Andrew Galloway just wanted his son to be a normal 10-year-old boy.
“Normal” 10-year-old boys living in Ayr, Scotland, don’t file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.
But Andrew Galloway IV, known to WWE fans as Drew McIntyre, had early interests that weren’t like his peers. Before becoming an accomplished WWE Superstar, he wanted to learn more about things out of this world. He subscribed to The X Factor magazine, which specialized in such topics such as strange diseases, UFOs and viruses (it’s how he learned about ebola).
When one of the magazine editions had a sample FOIA request, he put together his money to send one to the FBI. He was hoping to receive documents related to Roswell, N.M., and topics related to UFOs.
“I came home from school about 4 p.m. as usual,” McIntyre recalled. “But what was unusual was my dad was sitting on the couch, which he was never home from work until after 6 (p.m.), and he was sitting with a dossier about five, six inches thick, asking me, ‘Why are the FBI’ — and he kept saying ‘in America’ — ‘sending you these documents?’”
McIntyre explained he’d filed a FOIA and asked for the documents. He showed his father the sample form and explained that because he asked for them, the U.S. government was required to send them.
“He’s just looking at me, like, please go outside; just play football or something,” McIntyre said. “Soccer, maybe something normal. Not be a strange kid. You’re 10.”
McIntyre, 38, has always been different. Being different has led him to becoming one of the biggest names in WWE, amid some of his unique interests. The 6-foot-5, 265-pound, multi-time champion, will make his in-ring return at SummerSlam against GUNTHER Saturday at Ford Field in Detroit after taking four months off to recover from injuries. McIntyre hasn’t competed since losing to GUNTHER in a Triple Threat Match at WrestleMania 39 that also included Sheamus.
In the ring, McIntyre is a two-time WWE champion, a one-time Intercontinental champion, a Royal Rumble winner and a two-time Tag Team champion. McIntyre away from the ring, however, may be more of a fascinating story.
He’s always been big into secrets, investigations and the paranormal. He loves shows like “CSI,” “Murder, She Wrote” and shows about serial killers.
“I’ve just always had an interest in things that were different than everybody else,” McIntyre said. “Maybe if I grew up in America, there’d be a lot of people who were into similar things, but Scotland is such a small country.
“My hometown was so small. Everybody kind of likes the same stuff and plays the same sports. (They’re) watching the same shows, (then) grows up, gets similar jobs, follows the same path. I was just never like that growing up. As far back as I can remember and as far back as my dad tells me, I just always said I wanted to be a WWE wrestler and was still wildly obsessed with it and anything else that was just a little bit different.”
That’s not to say McIntyre didn’t give some of Scotland’s sports a chance. He played soccer until he was 16. His team’s manager had a strategy: Get Drew mad, and he’ll play even better.
His team’s opponents had a different idea: Get Drew mad, and he’ll get a red card and be thrown out the game.
Soccer wasn’t his calling. He’d already started wrestling as a part-time job at 15 and knew he had to make a choice. His final game helped make that decision. The end result: He was given his last red card.
“Somebody decided to knock himself out in my shoulder,” McIntyre said. “It wasn’t my fault.”
What?
“(He) kicked the ball around me one way, tried to go the other way … basically, I turned, and he hit my shoulder and (he) was unconscious,” McIntyre said. “I was trying to help him because it was an accident. I was a little bit angry (because of the red card), and I may have taken my shirt off and thrown it at the referee and tried to fight him. Had to get a bunch of people to pull me off.”
McIntyre remains a fan of the Glasgow Rangers and supports all Scottish soccer, but wrestling was definitely the place for him. In high school, teachers thought McIntyre was delusional. How was someone from the tiny town of Ayr going to make it in the biggest professional wrestling company in the world?
Watching all those hours of shows like “The X-Files” helped McIntyre decide to major in criminology at Glasgow Caledonian University. He was 21 when he graduated, but he received the career news he’d been waiting for before graduation.
“In the last year of my degree, I was signed by WWE,” McIntyre said. “The timing worked out perfect where I got my qualifications, I was able to profile all the crazy people I was about to be working with in America, and I was off on my journey.”
McIntyre knew he had to improve in the ring, but he was living his dream in the WWE. He was comfortable at work, but away from WWE, life wasn’t easy for someone so young.
He went from having structure from home and college to being an adult on his own.
“I was still struggling and I still had a very student mentality when it came to going out and hanging out all the time,” McIntyre said. “A lot of personal things happened, and my mother got sick and passed (in 2012), which sent me off the deep end. I was going out and drinking all the time, and it was a very negative part of my life.”
McIntyre was eventually fired from WWE in 2014, which he turned into a professional positive. The independent wrestling scene was taking off then, and McIntyre, wrestling under Drew Galloway, would go all in to make himself one of the biggest stars of the indies.
Live by the sword… pic.twitter.com/0RPCkcDlir
— Drew (@DMcIntyreWWE) February 27, 2023
He was finding his stride outside of WWE, but a non-displaced fracture of two bones in his neck slowed him down in 2016. Without wrestling, he was home and not “racing to the next show.” For the next couple of months, McIntyre had to be still.
Kaitlyn Frohnapfel, McIntyre’s wife, had a message for him at the time.
“She basically said, ‘You’re going to crash and burn,’” McIntyre said. “‘You can keep acting this way. You’ve got a lot of things you’ve not dealt with. And eventually, I’m going to leave your ass.”
The reverse psychology forced McIntyre to change, not just for his wife but for himself. His goal was to get back to WWE, and that wouldn’t happen without self-reflection and a new vision.
McIntyre realized he could be in better shape and could work on his speaking skills. He couldn’t be the same young Drew who acted like a college student.
“My body changed dramatically, my confidence on the microphone changed dramatically, and my whole life was so much more positive,” McIntyre said. “And within a few months, it felt like I was back in WWE. … I left as a boy, returned as a man and a businessman with a whole different mindset, a whole interesting story to tell and hopefully inspired people to chase their dreams.”
He is proud of his work in his return. He’s especially proud of his work as a champion in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic prevented fans from being at shows in person but still kept them entertained. McIntyre also is proud he’s been able to serve as a global ambassador for the Special Olympics and be a positive influence away from the ring.
If McIntyre had any doubt he’s one of the industry’s top stars, they were erased during his time off before returning on-screen at Money in the Bank last month in London. McIntyre said he had to “sneak” into London and hide in the hotel for a couple of days before the start of the show.
“I think that’s a problem, but at least people care,” McIntyre said. “It’s that emotional connection I’ve built with the fans over the years. (You) sometimes forget that until you see something like that. I’m really glad that was built over all these years.”
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(Photo courtesy of WWE)
