| Biography | Eric Boon was a champion British lightweight boxer. He was known by the nicknames Boy Boon and the Fen Tiger. Of a total of 119 fights, he won 92 (KO 62), lost 21 (KO 13) and drew 5.
He beat Dave Crowley in 1938 to become British Lightweight Champion, a title he held for three years until 1944. His match against Arthur Danahar from the Harringay Arena was the first televised boxing match, broadcast on BBC television and shown live in several cinemas in 1939.
Boon v Danaher was the first occasion that the BBC had been permitted to televise a boxing match but also the first time a transmission had been shown live to a paying audience in cinemas). This was achieved on Baird projection equipment using a 16-inch projection tube running at 45,000 volts.
Following his retirement from the sport, played a number of small roles in British films such as Champagne Charlie and Carry On Sergeant. |