Paddy Monaghan suffered from dyslexia, but back in those days the school teachers labeled him as a problem child and was told to go and help the school caretaker. While other boys his age read “The Beano” and “The Dandy”, Paddy was looking over the pages of “The Boxing News” while his Mamma, Mary Ann would read to him from cover to cover.
Paddy left school without the ability to read and write, but when Muhammad Ali then known as Cassius Clay came on the scene in the boxing papers, Paddy wanted to learn more about him. Mary Ann took it upon herself in having the long task of teaching Paddy how to read and write so he could read about Cassius Clay himself. She began with the basic books with big letters and small words, it wasn’t before long he progressed to the Enid Blyton books. Before then he thought every story began with “Once Upon a Time” and ended with “Happy Ever After”.
By this time, Paddy tried boxing but he was just a basic fighter with gloves but without them he was totally different and soon found out the bare-knuckle boxing was his way forward in life.
Cassius Clay was training in London to fight Henry Cooper in 1963. Paddy travelled to see him train but arrived too late. When Cassius left the gym, he was met by a huge crowd. A strange thing happened, he and Paddy made eye contact and Cassius made his way over to Paddy, shook his hand and asked have they met before. Paddy assured him they never met before.
On February 15th 1964, Cassius Clay shook up the world when he beat Sonny Liston to become the Heavyweight Champion of the world. Soon after he changed his name to Muhammad Ali.
In 1967 The World Boxing Association (WBA)and The World Boxing Council (WBC) stripped Muhammad Ali of his world title because of his refusal to be inducted into the US Armed Forces to fight the war in Vietnam. Paddy felt his college of knowledge had been taken away from him. He decided he had to do something about it. He made a banner out of two broom handles, a bed sheet and black duct tape which spelt out “ALI IS OUR CHAMP”. Paddy began his campaign to get Muhammad’s license re-instated. In between his bare-knuckle fights, he went to London, walked up and down Park Lane and stood on “Speakers Corner” outside Hyde Park with his banner raised high and spoke about what the boxing authorities and the American government had done to Muhammad and how wrong they are. People queued up to sign Paddy’s petition.
Paddy named Muhammad Ali, “The Peoples Champion”. That name has become famous all over the world. Paddy was soon in the national newspapers for what he was doing for Muhammad. Some people said he was mad, others loved him for what he is doing. Paddy receives letters from all over the world. The postman brought in mail by the sack load. One letter read, ‘Warning you, warning you, warning you. Back off you nigger loving son of a bitch’ signed by the KKK. Paddy wrote ‘Fuck You’ on the letter and returned it.
Without Paddy realizing it until his wife Sandra mentioned it, he had started the very first “Muhammad Ali Fan Club”.