Kendo Nagasaki is one of Britain’s most famous wrestlers and the most famous openly bisexual wrestler of all time.
The grappler, whose real name is Peter Thornley, wrestled between 1964 and 2008, is one of the most famous openly-gay wrestlers in the UK.
This was a well-kept secret during his career, as was his identity completely. He never showed his face, even showering with his mask on, before Kendo Nagasaki was unmasked by Big Daddy during a shocking match in 1977.
He came out to the public in his 2017 book “Kendo Nagasaki and the Man Behind The Mask”, revealing he knew when he was 17 that he was bisexual.
However, he thinks society forced him into being bisexual, and not simply gay.
Kendo Nagasaki Thinks Society Made Him Bisexual, Not Gay
Kendo Nagasaki spoke with BBC Radio Stoke, promoting his return to the ring in 2024.
He was asked about what it is like being a bisexual in the wrestling business, especially during a time when it was illegal in Britain.
Kendo Nagasaki gave an interesting answer. He stated that society pushed him towards being bisexual, rather than just being a gay man.
He thinks that if he were born in the modern day, he would simply be gay, and not bisexual.
“I was born in 1941. We’ve gone Alan Turing just after that. When I was 17, two people who I went to school with went to prison for sexual acts.”
“I would say that bisexuality is forced on my type of person. Society does not allow you to be who you really want to be.”
“If I really, really think about it, I think I have been pushed into that sort of thing (bisexuality). If it’d been now, I’d be gay, not bisexual.”
Nagasaki Became The Oldest Masked Wrestler Ever At 83
Kendo Nagasaki has become the second-oldest wrestler to ever compete in the ring at the grand old age of 83.
On November 24, 2024 at Croydon’s Fairfield Halls, Kendo Nagasaki set foot in the wrestling ring for one final time. Adorned in his traditional cape and carrying the sword gifted to him by Kenshiro Abbe, he wrestled in a six-man tag team match for the fans of the LDN promotion.
Nagasaki teamed up with Dead Gorgeous (Ben Nelson & Jordan Nelson) to defeat the trio of DD Crooks, Sanjay Bagga & Stevie Fee. We’re still waiting on specific details for this match, but we do know that Kendo Nagasaki and his team picked up the victory in his final outing.
The English wrestler wore a special mask for his final match. He is one of the most prominent LGBT wrestlers in British history and recently came out as bisexual.
For this match, he wore a rainbow version of his mask, which you can buy on eBay with profits going to the Kendo Nagasaki Foundation.
