ALEX CHADWICK, host:
This is DAY TO DAY from NPR News. I'm Alex Chadwick.
In the world of bullfighting and matadors, one name stands out: Frank Evans. It stands out because, until his retirement this week, Frank Evans was the only English matador performing in Spain. The 63-year-old is quitting after 40 years. He joins us from his home near Manchester, England.
Frank Evans, welcome to DAY TO DAY.
Mr. FRANK EVANS (Matador): Hi. Nice to be with you.
CHADWICK: How did you get the idea to become a matador?
Mr. EVANS: Well, I suppose I stumbled across it, really, and I think my dad, when I was a child, told me things which made me fascinated about Spain. And then later in life, when I went to Spain to my first visit to a wedding, I saw my first bull fight. But it didn't really occur to me at that stage to think of doing it. And I think the key moment was when somebody gave me a book to read on bullfighting, but really it was the autobiography of Vincent Hitchcock, who was the first English matador. And when I read that I thought, `Well, we Brits do it, too,' and I packed up and went off to Spain to seek my fortune over there.
CHADWICK: Well, how do you go about that? How does a young person from a foreign country move to Spain and become a bullfighter? I mean, you can't really say, `Hey, I'm an apprentice bullfighter,' can you?
Mr. EVANS: Well, no, I wasn't even that at that stage. I started off with a guy in Valencia, who had a school in an open-air cinema. During the day the place would be empty, and we could train on the dirt. And then during the lead-in time, they put the seats up and put the films on, and that's where I got my first start. The guy there--he taught me how to use the cape and the muletta.
CHADWICK: Did you have a bull there?
Mr. EVANS: No. What people do in bullfighting is they create imitation bulls with the little bicycle wheels with horns on it, and they run at you like a bull would, simulating the bull's actions, and you simulate the passes. But there's nothing like fighting animals for learning something. The way to learn to fight bulls is to get in front of cattle.
CHADWICK: Was it any more difficult for you because you're English? I imagine it would be somewhat. I mean, how did people accept you as a bullfighter?
Mr. EVANS: Well, that's very true, actually. I think generally speaking the bullfighting world doesn't feel that if you're born anywhere north of Seville, that you would have the blood in your veins to give you the passion to be able to do something like that. And I reckon that people have really always been skeptical. But eventually the curiosity meant that I got contracts that I wouldn't have got had I been a Spaniard with the same sort of ability and standing. And it also gave me more sympathy with the public. The public has always been sort of very kind and understanding with me. And I've seen them be more cruel toward Spanish matadors, probably because they expect them to be better.
CHADWICK: I don't mean to cast aspersions or anything, but isn't 60 a little old for a bullfighter?
Mr. EVANS: Well, not necessarily. There are some bullfighters who are fighting into their 60s. I reckon right here and now, today, I'm probably the oldest active matador in Spain. But there are one or two who can go on. I think if you try to start doing something like bullfighting (unintelligible) that requires physical exertion, you kick off at 60, you're in danger probably of doing your health some harm and having a heart attack. But the difference is that I have never stopped ever of running two or three miles a day. The trick is--in life is not to let go of the rope. People should look at me and think, `Well, you know, if you really watch what you eat, you don't overdo the drinking, don't smoke and you keep yourself active, you can go on forever, really.'
CHADWICK: You fought a bull this last Sunday.
Mr. EVANS: I fought two on Sunday, yes.
CHADWICK: How does it go?
Mr. EVANS: It went very well, actually. I killed both bulls quite quickly. I was ...(unintelligible) of both bulls and ended up carrying me out of the bullring on their shoulders. It was an emotional day, sad to be leaving, but I've got to be really grateful. I've had a very long career. I've been very lucky that I've not been--never been badly injured, really. And I'm just very grateful to all the people who've helped me and thankful to my family who have supported me, and really I shouldn't be sort of complaining that I've now got to leave.
CHADWICK: Well, there's the cell phone. It sounds like you do have to leave. Frank Evans, thank you for speaking with us.
Mr. EVANS: You're very kind. Nice to talk to you.
CHADWICK: British matador Frank Evans, retiring this week after 40 years in the ring.
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