| Vaudevillains | |
|---|---|
 Aiden English (right) andSimon Gotch (left) | |
| Tag team | |
| Members | Aiden English Simon Gotch |
| Name(s) | The Vaudevillains |
| Billed heights | Aiden English: 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[1] Simon Gotch: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[1] |
| Combined billed weight | 435 lb (197 kg) |
| Debut | June 19, 2014 |
| Years active | 2014–2017 2023 |
TheVaudevillains were an Americanprofessional wrestlingtag team inWWE, composed ofAiden English andSimon Gotch. Theirgimmick was a pair ofVaudeville-erathrowbacks. They also formerly wrestled in WWE'sdevelopmental territoryNXT, where they were one-timeNXT Tag Team Champions.
In June 2014, English formed a tag team with Simon Gotch, known asThe Vaudevillains.[2] The Vaudevillains made their in-ring debut as a team ofvillains on the June 19 episode, defeatingAngelo Dawkins and Travis Tyler.[3] In August, The Vaudevillains participated in a tournament to determine the number one contenders to theNXT Tag Team Championship, losing to theLucha Dragons (Sin Cara andKalisto) in the final.[4] On the October 30 episode ofNXT, The Vaudevillains won a tag teambattle royal to become the #1 contenders to the NXT Tag Team Championship.[5] They received their title match atNXT TakeOver: R Evolution against The Lucha Dragons, but were unsuccessful.[6] After a brief hiatus, The Vaudevillains returned on the June 3, 2015 episode ofNXT, defeating the teamJason Jordan andMarcus Louis. On the July 8 episode of NXT, The Vaudevillains defeatedEnzo Amore and Colin Cassady to become the #1 contenders to the NXT Tag Team Championships. On July 15,Blake and Murphy defeated The Vaudevillains to retain their championships afterAlexa Bliss interfered. Afterwards, Bliss insulted and slapped them both, turning themgood in the process. General ManagerWilliam Regal then announced that there would be a rematch at a later date.[7] AtNXT TakeOver:Brooklyn, The Vaudevillains (withBlue Pants in their corner) defeated Blake and Murphy (with Alexa Bliss) to become NXT Tag Team Champions for the first time. The Vaudevillains were eliminated in the second round of theDusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic byDash and Dawson, setting up a future championship match. On November 11, The Vaudevillains lost their titles to Dash and Dawson, ending their reign at 61 days.[8] The pair later failed to regain the titles on the November 25th episode ofNXT. The duo once again turned villain after a losing streak continued with a loss toAmerican Alpha when they refused to shake hands with the two, showing a lack of sportsmanship. They would later compete against the duo on the March 21st episode ofNXT in a #1 contender's match for the NXT Tag Team titles where they would lose again. They made their final NXT appearance on the 13 April episode ofNXT, losing toJohnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa.
On the April 7, 2016 episode ofSmackDown, The Vaudevillains made their main roster debut as villains, defeating TheLucha Dragons.[9] On the April 11 episode ofRaw, The Vaudevillains were announced as one of the teams to participate in the #1 contender's tournament for theWWE Tag Team Championship, where they defeated Goldango (Goldust andFandango) in the first round later that week onSmackDown andThe Usos on the April 18 episode ofRaw in the semi-finals.[10][11][12] AtPayback, The Vaudevillains facedEnzo Amore and Big Cass in the finals of the tournament. The match resulted in ano-contest due to Amore suffering a legitimate concussion, and The Vaudevillains were declared the #1 contenders.[13] AtExtreme Rules, The Vaudevillains received their shot at the titles againstThe New Day in a losing effort, marking their first defeat.[14] AtMoney in the Bank, The Vaudevillains would receive another shot at the titles, competing against The New Day, Enzo and Big Cass, andLuke Gallows and Karl Anderson in afatal-four way match in a losing effort after Kingston pinned English.
On July 19 at the2016 WWE Draft, The Vaudevillains were drafted toSmackDown in the tenth round of picks. In August, a tag team tournament for the newly createdSmackDown Tag Team Championship was set up by SmackDown general managerDaniel Bryan and SmackDown commissionerShane McMahon, where the winner of the tournament would be crowned the inaugural champions. On the August 30 episode ofSmackDown, The Vaudevillains would compete in the first round match of the tournament, where they were defeated by TheHype Bros. On the November 8 episode ofSmackDown, They were defeated by Breezango (Tyler Breeze andFandango) in a qualifying match for a spot on Team SmackDown atSurvivor Series.
On the January 31, 2017 episode ofSmackDown, The Vaudevillains, along with five other teams, answered an open challenge set byAmerican Alpha, where a brawl between all six teams ensued before being broken up by referees and officials. The following week onSmackDown, The Vaudevillains, teaming withThe Usos andThe Ascension, defeated American Alpha, Breezango, andHeath Slater and Rhyno in a twelve-man tag team match. AtElimination Chamber, The Vaudevillains competed in atag team turmoil match for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship, but were eliminated by Heath Slater and Rhyno.
The Vaudevillains then competed in theAndré the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on theWrestleMania 33 pre-show on April 2, 2017, but both were eliminated from the match. This would be their last match together, as just three days later on April 5, 2017, it was announced that Gotch had been released by WWE, effectively disbanding The Vaudevillains.[15]
On July 24, 2023, Gotch and English confirmed they would reunite as a tag team,[16] having their first match in over six years forHouse of Glory Wrestling on September 15, 2023.[17]