Prince Naseem: Professor’s books inspire Hollywood boxing movies

A college professor replaces the lecture hall with a red carpet as his books are made into a Hollywood movie.

Filming is currently underway for Giant, which will tell the story of former world featherweight champion boxer Prince Naseem Hamed.

The film stars Pierce Brosnan and Amir El Masry, and is based on two books by Jeff Beatty, a psychology professor at Edge Hill University, who trained at the same gym where Naseem used to paint.

“I was approached for the rights years ago and I thought nothing would ever happen, and suddenly here it is,” he said.

“I’ve been writing the books for many years and I wasn’t expecting anything like this, I was shocked,” he said.

The books – written in the 1990s – focus on Brendan Ingle’s famous gym in Wincobank in Sheffield and explore boxing in perilous economic times following the closure of pits and the decline of the steel industry.

“We’ve grown wonderfully and become close,” Professor Beatty said of Angel, played by former James Bond star Pierce Brosnan.

“He would tell me what was on his mind, and we would have some very personal conversations.”

Among those who trained at the gym was boxer Prince Naseem Hamed, who became the most successful featherweight boxer in Britain.

“I immersed myself in that culture and wrote about what I saw,” Professor Beatty said.

“After following Naseem Hamed along the way, looking at the development of the father-son relationship between him and Brendan, which eventually turned sour.”

Hamed plays the role of Amir Al-Masry, and the executive producer of the film is Sylvester Stallone.

“Books are the background to the whole thing,” Professor Beattie said.

“The writer-director is Ruwan Athale who came to see me early on and sent me the script which I thought was really good.

“He took all the details from the books, some dialogue, some conversations and so on and put them into the script.”

“Boxers are interesting characters from a psychological point of view, how you turn a guy from Wincobank into a world title holder,” he said.

While researching his books, Professor Beatty also trained at Engel’s gym which launched the careers of a string of famous boxers including Hamed and fellow world champions Johnny Nelson, Junior Witter and Kel Brook.

“I started training to learn about the whole thing and get a taste of boxing,” he said.

“I got into the ring not really expecting what happened next. I remember I was playing a squash match that night and I took my shirt off and someone said to me: ‘Have you been in a car accident?’ Because my back was so bruised.”

He continued to visit the gym “for a few years to see and learn about the culture of the place and also map Naseem Hamed’s rise.”

He continued: “He was an extraordinary and exciting boxer, and I wrote the first book called On The Ropes which was about his rise to the world title.

“I followed up a few years later when the relationship between him and his coach Brendan had somewhat broken down.

“But of course I wasn’t expecting to get a phone call from Hollywood saying they wanted the books for a movie.

He added: “Hollywood is uncharted territory from my point of view, but I think with any luck it should end at the end of 2025.”

“I think it’s going to be a great movie. I think the actors and directors are really good – and I’m looking forward to seeing it for myself.”