Involved in more than 350 championship fights - over 100 of them world title fights - Mickey Vann is one of the world's top boxing referees. He is also one of the most controversial. Appointed as Britain's youngest star-grade referee, he found himself in front of the disciplinary committee following his first fight. The biggest night of his career - the 'Battle of Britain' world heavyweight clash between Frank Bruno and Lennox Lewis in Cardiff - saw him back on the mat for a four-letter outburst heard by the world. And he was accused of taking 25,000 from Don King to fix a fight. GIVE ME A RING covers Vann's professional refereeing career in all its glory and rewinds to his early life. The son of knife thrower and showman Hal Denver and the grandson of 'The Silver King', who included the Elephant Man in his freak shows. Vann's formative years were spent between a Dickensian foster home and on the road with circus.

At the time, he dreamed of being a trapeze artist or a wall of death rider, while acting as a stooge for his father and appearing as 'the giraffe-necked woman' in side shows. However at the age of 14 Mickey found himself on his own. He became a game but often-beaten journeyman pro fighter, and finally found his niche as a referee, although he almost blew it on his first appearance in the ring, and his wife did her best to.