Birdy (RLS CAS)

Birdy on UNION Charged in April 2022.

**Elizabeth Halsey** *(born 14th August 1992, in Sheffield, England)* is a professional wrestler most recently signed to UNION Wrestling, where she was a one-time Women's World Champion.

Despite wrestling outside of UW as **Queenie** before her exit in 2020, she continued using the name Birdy in subsequent indy appearances, which led to a legal wrangle which ended up setting a precedent on gimmick ownership in ReVerse promotions**1**.

## Career

### Early Career and Training (2013-2015)

Halsey began her career in BWF under the name Queenie (due to her first name**2**), training under Mike Fantastic (later known as Ace) and Irish wrestler Jaqueline O'Hare (previously and later known as Jackie Compton) while taking part in the first Women's Trophy competition, in late-2013/early-2014 along with Jamaican superstar Jubilee, Japanese superstar Taki, Mexican superstar Rebecca Marin, Americans Miss Deeds and Katey Vega and English up-and-comers Kelly Kemp and Chelsea Sharma (later known as Sitara). She finished runner-up to Deeds.

In March 2014 she suffered a broken collarbone, an injury she seriously considered as the last she could suffer for pro wrestling. She was talked out of retiring by Ace and Compton**4**, who were already anticipating at that point the formation of what would become UNION Wrestling.

### PWU/UNION Wrestling, Big Push (2015-2020)

Halsey signed immediately with PWU upon it's formation, first and foremost because both of her principal trainers were there, and was put into the tourney, under the new name Birdy, on the UK&I tour to decide the first ever PWU Women's Champion, beating Nancy Warren and- shockingly- favourite Lara Grey before losing narrowly by submission in the final, again to Miss Deeds.

She feuded with Deeds for the title on the Canadian tour, losing by count-out in Toronto before getting a huge win and her first championship in Winnipeg, pinning Deeds after a Birdysnapper. She held the title through to the beginning of Live From The Union on the WWE Network, where her feud with Deeds was given something of a reboot for the new audience, as well as the title, which was renamed the Women's World Championship.

The two clashed again at PWU's first ever Live Event, Hardcore Brawl, in November 2016, with Birdy again getting the win. This set up an "all or nothing" match at PWU Capitol Punishment 2017 in Washington, DC between the two, which eventually encompassed the feud of Nancy Warren and Sitara as well to become a Four Woman Dance for the title. Birdy dodged a MISSile Kick from Deeds, and reversed her into a Leverage Pin, to retain the title.

Lara Grey attacked her during the next Live From The Union show, setting them up for a feud that would culminate in a Table Match at PWU Money In The Bank in London in May 2017. Despite being dominated in the match, Birdy was able to German Suplex her rival through a table with the last of her strength. This narrow defeat started an acclaimed run for Grey as the top female heel in the promotion, while Birdy herself suffered a knee injury while drop-kicking Grey into a barricade at the event. This injury would see Birdy out of action for the next few shows and the European Invasion Live Event on June 20th 2017, where Grey would instead feud with, and defeat, Manx superstar Amy J.

Grey would spent the next few shows after European Invasion tormenting, attacking and generally harassing the Women's World Champion in the run-up to her participation in the Wrestling Classic Women's Division Tournament. Upon Grey winning at The UNION Wrestling Classic in July 2017, in Birmingham, the two again feuded in the run-up to the Open Challenge Live Event, where the two are set to clash once again.

Halsey would lose the title at Open Challenge 2017, to Grey, in a match where her rival kicked out of two Birdysnappers and hit one herself in a "move-thief" moment. On the next Live From The Union, she would cut a promo passionately vowing to try her best to regain the title from Grey at the upcoming Heavy Metal 2017, in which she was once again unsuccessful.

At the end of the season SCI UNION Awards, Birdy would win Feud of the Year along with Grey. Around this time, she began using what she'd learned from her own trainers to help guide FireForged Academy prospect Kelly Gazidis, who would be featured on UNION Wrestling LIVE! during the second cycle. Birdy would co-main event the debut of LIVE!, in a Three Woman Match with Nancy Warren (who she pinned with a rollup) and Taki, before being repeatedly targeted by the debuting Koldskador on the new UNION Wrestling CHARGED show.

She'd finally face Koldskador in a losing effort at Uneasy Alliance 2017, only intensifying the feud. However, a routine post-live event scan found that she'd suffered a minor fracture to one of her ribs, limiting her in-ring action. She'd accompany Elsa, alongside Brittany Guile, at Deadly Weapons 2017, where Koldskador was again successful. Birdy then wouldn't be seen on programming again until the promotion went back to live touring only.

She would leave the promotion in 2020, despite being offered a new contract, and asserted her ownership of the Birdy gimmick. UW would object, but after meeting with lawyers, the company would concede that she was within her rights to continue using the name.

### Indy circuit (2020-2022)

In 2020, Birdy began appearing at the unbranded "Indy Wrestling Lives" shows in England and Scotland.**5** She worked primarily with Terri Law in shows in Nottingham, Sheffield, and Aberdeen, before the worsening COVID-19 pandemic curtailed the shows. She is, however, confirmed for the proposed return show in Sheffield in June.**6**

Various issues, both pandemic related and not, kept Halsey from performing again until early 2022, when she made a shock appearance in the Premier Women's Wrestling Annual Super Battle Royal, entering sixth of twenty and being eliminated by Scaircrow.

### UNION Wrestling return (2022-*present*)

Birdy would return to UNION Wrestling to face the protege of her deadly rival Miss Deeds, Nightmare D0ll, on the first episode of UNION Charged, in her hometown. She would, much to the shock of the fans, lose the bout by submission after allowing herself to be distracted by the ringside Deeds. In the aftermath, it was confirmed that she hadn't, at the time, signed any kind of deal to return full-time, and was still considered a freelancer.

## In-Wrestling

### Signature Moves

**Talon Attack** *(formerly Fury Swipes) (Samoan Blitz) 2013-present*

**Ace of Spades** *(adopted from Ace) (Modified/Figure-Four Sharpshooter) 2014, 2015-present sporadically*

### Finishing Moves

**Birdysnapper** *(formerly Whippersnapper) (adopted from Mikey Whipwreck) (Three-Quarter Facelock Jawbreaker) 2014-present*

**Royal Flush** *(as Queenie) (Spinning German Suplex) 2013-2014, 2017 (Table Finishing Move)*

### Managers

Ace *(occasionally during UK&I and Canadian Tours)*

### Nicknames

The Queen of Hearts *(as Queenie)*

Ellie Hal *(during training in America)*

**The Free Bird**

## Accomplishments

**BWF Women's Competition Runner-up** *2014*

**UNION Wrestling Women's World Championship** *(one-time) 2016-2017*

## Trivia

* Despite being born in, and growing up in, the same city as Ace, the two had never met prior to her being recommended to him for training.**7**
* She is big fan of the Pokémon series, something she sometimes alludes to in her attires and moves. Her signature punches, now called the Talon Attack, was originally named Fury Swipes.**8**
* She is also a vegetarian, a decision she made in school after being repulsed by how hotdogs were made.**9**

## Behind-the-Scenes/Notes

1. In truth, this was just my way of reconciling in any future narrative the fact that she was able to use her Birdy name and logos outside of UNION Wrestling. I plan to include in the fleshing out of any future UW stuff I might do.
2. The "real name" actually came second, and was a coincidence in truth because I actually named her after two of my real-life friends.
3. Whipwreck was actually the move-set template for Birdy on WWE 2K16, which is where the "training" comes into it, narrative-wise.
4. She actually retired on the MDickie game I had her on due to injury, and I chose to bring her back for UNION when 2K16 came around.
5. I'd planned a whole promotion, with a diary on the forums here, but that fell through for several reasons, so when I came back to it I mainly just did isolated shows for my own amusement.
6. I may make a little diary on the 2K20 forum between now and 2K22's release... I'm not decided fully yet.
7. I don't recall *why* exactly I added this detail to my notes for the character... presumably just because Sheffield is a big place and we don't all know each other.
8. In truth, I'm the massive Pokémon fan. Fury Swipes is one of my favourite moves.
9. I got to see how hotdogs were made first-hand in school, and it's... unpleasant. I can still eat them, to be honest, but I know people who were completely put off who haven't eaten them since.