Patrick W. Reed
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patrickwreed.bsky.social
Patrick W. Reed
@patrickwreed.bsky.social
Writer, historian & occasional wrestling commentator/referee/oddjobsman

Host of the Bunkum & Ballyhoo podcast (@bunkumballyhoo.bsky.social)

"Kayfabe: A Mostly True History of Professional Wrestling", out now:
bit.ly/3N1Q73b

www.patrickwreed.com
Inexplicably listening to this today. Perhaps even tops Pete Best's "Best Of The Beatles" in terms of opportunistic cash-in titles.
January 19, 2026 at 2:45 PM
I'm a guy who wears bolo ties now.
January 19, 2026 at 11:58 AM
I swear I can be better.
January 16, 2026 at 4:14 PM
An absolute privilege to spend this evening honouring the great Linton Kwesi Johnson.
January 14, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Inside of you there are two wolves
January 10, 2026 at 6:36 PM
If your production of Dracula doesn't end like this, is it really worth the effort?
#Dracapella
January 10, 2026 at 5:41 PM
wrapping up monthly favourite albums for 2025 with December - never the best month for new releases, and none to trouble the end of year lists, but a few worth noting:

Jad Fair & Yo La Tengo - Strange But True
Depeche Mode - Memento Mori: Mexico City
Health - Conflict DLC
Ulver - Neverland
January 9, 2026 at 10:32 AM
This shot just happened in the actual movie I'm watching. Incredible. The most I have laughed in years.
January 8, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Bit cold in New Cross this morning.
January 6, 2026 at 12:20 PM
This attic’s full of memories for me. We spent all our summers by the seaside and in winter at home, by the fire.

Frost on the window, and snow. Snowballs and making snowmen. One winter I made a really big snowman and he got this scarf for me. You see, he was a real snowman.
January 3, 2026 at 7:09 PM
Reading 📖:
If...The Pat Roach Story, by Pat Roach with Shirley Thompson

Drinking 🍺:
Hackney Church Brew Co Gazpacho Gose (yes, really) @ The Shirker's Rest
January 3, 2026 at 3:38 PM
A museum piece.
January 2, 2026 at 4:18 PM
Here's (most of) what I read in 2025.
January 1, 2026 at 11:13 AM
I finally picked up this book - in good nick, and signed by the great man himself - and am thoroughly enjoying it; it's from 1967, so it's fascinating to see which wrestlers are deemed worthy of discussion from way back then, and in what light.

Some superb photos too, might do a thread on them.
December 31, 2025 at 7:52 PM
What was your biggest impact on the Internet?
December 31, 2025 at 7:13 PM
I *did* move house, though, and the new flat is bloody gorgeous. I feel incredibly fortunate to wake up here every day, and to have put the stress and the hassle of buying it behind me at long last.

Easily the highlight of a year that desperately needed one.
December 30, 2025 at 10:56 PM
On then, to matters more personal. It's been a rough year. Not least of all because we said goodbye to Roger, who some say was the best boy there ever was. He is dearly missed.

Work has been tough. Moving house was tougher. My health hasn't been great. I don't feel like I achieved much.
December 30, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Despite a great late effort from Kyle Fletcher and Jon Moxley, it's probably unsurprising that Bandido was also in my favourite match of the year, vs Hechicero at ROH Death Before Dishonor.

Honourable mention to the very much my jam Maestros Trios match at D3AN~!!!, which was just a great time.
December 30, 2025 at 10:46 PM
...or comprehensive pool, but I would have to give my nod for Wrestler Of The Year to Bandido, who really found that extra gear this year; not only was he almost incapable of having a match, he also clued into what can make him a fantastic babyface, and formed a great team with Brody.
December 30, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Speaking of Palin, it was a real pleasure to see him live talking about that book this year. I never know how to categorise various miscellaneous live experiences - in addition to Palin, I also saw the Harlem Globetrotters, Penn & Teller, and watched some comedians wrestle.
December 30, 2025 at 10:31 PM
Not many of the books I read were published this year, but some which were that I enjoyed:

Alison Bechdel - Spent

Hallie Rubenhold - Story Of A Murder

James Birch - Gilbert & George And The Communists

Michael Palin - In Venezuela
December 30, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Keeping it musical, my favourite gigs of the year:

Nine Inch Nails @ The O2

Kiki & Herb @ Soho Theatre, Walthamstow

Guitar Wolf @ New Cross Inn

Martin Carthy et al @ EARTH - if not the best gig of my life, certainly one of the most unique and thought-provoking. A real highlight of the year.
December 30, 2025 at 10:16 PM
Favourite albums is tougher. But I have had a very folky year, so here are some great ones that reflect that:

Martin Carthy - Transform Me Then Into A Fish

Gwenifer Raymond - Last Night I Heard The Dog Star Bark

Goblin Band - A Loaf Of Wax

Jennifer Reid - The Ballad Of The Gatekeeper
December 30, 2025 at 10:09 PM
I don't do resolutions, but I try and close out the year by being reflective, then looking to the year to come. So, if you'll indulge me, I will start as I tend to do with some of my favourite media of the year.

As usual, I've watched precious few new films this year. Sinners was my favourite.
December 30, 2025 at 10:05 PM
This book (minus dust cover) was, alongside the prerequisite Beano and Dandy annuals and Guinness Books of Records, my origin story- I read it obsessively in my primary school library, and was the only kid in *decades* to take it out. The school gave me it when I left, and I still own it.
December 27, 2025 at 2:57 PM