"BOMBER" PAT ROACH
1937-2004
One of the greatest names in British wrestling of the past forty years, Pat Roach died on July 17, 2004 after a 3-year battle with cancer. He was 67 years old.

Roach was born and grew up in Birmingham, England and was a great athlete from an early age. His tremendous size (almost 6 feet, 6 inches tall and close to the 300 pound mark) made him a natural for the squared circle. It is fitting that he was often known as the “Giant.”

He was a huge attraction because of his size and strength mixed with strong wrestling skills. Roach is primarily remembered for his wrestling exploits against the cream of the British scene, notably Giant Haystacks, whom Roach defeated for the European Heavyweight title in 1991. He also competed successfully in several tournaments throughout Europe in the 1970s and 80s.

Pat worked extensively in the United States in the early 1980s in California for the LeBell brothers, as well as for the Nashville wrestling promotion where he was a part of a heel tag team called The Royal Family.

Roach was a multifaceted man with not only a fine wrestling career, but a very busy acting career. His first role was in Stanley Kubrik's cult classic A Clockwork Orange. Some of his other notable film appearances included Clash of the Titans, Conan the Destroyer, Never Say Never again, Willow, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and all three of the Indian Jones epics. Roach was also a huge TV star in his native England appearing on the popular early 80s BBC program Auf Wiedersehen Pet. He portrayed the character “Bomber,” and then adopted the nickname in his wrestling persona.

After his retirement from the ring, Roach had been operating a health club and promoting pro wrestling as well as womens novelty (mud and Jell-o) wrestling throughout his home land. Roach was so widely respected in the physical culture world (fitness and bodybuilding) that when he published his autobiography entitled IF, his old friend from Conan the Destroyer, Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote the forward.

With the passing of Pat Roach the wrestling world has lost another true giant.