this story before on the Wrestling Republic Daily Broadcast but for those that are unfamiliar with the story, I flew into Las Vegas on an early morning flight from the east coast so there is a three-hour time difference in Las Vegas so when WR’s Clark Taylor came to me that everyone wanted to go to the midnight Progress show, to say I really didn’t want to go would have been an understatement. Since I was both incredibly gassed knowing that by the time the show was over, I will have been up for 24 hours straight with the time difference, and I really didn’t follow Progress to know any of the talent or stories going into the show.
However, Clark was very persuasive, and I didn’t want to be the only one that didn’t go to the show since everyone else was going. As I sat there through the first couple matches barely keeping my eyes open, there was one moment that snapped me out of my sleep deprivation from the music to the crowd chanting “T**T” at the man making his way down the aisle. I couldn’t help but laugh and wonder who is this guy? The look and the presentation from the entrance alone had me hooked and even though I had no clue who this “Spectacular” Charles Crowley was I knew from the “T**T” chants that I was likely in for an entertaining experience.
Sure, enough I was beyond entertained and even though I walked into the Palms Theatre not having any clue who any of the talent on this show was, I became a fan of one in particular and that was Charles Crowley. At first, watching him I remember thinking oh he is a comedy character, but the more you watch him he is so much more than a just for laughs character, he is much deeper than that, he is a performer that knows his character better than pretty much everyone else on that show that night and arguably better than a lot of performers in this industry as a whole.
After that match, the exhaustion I was battling came right back for the rest of the show unfortunately, I did get a chance to catch the replay on Triller once I was more well rested and enjoyed it more than the first time. However, I was still left with that same feeling that Charles Crowley was a unique and special performer that has mastered the art of a compelling unique character that use his trickster persona to not only entertain the crowd, but to play mind games on his opponents. His promos and videos all over social media is a masterclass in delusion and mind games against his opponents as he is both entertaining and unhinged in many of them, but he can also tap into pure emotion.
There is promo that he cut as part of his feud with Spike Trivet for Riot Cabaret, where it was nothing but pure emotion as he tapped into real life pain that had a way to connect with an audience as anyone that has suffered loss of a loved one could connect with and relate to. Crowley was obviously the face going into the match against the dastardly heel Spike Trivet, but after that promo you end up pulling for Charles even more. His mind games in a lot of ways remind me of the original Goldust character where he is able to make his opponents uncomfortable as they have no clue what they are up against not who they are up against.
Crowley continually evolves the character by adding a toy monkey as seen in the picture above, known as Sebastian. He has full conversations with Sebastian much like Al Snow used to have with Head. Yet another layer of mind games to mess with his opponents. He has used Sebastian to help distract opponents even during matches by tossing Sebastian at his opponents, who typically catch the monkey only to leave them open for Crowley to land a move such as a cutter on them.
However, the specialness of the character is that the depth of the character and the way the audiences have taken to it is that he has a character like WWE HOFamers Ric Flair’s “Dirtiest Player in the Game” or “Lie, Cheat & Steal” Eddie Guerrero in that the character works as both heel who cheats that you can boo or as a face that cheats but you love it anyway.
After being denied entry in last year’s Progress Wrestling Super Strong Style tournament due to not being medically cleared, Crowley had plenty motivation to not only to be in this year’s tournament, but to win it all. However, it wasn’t just Crowley who had the motivation to do it, he had the hot wave of the crowd through every stage of this tournament as they began chanted Super “T**T” Style at him from the very beginning. Crowley not only made it to the finals against Charles Sterling, but the “T**T” did the impossible and won it all. Of course, he did it with a little help from Sebastian, but in fairness he was only defending himself against Sterling.
This set Crowley on a collision course against the reigning and defending Progress Champion, Cara Noir as the winner of the tournament is guaranteed a title shot. However, like Crowley, his opponent also as a mysterious character that unlike Crowley has embraced the dark side. Crowley pulled out all his trademark mischievous trickster antics from purple nurple.
Unfortunately, despite the absolute devastation this move has caused throughout school yard playgrounds for generations it had little to no effect on the black swan the trickster was up against. Crowley used every trick up his sleeve to achieve his long-desired Progress Championship. Every time Cara Noir thought he had Crowley, the audience, his willpower and his trusty balloon kept Crowley alive.
Unfortunately, Cara knew what he had to do, he couldn’t kill the crowd support, but he knew he needed eliminate the balloon, beat Crowley down, and kill Crowley’s will to fight. Cara Noir targeted the thing Crowley treasured most in this world and that was Sebastian.
Like a certain WWE HOFamer Cerebral Assassin, Cara Noir destroyed Crowley’s best friend with a sledgehammer. The sadness and anger were written all over Crowley’s face, but with Crowley operating just on rage it gave Cara Noir the opening to catch Crowley with just the right move to end the match and keep his championship.
Crowley’s look of devastation for his destroyed monkey reminded me of wrestling’s past whether it be Perry Saturn losing Moppy or Chavo Guerrero Jr. losing Pepe. The question is now how Crowley evolves the character again; how does he capitalize from having the tragedy fuel his revenge and possibly does this lead to him finally attaining the Progress Championship.
Final Thoughts:
In an industry where so many independent wrestling talents think the thing they need to do is take unnecessary risks like jumping off a high structure or use every weapon imaginable or do 7,000 different moves in a match without them meaning anything, Crowley is smarter than all of them as he is putting his energy into developing a character that can get people’s attention today and give him a payday long after his career is over. Crowley doesn’t do things to just do them or because he can, everything has a purpose and it fits the character and the match’s story.
Just like I said five years ago, I strongly encourage anyone reading this to check out Charles Crowley, you won’t regret it. I would love for TNA or NWA or MLW to pick him up because I think he would truly excel in those promotions. I think WWE or AEW, he’d just get lost in the shuffle. Although WWE would merchandise him like Danhausen, the difference is unlike Danhausen he is a character that isn’t just comedy. He might thrive in AAA since they are over the top and there are clowns there for the whole circus ringmaster gimmick, I think one of the smaller US indie companies like the three I mentioned he could really thrive.
ITTMP
