Not every professional wrestler who shows up in WWE goes on to become a huge star with a long career. For many of them, they might have a few decent years, only to be released while still young. After that, many will continue on with other promotions, but for others, they leave the squared circle behind for something more fulfilling. For example, after Muhammad Hassan was released by WWE due to his character’s controversy, he went on to become a high school teacher and principal. The same thing applies to Paul Burchill. He was a midcard WWE star on SmackDown during the Ruthless Aggression Era, but after leaving the company he actually became a firefighter and paramedic.
Paul Burchill Had A Pirate Gimmick On WWE SmackDown
- Burchill started in Ohio Valley Wrestling.
- He was in a tag team with William Regal.
- He played a pirate on SmackDown because he was related to Blackbeard.
Paul Burchill made his WWE debut in 2005, coming up through developmental in Ohio Valley Wrestling, then working on SmackDown. Most of his early run on the blue brand was spent in a tag team with William Regal, with the pair even getting a title shot that they lost. Burchill also had some time in the ring as a singles wrestler with Regal as his manager, but although he was a good wrestler, nothing really stood out about him to make him a superstar. So WWE turned him into a pirate.
In February 2006, Burchill showed up on SmackDown dressed up like a pirate, and looking exactly like Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean. The storyline was that Burchill’s great-great-grandfather was the infamous Blackbeard, so out came Burchill swinging from a rope. This still being the 2000s, he could get away with an over-the-top character like that, and Burchill actually became a decently popular babyface as he feuded with William Regal.
Burchill disappeared from WWE TV in 2007, but returned the next year as a heel, with women’s wrestler Katie Lea by his side playing his sister. However, this run quickly petered out, and a move to Raw and ECW didn’t do much to build him up. When ECW came to an end in 2010, so did Paul Burchill’s WWE career. He wrestled here and there in the indies afterward, but it was his time playing a pirate that he’ll always be best remembered for. In 2014, Burchill told WWE.com:
“People are like, ‘Oh, the pirate,’ and some are like, ‘That poor guy, he had to do that.’ I would do it right now. I loved it.”
After Leaving WWE, Paul Burchill Became A Firefighter And Paramedic
- He trained to become a firefighter-paramedic while still wrestling.
- Burchill also became a SWAT team member.
- He told WWE.com that he was also going to become a registered nurse.
Paul Burchill might have been doing Pirates of the Caribbean cosplay in WWE, but at the same time, he was preparing for what would come next. In the WWE.com interview, he said that he was training to be a firefighter-paramedic while still wrestling. After being released, he moved to Kentucky and became a firefighter.
“Having wrestled with the best in the world, I got my fix. I didn’t want people to remember me as the wrestler. I needed to do a little less for myself and a little more for others.
“[Firefighting] suited my attributes of being physical, being able to use tools and getting to do cool stuff. When I interviewed for the fire department, I said I could live around many people. I had traveled with the same people, we shared rooms, went to the gym together, ate together, did everything together.”
Paul Burchill was so dedicated to his new calling that not only did he become a firefighter and paramedic for the Jeffersontown, Kentucky Fire Department, but he also became a SWAT team member for their police department, and a paramedic for Yellow EMS in Louisville. On top of that, he also wanted to become a registered nurse, then go to graduate school and get his Master’s degree so he could become a family nurse practitioner.
Paul Burchill Made A Return To Professional Wrestling With The NWA
- Paul Burchill came out of retirement in 2023.
- He is signed exclusively to the NWA.
- He now goes simply by Burchill.
Paul Burchill had decided that his life would be all about helping people in need, but wrestling wasn’t done with him just yet. In 2023, after being away from the sport for five years, Paul Burchill returned, now going just by his last name, when he showed up in the NWA on an episode of Powerrr. The next year, he completely came out of retirement by signing a contract with the promotion.
Burchill has had some success in the past year, as he’s been vying for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. And perhaps best of all, he’s been doing it without looking like a pirate.
