NXT UK
NXT UK is a professional wrestling television programme that was produced exclusively in the United Kingdom by the American promotion WWE. It aired on BT Sport and 5Action (previously known as Paramount Network). In the United States, the show was available to stream on Peacock, while in other countries, it aired on the WWE Network. The show featured competitors from WWE's NXT UK brand.[1] The show was officially announced during the 2018 United Kingdom Championship Tournament.[2] The final episode of the programme aired on 1 September 2022, following the announcement that the NXT UK brand would be replaced by NXT Europe in 2023.
| NXT UK | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Professional wrestling |
| Created by | |
| Starring | NXT UK roster |
| Opening theme | "Got That Feeling" by def rebel |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 215 |
| Production | |
| Camera setup | Multicamera setup |
| Running time |
|
| Release | |
| Original network |
|
| Original release | 17 October 2018 – 1 September 2022 |
| Related | |
History
In a press conference at The O2 Arena on 15 December 2016, Triple H revealed that there would be a 16-man tournament to crown the inaugural WWE United Kingdom Champion. The tournament was held over a two-day period, 14 and 15 January 2017, and aired exclusively on the WWE Network. At the time, it was stated that the championship would be the centerpiece of a new UK-based show produced in the UK, but since the inaugural tournament, it was defended on NXT as well as at independent shows in the United Kingdom.[3][4] The name of the show, NXT UK, and its premiere was finally revealed during the 2018 United Kingdom Championship Tournament. On 7 June 2018, Johnny Saint was appointed General Manager of WWE's United Kingdom-based brand, officially called NXT UK.[5][6]
The show had its first tapings in August 2018, and the premiere episode of NXT UK aired on 17 October 2018.[7] Starting October 31 with the third and fourth episodes, new episodes were premiered in a double header format each week. On 12 January 2019, the first live special episode of NXT UK aired, called NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool. Beginning with the 16 January episode, NXT UK returned to airing one episode each week. In September 2019, Triple H stated that NXT UK was the second most watched programme on the WWE Network, behind NXT.[8] In October 2019, the show moved to Thursdays.[9]
Beginning on 2 January 2020, NXT UK began airing on BT Sport[10][11] On 21 January 2020, it was announced that NXT UK will also be airing on Paramount Network (now known as 5Action).[12] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, NXT UK suspended production in April 2020. It returned to air in September 2020, with the programme moving to the BT Sport studio.[13]
On 18 August 2022, WWE announced that the NXT UK brand would be entering a hiatus in September and would be rebranded as NXT Europe in 2023.[14] The final episode of NXT UK aired on 1 September.
Special episodes
| Episode Title | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NXT UK's debut episode | 17 October 2018 | Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England | Premier episode of the programme. Featured Pete Dunne (c) vs. Noam Dar for the WWE United Kingdom Championship |
| NXT UK episode 31 | 20 February 2019 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | First episode of NXT UK held outside the United Kingdom and in the United States. Featured Toni Storm (c) vs. Rhea Ripley for the NXT UK Women's Championship |
| Best of NXT UK 2019 | 26 December 2019 | N/A | Recap episode featuring all of the year's events on NXT UK. |
| Rise of NXT UK | 9 April 2020 | From April 2020 until September 2020, NXT UK was produced as a clip show due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | |
| Superstar Picks Week 1 |
16 April 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Most Brilliant Week 1 |
23 April 2020 | ||
| Hidden Gems Week 1 |
30 April 2020 | ||
| Imperium Dominates | 7 May 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 2 |
14 May 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Most Brilliant Week 2 |
21 May 2020 | ||
| Hidden Gems Week 2 |
28 May 2020 | ||
| Gallus Boys On Top | 4 June 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 3 |
11 June 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Most Brilliant Week 3 |
18 June 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 4 |
25 June 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 5 |
2 July 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 6 |
9 July 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Greatest Hits Week 1 |
16 July 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Greatest Hits Week 2 |
23 July 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Greatest Hits Week 3 |
30 July 2020 | ||
| NXT UK's Greatest Hits Week 4 |
6 August 2020 | ||
| Hidden Gems Week 3 |
13 August 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 7 |
20 August 2020 | ||
| Superstar Picks Week 8 |
27 August 2020 | ||
| The Champion And His Challenger | 3 September 2020 | ||
| History In The Making | 10 September 2020 | ||
| NXT episode 113 | 17 September 2020 | London, England | First episode of NXT UK after the conclusion of the COVID-19 pandemic clip show format. Start of NXT UK's residency at BT Sport Studios. |
| NXT UK Happy Holidays | 24 December 2020 | Christmas Eve special episode. Recapped all of the year's events on NXT UK. | |
| NXT UK Happy New Year | 31 December 2020 | New Year's special episode. Recapped all of the year's events on NXT UK. | |
| NXT UK: Prelude | 8 April 2021 | WrestleMania Week special episode.[15] Featured Walter (c) vs. Rampage Brown for the NXT United Kingdom Championship | |
| NXT UK Happy Holidays | 23 December 2021 | Christmas Eve special episode. Recapped all of the year's events on NXT UK. | |
| NXT UK Happy New Year | 30 December 2021 | New Year's special episode. Recapped all of the year's events on NXT UK. | |
| NXT UK's final episode | 1 September 2022 | Final episode of NXT UK, in preparation of the launch of the NXT Europe brand. Featured Tyler Bate vs. Trent Seven in the finals of the NXT United Kingdom Championship tournament | |
On-air personalities
Authority figures
| Authority figure | Position | Date started | Date finished | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnny Saint | General Manager | 7 June 2018 | 4 September 2022[nb 2] | Was appointed General Manager of the NXT UK brand by Triple H at the 2018 United Kingdom Championship Tournament |
| Sid Scala | Assistant to the General Manager | 12 December 2018 | 1 September 2022[nb 3] |
Commentators
| Commentators | Date started | Date finished |
|---|---|---|
| Vic Joseph and Nigel McGuinness | 17 October 2018 | 12 June 2019 |
| 31 July 2019 | 3 October 2019 | |
| Vic Joseph and Aiden English | 19 June 2019 | 24 July 2019 |
| Tom Phillips and Nigel McGuinness | 10 October 2019 | 16 January 2020 |
| Tom Phillips and Aiden English | 23 January 2020 | 5 March 2020 |
| Andy Shepherd and Nigel McGuinness | 12 March 2020 | June 2020 |
| 17 September 2020 | 1 September 2022 |
Ring announcers
| Ring announcer | Date started | Date finished |
|---|---|---|
| Andy Shepherd | 17 October 2018 | 5 March 2020 |
| Greg Hamilton | 13 February 2019 | 20 February 2019 |
| Sarah Schreiber | 20 February 2019 | 27 February 2019 |
| Francesca Brown | 12 March 2020 | 1 September 2022 |
Backstage interviewers
| Backstage interviewer | Date started | Date finished |
|---|---|---|
| Radzi Chinyanganya | 17 October 2018 | 23 April 2020 |
| Josiah Williams | 12 March 2020 | 2 April 2020 |
Notes
- Episodes of NXT UK aired exclusively on Peacock's WWE Network channel in the United States.
- While NXT UK aired its final episode on 1 September 2022, Saint remained the general manager of the NXT UK brand until it entered a hiatus on 4 September.
- Scala was released by WWE on 19 August 2022, but due to episodes of NXT UK airing on tape delay, he appeared through the final episode on 1 September.
References
- "WWE launches new U.K. series". Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- "BREAKING: Major Announcement At WWE UK Championship Tournament Tapings". 18 June 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- Currier, Joseph (December 15, 2016). "WWE to crown first United Kingdom Champion in January". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
- Keller, Wade (December 15, 2016). "WWE announces new UK-based brand, holding tournament to crown UK Champion, Nigel McGuinness on announce team". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
- "Johnny Saint named GM of WWE's United Kingdom brand". WWE. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
- "WWE announces Johnny Saint as UK brand general manager". Won/F4W - Wwe News, Pro Wrestling News, Wwe Results, Aew News, Aew Results. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
- "NXT UK joins WWE Network's already packed Wednesday line-up". 11 October 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
- "Triple H: 'I want no part' of Enzo Amore, I run NXT, not Vince McMahon, The Rock". talkSPORT. 2019-09-02. Retrieved 2019-09-10.
- "NXT UK moving to Thursdays on WWE Network starting next week". WON/F4W - WWE news, Pro Wrestling News, WWE Results, UFC News, UFC results. 2019-09-25. Retrieved 2019-10-04.
- "BT Sport secure WWE rights from rivals Sky Sports". The Independent. 2019-06-20. Archived from the original on 2022-06-18. Retrieved 2019-10-31.
- "BT Sport | the Heart of Sport | BT Sport".
- "ViacomCBS Strikes U.K. Deal for WWE Programming". The Hollywood Reporter. 21 January 2020.
- "Inside NXT UK's move to BT Studios - look at the British arm of WWE's new home". talkSPORT. 2020-09-04. Retrieved 2022-05-22.
- Gaydos, Ryan (August 18, 2022). "WWE to launch NXT Europe in 2023, NXT UK to make impact at upcoming event". Fox News. Retrieved August 18, 2022.
- Garretson, Jordan (March 18, 2021). "NXT UK Prelude set to take place Thursday, April 8". WWE. Retrieved April 6, 2021.