10 Things We Learned From Attending AEW All In 2023

2. Queen At Wembley From 1986 Is THE Influence

Chris Jericho
AEW

It's Queen.

It's Queen and especially Freddie Mercury and especially their 1986 special that define England's colossal national stadium

Not Bret Hart and Davey Boy Smith's 1992 epic, nor Jimmy Montgomery's dramatic double save for Sunderland in the 1973 FA Cup Final, nor Live Aid, nor Elliot Embleton and Ross Stewart's winners for Sunderland against Wycombe in the 2022 League One Playoff Final, nor Blur's tear-jerking reunion double-header or even Sunderland's heroic and unfair 1998 Championship Playoff Final defeat to Charlton Athletic (voted the greatest game in the history of the ground). It's Queen Live from 1986 that left the most indelible memory in the minds of the planners and performers within AEW, and the evidence was everywhere.

From The Young Bucks' outstanding take on Freddie's iconic look to Saraya's undeniably mammoth "We Will Rock You" entrance and Chris Jericho's criminal attempt at the singer's idiosyncratic call and response, this was comfortably the legendary show 2023's Wembley debutants were looking to top.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett