In June 2020, the professional wrestling world was rocked by a wave of allegations that sparked a seismic shift in the industry.
This was known as the Speaking Out Movement.
The collective outcry echoed the broader #MeToo movement, as wrestlers and fans alike used social media platforms to shine a light on systemic abuse and misconduct that had long been hidden.
Survivors shared their stories, revealing the harrowing experiences of harassment and exploitation they faced.
It ignited a crucial conversation about power dynamics, accountability, and the need for change within the wrestling community.
While it was mainly focused on British wrestling, stars from the US and all over the world were accused as part of the wider Speaking Out movement.
What Is The Speaking Out Movement?
The “Speaking Out Movement” was wrestling’s answer to Hollywood’s “#MeToo Movement”.
It was a grassroots movement in professional wrestling in mid-2020, exposing a number of sexual predators in the business.
Multiple women came forward about their experiences via social media. The accused were mainly members of the British wrestling community, although a handful of international stars were also involved.
The sheer scale of abuse running through the British Wrestling scene was such an issue that British Parliament even launched an investigation into it.
It made mainstream news, and dealt a huge blow to the BritWres revival.
Speaking Out was one of the reasons for the sharp, sudden fall of British Wrestling in 2020, although it was arguably the third-most important reason for its decline.
However, that is not the underplay the severity of what happened.
Trust in the British indie scene was tarnished. Wrestlers who fans had forged deep connections with turned out to be terrible people.
Promotions which had allowed this to happen were now being examined under a microscrope.
RevPro, Progress and OTT had some of the biggest stars embroiled in scandal, and it is incredible that they are still in business to this day.
David Starr’s Accusor Kicked Off The Speaking Out Movement
The Speaking Out movement kicked off on June 17th 2020 with a Tweet from a woman named Tori.
Tori posted a (now-deleted) Tweet, she accused David Starr of sexual, mental and physical abuse.
Starr is an American wrestler, but was one of the top stars on the British Indie scene at the time.
His pro-union gimmick resonated with the wrestling world, and he seemed destined for a huge future in the business.
However, that was the end of his career. While Starr hadn’t wrestled for months due to the pandemic, he never wrestled again after the accusations.
You can read more in-depth about the David Starr accusations here.
The use of social media was used to amplify the voices of survivors. In previous years, there would be little opportunity for them to have their voices heard, but the reach of Twitter made all the difference.
Tori was the catalyst of the movement, and helped other victims feel heard in their plight to out their abusers.
David Starr was the first of many wrestlers accused in the Speaking Out movement.
This began an avalanche of accusations that shocked the wrestling world, especially in the United Kingdom, to its very core.
More Wrestlers Were Accused In The Speaking Out Movement
David Starr was just the start, as more and more wrestlers were outed in the Speaking Out movement.
One by one, more victims came out and pointed fingers towards the wrestlers who had abused them.
Just one day after the first accusations, JD McDonagh and Jimmy Havoc had claims levied against them. They were followed by other stars, like Marty Scurll, Will Ospreay and Tyler Bate, among many others.
These claims all had varying levels of severity and truth behind them.
For instance, Marty Scurll was accused of getting a 16-year-old trainee drunk and forcing himself upon her.
Jack Gallagher admitted to drunkenly assaulting a woman, losing his job in the process.
Joey Ryan had numerous different women accuse him of various levels of sexual assault, more than any fans could ever have expected.
However, others were less severe. Will Ospreay was falsely accused of blacklisting a female wrestler from the business, after issues between them and his ex-partner.
Trent Severn was said to have hit on some underage fans, plying them with alcohol. It later came out that they weren’t underage, they were buying him drinks, and nothing sexual happened.
Tyler Bate was “accused” of hitting on a woman, being rejected then leaving her be. That was true, but it was a gross misapproriation of what the Speaking Out movement was all about.
That was not even all the wrestlers who were accused in the Speaking Out movement. Click the link to learn more about the wrestlers accused.
The Movement Had An Impact On All Major Promotions
No major wrestling promotions were spared in the Speaking Out movement.
WWE were forced to fire two of their talents in the wake of the accusations.
NXT UK El Ligero and Travis Banks were instantly let go. This was due to them admittng what they did, unlike JD McDonagh, who denied any and all claims against him.
Both men were regulars on NXT UK, and had the talent to make the jump to NXT in the US. They were top stars in the UK, and it all came crashing down in June 2020.
Their dismissals led Triple H to call a meeting with all the NXT UK talent.
He warned the wrestlers that the WWE had a zero-tolerance policy, and any claims with evidence would lead to immediate dismissal.
AEW also lost a wrestler over the Speaking Out movement.
Jimmy Havoc had been teaming with Kip Sabian fairly successfully in 2020. The pair even challenged for the AEW tag team titles, although unsuccessfully.
That came to a grinding halt on June 18th. Jimmy Havoc was suspended by AEW after claims of him drunkenly abusing an ex-partner.
The company sent Havoc to rehab, before quietly firing him later that year.
If his abuse hadn’t been uncovered, it is likely that Marty Scurll would have worked with AEW.
The Englishman signed a million-dollar contract with Ring of Honor in March 2020, becoming the booker of the entire promotion.
It is likely that AEW and ROH would have had a working relationship, similar to AEW’s deal with TNA and NJPW in the past (this was before Tony Khan bout ROH).
However, by June that year, his career was in tatters. Despite being married to Serena Deeb, he can’t get a look in in AEW or any other major promotion.
However, the bulk of the criticism was brought to the British promotions, which was fair.
The scene was rotten to its core. So many top stars were outed as sex pests and abusers, including numerous main event talents.
Top stars from companies like RevPro, Progress and OTT were all included.
JD McDonagh, despite being cleared by the WWE and working there to this day, has never returned to Progress since the accusations.
David Starr and Joey Ryan’s careers are over. Travis Banks is stuck wrestling under a mask in Mexico. If NXT UK didn’t take enough top stars from the UK, Speaking Out removed what was left – and rightfully so.
The Long-Term Effects Improved Professional Wrestling In Great Britain
Very few things have had such an effect on British wrestling as the Speaking Out movement.
The epidemic of assault became national headlines, something wrestling hadn’t seen for decades.
The BBC interviewed the likes of McKenzie Mitchell, Lucia Lee and Erin Angel. All were young women when they were victims of wrestling stars like Travis Banks and Marty Scurll.
Triple H spoke to Metro about their zero tolerance policies, and the government even talked about the Speaking Out movement in parliament.
Mark Fletcher, the former MP for Bolsover, spoke in the House of Commons about the future of British wrestling amid the Speaking Out scandal.
Not since the days of Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks had the media had such an eye on wrestling.
Sadly, it was for all the wrong reasons.
The scrutiny had a big impact on the UK scene. While it had already been decimated by NXT and the pandemic, Speaking Out drove away whoever was left that still wanted to watch it.
However, the industry did change for the better. Better safeguards were put in place.
Those who committed crimes were now blacklisted (generally speaking) and not covered up due to their star power.
There were numerous times where promotions could have booked their former stars, but opted to do the right thing.
Women’s wrestling became a much more safe and supportive place to be. It is now arguably on the level of mens wrestling in Britain, a far cry from the days where women’s wrestling was banned altogether.
While what happened leading up to the Speaking Out movement was horrific, the victims telling their story has made British wrestling a better place.
