David Smith Popular Books

David Smith Biography & Facts

David Smith (27 November 1962 – 18 May 2002) was an English professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the United States with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring names Davey Boy Smith and The British Bulldog. Smith won titles within the WWF in three decades, from the 1980s to the 2000s. Though he was never a world champion, Smith nevertheless headlined multiple pay-per-view events in the WWF and WCW, in which he challenged for the WWF and WCW World Heavyweight championships. He defeated Bret Hart for the WWF Intercontinental Championship in the main event of SummerSlam 1992 at London's original Wembley Stadium; he also has the distinction of being the inaugural and longest reigning WWF European Champion in a total of 206 days, and to have held the title on the sole occasion where a match for that championship headlined a pay-per-view event, at One Night Only in 1997. Prior to finding singles success, Smith achieved stardom as one half of The British Bulldogs tag team, alongside the Dynamite Kid. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2020. Early life Smith was born in Golborne, where he grew up with his father Sid, mother Joyce, his brother, Terrence and sisters, Joanne and Tracy. Joyce's nephew was Tom Billington, also known as the Dynamite Kid, who was Smith's frequent tag-team partner. He was born with measles in his eyes, which led to him often being the subject of bullying at his school, but he got laser surgery in his 30s. Smith enjoyed cricket, football and diving as hobbies. Professional wrestling career Early career (1978–1984) Smith started his training with Ted Betley at 13 after his grandfather and father noticed he needed to be involved in a positive activity. He started competing on ITV's World of Sport when he was only 15, wrestling under the name Young David with his slightly older cousin the Dynamite Kid Tom Billington. Mentored by Billington's friend Alan Dennison, in 1979, Smith appeared to have won the British Welterweight championship from Jim Breaks, only for the win to be disallowed due to Dennison distracting Breaks. Smith then held Breaks to a 1–1 draw, as a result of which Dennison himself challenged and defeated Breaks for the belt. Smith was then spotted by Bruce Hart, who was scouting talent in the UK, and both he and Billington travelled to Canada to wrestle for Stu Hart. Hart and Roy Wood trained Smith further in Hart's "Dungeon" and Smith became a key wrestler in Hart's Stampede Wrestling.During his time in Stampede, he began a feud with the Dynamite Kid, and on 9 July 1982, Smith won his first title when he defeated the Dynamite Kid for the Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship. In 1983, Smith debuted in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he became involved in a three-way feud with Dynamite Kid and The Cobra (George Takano) over the NWA Junior Heavyweight title. On 7 February 1984, a three-way, one-night tournament was held, and Smith lost to the Dynamite Kid via count-out. After the tournament, Smith and Dynamite Kid formed a tag team in both New Japan and in Stampede Wrestling known as The British Bulldogs. In 1984, the Bulldogs made a shocking move by jumping to New Japan's rival, All Japan Pro Wrestling just before the start of All Japan's annual Tag Team tournament. World Wrestling Federation (1984–1988) The Bulldogs, along with Smith's brothers-in-law Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart were brought in to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) after Vince McMahon bought out Stampede Wrestling. At first, the Bulldogs were able to tour both WWF and All Japan, but eventually McMahon gained exclusive rights to the Bulldogs. Managed by Lou Albano, the Bulldogs began a long running feud with Hart and Neidhart, who were now known as The Hart Foundation. The Bulldogs also feuded with the Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake), and on 7 April 1986 at WrestleMania 2, with Albano and Ozzy Osbourne in their corner, the Bulldogs defeated the Dream Team for the Tag Team Championship.The Bulldogs held the titles for nearly nine months, feuding with the Dream Team and Nikolai Volkoff and The Iron Sheik, but the Hart Foundation bested the Bulldogs to win the titles on 26 January 1987. After losing the titles, the Bulldogs gained a mascot, an actual bulldog who went by the name Matilda, and feuded with the likes of The Islanders (who in kayfabe dog-napped Matilda), Demolition, and the Rougeau Brothers. At Survivor Series on 26 November, The British Bulldogs and other face teams won a 10-on-10 Survivor Series tag team match. The following Survivor Series on 24 November 1988 produced the same result.Later in 1988, The Bulldogs left the WWF, in part due to backstage problems, specifically between the Dynamite Kid and the Rougeau Brothers. The Bulldogs had allegedly pulled a number of ribs (pranks) on the Rougeaus. Curt Hennig also pranked the duo, who, assuming that the Bulldogs were behind that prank as well, retaliated: Jacques Rougeau knocked out four of Dynamite Kid's teeth with a fist filled with a roll of quarters. Though there are various accounts of this situation, many suggest that Billington drew first blood by bullying Rougeau (among many others including The Honky Tonk Man, whom Dynamite brought to tears) in Miami. No disciplinary action was taken against Jacques. Billington shortly afterwards quit the WWF over a dispute with WWF management over the issuance of complimentary plane tickets, over which he resigned from the company, and Smith followed suit. Stampede Wrestling; All Japan Pro Wrestling (1988–1990) After leaving the WWF, the Bulldogs returned to Stampede Wrestling, and also to All Japan Pro Wrestling. Stampede officials were hopeful that the return of the Bulldogs would revive a struggling promotion, but they were unsuccessful. Eventually in May 1989, the decision was made to split up the Bulldogs, which caused some problems with All Japan owner Shohei Baba, who was still promoting the Bulldogs as a tag team. On 4 July 1989, Smith, along with fellow wrestlers Chris Benoit, Ross Hart, and Jason the Terrible, was involved in a serious automobile accident. Smith, who was not wearing a seatbelt at the time, needed 135 stitches after slamming his head through the windshield and being thrown 25 feet onto the pavement. He recovered, and the Bulldogs continued teaming in All Japan against teams such as Joe and Dean Malenko, Kenta Kobashi and Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, and The Nasty Boys. Personal problems began to surface between Smith and Billington, and Smith later left All Japan to return to the WWF. Return to World Wrestling Federation (1990–1992) British sensation (1990–1992) Smith returned to the WWF in 1990, where he was pushed as the same character from the British Bulldogs' original WWF run, but this time as a singles star under the name "The British Bulldog", which he had trademarked during his earlier tag team run in the WWF, thus preventing his former partner Dynamite Kid from usin.... Discover the David Smith popular books. Find the top 100 most popular David Smith books.

Best Seller David Smith Books of 2024

  • The Matter of Black Lives synopsis, comments

    The Matter of Black Lives

    Jelani Cobb & David Remnick

    A collection of The New Yorker‘s groundbreaking writing on race in Americaincluding work by James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, TaNehisi Coates, Hilton Als, Zadie Smith, and morewit...

  • Prince synopsis, comments

    Prince

    Mick Wall

    This is the powerful, detailed and enlightening biography of the iconic composer, singer, songwriter and multiinstrumentalist the inimitable Prince.Prince was an icon. A man who d...

  • The Stranger in My Bed synopsis, comments

    The Stranger in My Bed

    Michael Fleeman

    The Stranger in My Bed from journalist Michael Fleeman presents the chilling true story of one woman who escaped the deadly hold of the killer she loved and married; and of the gri...

  • Passionate Mothers, Powerful Sons synopsis, comments

    Passionate Mothers, Powerful Sons

    Charlotte Gray

    A captivating dual biography of two famous women whose sons would change the course of the 20th centuryby awardwinning historian Charlotte Gray.Born into upperclass America in the ...

  • The Doomsday Testament synopsis, comments

    The Doomsday Testament

    James Douglas

    From bestselling author James Douglas, a gripping and enthralling historical conspiracy thriller a must read for fans of Dan Brown, James Becker and Chris Kuzneski.READERS ARE LOV...

  • Little Heaven synopsis, comments

    Little Heaven

    Nick Cutter

    A “gripping and terrifying story…and one not to be missed” (Robert McCammon) from the acclaimed author of The Troop and The Deep!A trio of mismatched mercenariesMicah Shughrue, Min...

  • Arctic Drift synopsis, comments

    Arctic Drift

    Clive Cussler & Dirk Cussler

    A foundered Victorian ship looking for the fabled Northwest Passage holds a secret in its icy grave . . .When Dirk Pitt of NUMA is almost blown to pieces in a lab explosion, he sus...

  • Conan - Blood of the Serpent synopsis, comments

    Conan - Blood of the Serpent

    S. M. Stirling

    The pulsepounding return of Conan, the most iconic fantasy hero in popular culture, with a brandnew standalone novel by New York Times bestselling author S.M. Stirling, tied direct...

  • The Book of Secrets synopsis, comments

    The Book of Secrets

    Tom Harper

    From the pen of prizewinning author Tom Harper, this is a highoctane adventure thriller in the bestselling tradition of The Da Vinci Code. Jampacked with murder, mystery and mindbl...

  • More Stories from the Twilight Zone synopsis, comments

    More Stories from the Twilight Zone

    Carol Serling

    When it first aired in 1959, The Twilight Zone was nothing less than groundbreaking television. Freed from the censors' strict oversight due to the show's classification as scienc...

  • George Michael synopsis, comments

    George Michael

    Rob Jovanovic

    George Michael is an enigma. While he is one of the most open and vocal pop superstars on the planet, he also fiercely protective of his privacy. From the formation of Wham! In 198...

  • John Denver synopsis, comments

    John Denver

    John Collis

    John Denver was America's biggestselling solo star of the '70s. In commercial terms he was on a par with Sinatra in the '40s, Elvis in the '50s and the Beatles in the '60s. He expe...

  • Badge of Glory synopsis, comments

    Badge of Glory

    Douglas Reeman

    Fans of Clive Cussler, Bernard Cornwell and Wilbur Smith will love this enthralling and colourful saga from multimillion copy bestselling author Douglas Reeman. The first novel in ...

  • David Smith synopsis, comments

    David Smith

    Michael Brenson

    “An essential account of America’s greatest sculptor . . . [A] magnum opus.” Marjorie Perloff, The Times Literary SupplementThe landmark biography of the inscrutable and brilliant ...

  • From Saturday Night to Sunday Night synopsis, comments

    From Saturday Night to Sunday Night

    Dick Ebersol

    A memoir by the legendary television executive detailing his pioneering work on Saturday Night Live, Sunday Night Football, the Olympics, the NBA, music videos, late night, and mor...

  • The Samurai Inheritance synopsis, comments

    The Samurai Inheritance

    James Douglas

    Jamie Saintclair embarks on another fullthrottle historical adventure an absolute pageturner! If you love Dan Brown, Chris Kuzneski and Scott Mariani you will love this! READERS ...

  • Microtrends Squared synopsis, comments

    Microtrends Squared

    Mark Penn

    Ten years after his New York Times bestselling book Microtrends, Mark Penn identifies the next wave of trends reshaping the future of business, politics, and culture.Mark Penn has ...

  • How the Scots Invented the Modern World synopsis, comments

    How the Scots Invented the Modern World

    Arthur Herman

    An exciting account of the origins of the modern worldWho formed the first literate society? Who invented our modern ideas of democracy and free market capitalism? The Scots. As...

  • How to Lead synopsis, comments

    How to Lead

    David M. Rubenstein

    The New York Times Bestseller #1 Wall Street Journal BestsellerThe essential leadership playbook. Learn the principles and guiding philosophies of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Ruth Bade...

  • Shock Wave synopsis, comments

    Shock Wave

    Clive Cussler

    A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Cussler is hard to beat' Daily MailThe thirteenth adrenalinefilled Dirk Pitt classic from multimillioncopy king of the adventure novel, Clive Cussler.A hu...

  • The Gifts of Reading synopsis, comments

    The Gifts of Reading

    Robert Macfarlane

    From the bestselling author of UNDERLAND, THE OLD WAYS and THE LOST WORDS an essay on the joy of reading, for anyone who has ever loved a bookEvery book is a kind of gift to its r...

  • The Lazarus Vault synopsis, comments

    The Lazarus Vault

    Tom Harper

    From the pen of prizewinning author Tom Harper, this is a highoctane adventure thriller in the bestselling tradition of The Da Vinci Code. With a lingering sense of tension and une...

  • The Space Sieve synopsis, comments

    The Space Sieve

    David Smith

    An intelligent youth discovers an alien device of staggering power, and he eventually intuits its function. In doing so, he discovers that capability without wisdom is dangerous, i...

  • The Storm synopsis, comments

    The Storm

    Clive Cussler & Graham Brown

    A deadly, unstoppable force has just been unleashed on the world . . .In the middle of the Indian Ocean, a NUMA research vessel is taking water samples at sunset, when a crew membe...

  • Object Lessons synopsis, comments

    Object Lessons

    The Paris Review

    A New York Magazine Best Book of the YearA Huffington Post Best Book of the Year Twenty contemporary authors introduce twenty sterling examples of the short story from the pages o...

  • The Princess and the Peas synopsis, comments

    The Princess and the Peas

    David Smith

    Princess Gladys is the light of her father's life and the apple of his eye, but parenting turns out to be far more complicated than King Sidney could ever have imagined. Left alone...

  • The Club synopsis, comments

    The Club

    Joshua Robinson & Jonathan Clegg

    The Club is the inside story of how English soccer’s Premier League became the wildest, richest, most popular sports product on the planet, "a narrative that is part Great Exp...

  • A Billion Years synopsis, comments

    A Billion Years

    Mike Rinder

    One of the highestranking defectors from Scientology exposes the secret inner workings of the powerful organization in this remarkable memoir that is “not only a cautionary tale bu...

  • Treasure of Khan synopsis, comments

    Treasure of Khan

    Clive Cussler & Dirk Cussler

    From the frigid lakes of Siberia to the hot wastes of the Gobi desert, Dirk Pitt is on the trail of fabled treasure . . .Rescuing an oil survey team from a freak wave on Russia's L...

  • Rendezvous - South Atlantic synopsis, comments

    Rendezvous - South Atlantic

    Douglas Reeman

    Readers of Clive Cussler, Bernard Cornwell and Wilbur Smith will love this gripping, spellbinding and unputdownable WW2 historical adventure full of vivid battle scenes and masterf...

  • Yeah, I Said It synopsis, comments

    Yeah, I Said It

    Wanda Sykes

    Wanda Sykes reduces people to tears tears of laughter. She's done so as a standup comic, a sitcom star, and a sports commentator for years now, and in the process she's gained a h...

  • The Navigator synopsis, comments

    The Navigator

    Clive Cussler & Paul Kemprecos

    Clive Cussler continues his thrilling NUMA Files with The Navigator.Iraq, 2003: in the postwar looting of the treasures from Baghdad's antiquities museum, a legendary Phoenicean st...

  • Crescent Dawn synopsis, comments

    Crescent Dawn

    Clive Cussler & Dirk Cussler

    An ancient cargo long thought lost is found. With terrible consequences . . .Dirk Pitt is surveying in the Middle East when a stroke of luck reveals an Ottoman wreck with a very cu...

  • Havana Storm synopsis, comments

    Havana Storm

    Clive Cussler & Dirk Cussler

    Renowned marine adventurer Dirk Pitt returns to stem a toxic outbreak.While investigating a toxic outbreak in the Caribbean Sea that may ultimately threaten the United States, Pitt...