In-depth: British wrestling announcer Lucy Openshaw's battle with mental health
For the majority of wrestling fans over a certain age, naming wrestlers synonymous with the attitude era is a simple task. And going even further back, names such as Pedro Morales, Chief Jay Strongbow, Gorilla Monsoon and Yokozuna are etched into most long-term wrestling fans minds.
However, for 30-year-old Bolton-born Lucy Openshaw, this is not the case. She was, what some would call, a late starter into the wrestling business.
In an exclusive interview for Sportskeeda, she spoke over a coffee during a rare sunny day in north Manchester, “My ex-boyfriend Rick was a massive wrestling fan."
“A friend of mine told me about a show happening in Blackpool which I was told I should take him to. I had never really watched wrestling before, but bought tickets anyway. I’d watched the odd WrestleMania, when it was on at a friend’s house, but I was only there for the social aspect. I went to the Blackpool show, which just so happened to be the WWE UK Tournament.
The first night I was sitting up in the gods, reading a book. But, I just started getting really into it when Mark Andrews came out and Rick told me that his theme music was done by his own band – I thought he was really cool. Then, Tyler Bate and Trent Seven came out . . . I instantly fell in love with Trent and instantly hated, with a passion, Pete Dunne!”
Thankfully for former WWE UK champion Dunne, Lucy’s ex-boyfriend, now good friend, Rick was on hand to explain that Lucy’s instant hatred for Dunne meant that he was doing a good job. The second night of the now-infamous tournament was even more enlightening for Lucy. She was sitting by the entrance ramp.
“It was incredible,” she added, “I never understood how you could get into a sport that wasn’t real. “But then you start watching it and getting into all of the near falls etc, and you just put all of that to one side. It just got me.”
From there, Lucy began her journey in earnest.
She attended Fight Club Pro shows, where she met Bate and Seven, and then Rick began training for Fighting Spirit in Liverpool, which is run by the current WWE UK Tag Team Champions James Drake and Zac Gibson. Lucy, a professional dog walker, went along to Rick’s training, and, eventually, found herself in the ring.
“I was absolutely awful,” she laughed “but I really enjoyed being in the ring and making friends with the wrestlers. I’d come home and ache for days after. I also didn’t have the confidence to bump, and I can’t deal with pain.”
Just to point out, Lucy has more tattoos than the average person, but did explain that tattoo pain is different to wrestling pain. I’ll have to take her word for it!
Anyway, back to Lucy’s journey.
She said, “James Drake helped me a lot. He took me to one side and showed me that if I did it right, it didn’t hurt. It took me three months to be able to be thrown out of the ring. I have so much respect for them.”
Her lack of wrestling knowledge was often brought up when she was told to do a move like a wrestler from a bygone era. She had no idea what to do, and she still, to this day, doesn’t have much of an idea about past eras.
But that hasn’t stopped her from becoming one of the most sought after young talents in British wrestling. Now, I can see readers of this interview thinking “but, I know every British wrestler going, and I’ve not heard of Lucy Openshaw”.
Ironically, yes you have – you literally have HEARD Lucy. Because it’s not taking on all-comers in the ring that has made her a standout – it’s as a ring announcer for some of the top British wrestling companies, including Progress and Futureshock. And she uses her powers on the microphone for something other than announcing wrestlers.
Earlier this year, at a Breed Wrestling show, Lucy took time to talk about mental health issues.
In the video, which is currently her pinned tweet at @MsLucyOpenshaw, she said, “I know that a few people in the wrestling business and fans have a struggle with themselves and mental health.
“I just want to say that you’re fine, you’re going to be fine and that the good days will will outweigh the day and you’ll f****** nail it.”
This wasn’t just a one-off, out of the blue rant. Lucy was speaking from personal experience. For she had been struggling with anxiety, depression and panic attacks herself, including one on stage while playing bass for a band she was a part of.
She recalled, “That was the first time I asked for help. I played the first note of the first set, unplugged my guitar and locked myself in the toilet. I was off work for around eight months. I stay in doors for the first month, and I was living a long which didn’t help.
The daughter of Julie and Andy continued,
“I moved back in with my parents, as it was better for me not to be on my own. At the moment, I’m doing bloody brilliant, although I am still on anti-depressants.”
Wrestling has been one of the factors in helping Lucy to recover. She was at a show when one of her friends, part of the Liverpool-born Draper brothers tag team, was making his solo debut for Fighting Spirit. Before her friend debuted, she had another panic attack and was found sitting in her car. Rick texted her to tell her that Barry Draper was about to have his match and that she “really didn’t want to miss it”.
“He was right, I didn’t,” she recalled. “That made me snap out of it. Another time was when I was at Fight Club Pro’s Project Mayhem Two, and the main event involved Trent Seven. I was watching it and nothing was going in – I was there physically, not mentally. Another part of the show, called Death House, started which involved Jimmy Havoc. His music made me snap out of it. Wrestling really has helped me a lot.”
Jimmy has been a big help to Lucy. His advice to her was “fake it until you make it”. The ring announcing career began with This Is Wrestling, when they asked her to introduce a women’s match. In her own words, Lucy was “terrible”, but “f****** loved it”, so wanted to do more. The control factor of being the one to start the show, and every match was what drew Lucy in. And she has high hopes for the future.
She said, “I’d like to work for a big company, such as WWE or AEW. I’ve actually had advice from WWE’s Mike Rome. I met him backstage at Smackdown in Sheffield. He told me to be myself and enjoy it. I’m always worried about being myself, as I’m just a very casual person.”
And Lucy’s ambitions go even higher. Her bucket list of wrestlers she wants to introduce and meet includes Finn Balor, John Cena, Alex Bliss and Becky Lynch. So, to anyone out there looking for a positive influence from a highly talented ring announcer, who has had advice from some of the best in the business, look no further than Miss Lucy Openshaw.