Lesbian wrestler Charlie Morgan talks about coming out in the ring and the lack of gay WWE Superstars

While much of the pro-wrestling landscape is dominated by the WWE, there are a number of independent companies doing things a little differently.

In the UK, the underground promotion Pro-Wrestling:EVE – co-promoted by husband and wife team Dann and Emily Read – has been grabbing the headlines for its feminist, punk rock, all female live shows.

Last month during its Dangerous Woman show, one of its wrestlers Charlie Morgan – real name Yasmin Lander – came out as gay publicly in the ring as part of a promo, to a chorus of cheers from the crowd.

Here, she tells PinkNews what it was like to make such a public statement in the squared circle, and dissects the lack of LGBT representation in the business.

On why she decided to come out so publicly, Yasmin explained that it was actually Dann who suggested to her that she come out during a promo.

“I was a little bit taken aback, because even in this day and age it’s still a little bit of a touchy subject,” she said.

“I was extremely nervous. I always get nervous before any wrestling match but this particular segment, I was very, very nervous for because I was passionate about what I wanted going to say.

“There was umming and aahing and about what I could and couldn’t say, which was the point of the promo, that everyone’s so scared of mentioning the word ‘gay’.

“How are people ever meant to be encouraged to come out if everyone’s scared to mention the fricking word?”

She added: “I was really taken aback by the positive response I’ve had since doing the promo.

“To be honest, I didn’t really know what to expect and and I didn’t expect to have the response that I’ve had.

• Nov 29

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