Fleetwood's ex-boxer Jane has got plans for this year

Jane, who was known as the Fleetwood Assassin in her boxing days, is anticipating filming getting underway on a new TV series on her life story in the summer.

And there will also be her inclusion in a new display on Fleetwood Women which is being prepared at Fleetwood Museum.

Jane says she is proud to be included in the exhibition, as she grew up in the town’s fishing community and knows how strong women had to be when their men were away at sea.

The 52 year old, who now lives in Bristol but loves to come back to her home town of Fleetwood when she can, says: “It’s great that Fleetwood women are being celebrated like this.

"During the hay day of the fishing industry, a lot of women had to be the mum and the dad if they were married to trawlermen.

“Their men were away at sea, sometimes for weeks on end.

“Sometimes the men would come back and if the trip had gone badly, there’d hardly be any money, so they had to be survivors.

“It’s a brilliant idea for an exhibition.”

Jane broke the mould when she became the first female boxer licensed to fight in UK in 1998, paving the way for the likes of Olympic medal winner Nicola Adams today.

It was no mean feat, as she had to take the British Boxing Board to court and they tried to deride her attempts to become a female boxing pro in the UK.

But they under-estimated the Assassin, and Jane went on to become a five-times women’s world title holder at middleweight, and later a trainer in Bristol.

She finished her career in 2007 with an impressive record of 28 Wins (nine KOs) and 11 Losses and was also awarded an MBE.

But Jane admits her time as a trailblazer in the sport took its toll, physically and psychologically, as related in her punchy 2019 book, the Final Round.

Her story has certainly attracted attention and popular TV star Suranne Jones, who recently scored another hit with Gentleman Jack, approached Jane about bringing it to the small screen.

Some of that filming is set to take place in Jane’s native Fleetwood.

Jane said: “I will be involved because I’m a co-producer with Suranne, so I will be back in Fleetwood for the scenes about my early days.

“It will be quite emotional but I’m looking forward to it.”

Jane says there are a couple of actors in the frame to play her.

Would the fight scenes be the biggest challenge to them?

“No - I think the biggest challenge will be my Fleetwood accent!”