MASKED wrestling legend Kendo Nagasaki is flogging his £1.5million country estate as he bids to become the world’s oldest fighter.
Madcap Kendo, 83, best remembered for his part in ITV‘s 1970s show World of Sport, wants to relocate from his 50-room mansion in Stoke-on-Trent to Blackpool where he owns an exclusive men only hotel.
He plans to teach Zen Buddhism to the LGBTQ+ community in the Lancashire seaside town.
And he is also in training for a return to the ring to mark the 60th anniversary of his first appearance in British professional wrestling by breaking a world record.
It would make him the oldest professional wrestler.
With his iron mask, Kendo purports to be a Japanese Samurai with a mysterious past and powers of healing and hypnosis.
A spokesperson for Kendo – real name Peter Thornley – told The Sun: “Peter is always looking to extend the reach of his Buddhist work, and this is a big motivator for the move away.
“Moor Court Hall has therefore become less than ideal for Kendo’s charitable work, and he seeks to evolve it in a better-suited venue in Blackpool.
“Peter is driven to share Zen Buddhism with others who also need its transformative energy.”
Kendo’s huge rural mansion was used for special Zen Buddhism events and had become synonymous with his charity work.
He even handed part of his estate over to the Lee Rigby Foundation in memory of murdered Fusilier Lee, 25, who was killed by an Islamic terrorist in London in 2013.
His spokesperson said demand for Kendo’s “in person Zen spiritualism” events dropped off during the Covid pandemic, and never recovered, pushing Kendo to focus on making online videos.
One of the iconic moments from World Of Sport was when he finally removed his mask at a special ceremony in 1977.
The event drew a staggering TV audience of 14 million people who tuned in to watch the unmasking at Wolverhampton Civic Hall.
Kendo’s biggest fights were against Giant Haystacks and Big Daddy.
He loved to finish his fights with his own special move, the kamikaze crash, which saw him give his rivals a fireman’s lift, before running forwards and using the momentum to smash and roll the opponent to the ground.
Kendo continued to wrestle throughout the Eighties and early Nineties before going into semi-retirement, with sporadic wrestling matches as recently as 2008.
The colourful wrestler, who was married to wife Yvette until she died in 1993, revealed he was bisexual in his 2018 autobiography, Kendo Nagasaki and the Man Behind the Mask. He says he knew about his sexuality as early as 17.
He also revealed he has been with a male partner since his wife died aged 80.
The book raised money for the Lee Rigby Foundation to which he was a major benefactor.
The charity was set up by Lee’s mum Lyn Rigby after her son was murdered.
Discussing the next chapter in Kendo’s life, the spokesperson said: “Peter owns perhaps the most exclusive men-only, members-only hotel in the UK in Blackpool, Trades Hotel, which has been a sanctuary for gay men for several decades.
“The LGBTQ+ community continues to face existential challenges, and Peter wishes to spread the supportive message of Zen Buddhism which has helped him so much since his teenage years.”
