Wing Chun Kung Fu - Schools & Teachers

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While the success of one's training depends heavily on the quality of one's teachers, with sharp initiative and due perseverance one can usually ensure the maximisation of their own potential.

This page introduces some Wing Chun schools and teachers or past and present, including some based in the UK. The schools and teachers featured on this page do not necessarily endorse the content of this website.

Grandmaster Yip Man

Grandmaster Ip Chun (China)

Grandmaster Ip Chun is the elder son of Grandmaster Ip Man. Grandmaster Ip Chun is the joint leading authority in the world for Ip Family Wing Chun alongside his younger brother, Grandmaster Ip Ching.

See Grandmaster Ip Chun practicing Chi Sau here:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9204306976720106945

See Grandmaster Ip Chun practicing Wooden Dummy techniques here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgOJ6fCRqXA

Grandmaster Ip Ching (China)

Grandmaster Ip Ching is the younger son of the late Grandmaster Ip Man. Grandmaster Ip Man was most famous in the west for being the Wing Chun teacher of the movie star Bruce Lee.

See Grandmaster Ip Ching in training here:
http://www.ipching.org/vticaa/modules/smartmedia/folder.php?categoryid=1&folderid=1

See Grandmaster Ip Ching practicing Chi Sau here:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4386761922943427792

The following teachers are featured in descending order of when I met them. It's impossible to say who's the best because each has their strengths and weaknesses and unquantifiable qualities.

The descriptions below are my own observations - and my own personal opinions - which are intended as neutral (neither very complimentary nor very critical) and with time may be or become outdated.

Sifu Billy Davidson (Manchester, UK)

Sifu Billy Davidson was my first Wing Chun teacher, and has studied under Sifu Samuel Kwok. Under Billy I trained for a few hours per week, over about 7 months. I could see from the very first day that this was the kind of stuff I wanted to learn. Having previously practiced Karate for 7 years, I could see that Wing Chun was comparatively 'sensitive' and thus 'made sense'; although I've never to this day met a teacher of Wing Chun who emphasises sensitivity as much as I personally would. Sifu Billy Davidson placed a lot of emphasis on bending the wrist back during the Three Prayers to Buddha in Siu Nim Tao in order to strengthen the wrists and build all surrounding muscles. Sifu Billy Davidson described the Wing Chun punch as a "piston" action; and he said that it's important to face the opponent square-on, tracking their movement like a heat-seeking missile, with all your "guns" pointing at them. Sifu Billy did some interesting exercises for testing kicking ability - including kicking with the front leg to stop dead a person who's charging at you (holding a Makawari, of course). Sifu Billy loves his Fak Sau; his classes often involve pad work and usually involve plenty of Chi Sau.

Visit Sifu Billy Davidson's website:
http://www.chingmo.com/

Sifu Samuel Kwok (Blackpool, UK)

I first met Sifu Samuel Kwok in a seminar in Manchester, hosted by Sifu Billy Davidson, and a year later I attended a similar seminar in Nuneaton, hosted by Sifu Stephen Dyde. I've since had several sessions of private tuition with Sifu Samuel Kwok who, as the teacher of my teachers, was surely one of the best guys to learn from.

Sifu Samuel Kwok is familiar with applications of Wing Chun techniques in ways that few other teachers have seen before. With ample experience of studying under both of Yip Man's sons (Grandmaster Ip Ching and Grandmaster Ip Chun), there's no substitute for this man's knowledge of Wing Chun Kung Fu. Sam says that Chi Sau is the most important training exercise in Wing Chun; but I would personally say it's even more important than this, in such a way that "free" Chi Sau should take nearly all of your time when with a training partner.

Visit Sifu Samuel Kwok's website:
http://www.kwokwingchun.com/

Sifu Steve Dyde (Nuneaton, UK)

Upon leaving Manchester and moving to Birmingham, I found that Samuel Kwok's Wing Chun association had no school in Birmingham, and one of the nearest places to train was Nuneaton, under Sifu Stephen Dyde.

I trained nearly fortnightly with Sifu Steve over about a year, and during this time I practiced some interesting drills. One of my favourites was when the students listen out for which direction to turn, how many steps to take (forwards or backwards), and which techniques to use. This drill is used in various martial arts, and when associated techniques are varied regularly enough, this drill is great for practicing general coordination in all directions as well as the self-decipline required to instantaneously do exactly as instructed. Sifu Steve Dyde has studied under Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe as well as Sifu Samuel Kwok; and Steve places a lot of emphasis on building stamina while toughening the knuckles, with lots of knuckle pushups on hard floor surfaces between rounds of chain punches during warmups. Sifu Steve hosts various different martial arts classes beside Wing Chun, and his classes often utilise padwork.

Sifu Steve said that it doesn't matter where you generate power from, so long as you can get it from somewhere; and that the classic way to punch is not the only way worth considering.

Visit Sifu Steve Dyde's website:
http://www.combatandexercise.com/

Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe (Birmingham, UK)

Upon meeting Sifu Steve Dyde in Nuneaton and explaining that I've had to travel from Birmingham, Sifu Steve didn't hesitate to recommend I train under his knowledgeable old teacher - Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe - in Birmingham.

Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe places a lot of emphasis on theory, and gives ample explanation of the mechanics of various techniques. Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe will ensure you've had lots of practice with the basics before teaching you much about advanced Wing Chun techniques, which instills a lot of discipline into his disciple assistant instructors. Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe has trained under Sifu Samuel Kwok as well as Grandmaster Ip Chun. Once a bodyguard for Jackie Chan, Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe loves his scientific explanations as well as those that could be used on the fly in common speech, and he regularly emphasises the concept of 'forwarding'.

Visit Sifu Shaun Rawcliffe's website:
http://www.wingchun.co.uk/

More Schools & Teachers

For details of other schools and teachers, check out the websites of those featured above!

Real Martial Art in Birmingham

I'm considering hosting a seminar of my own in Birmingham, and if there's much interest I might host repeated seminars. My style of Wing Chun is not like that of any of my teachers. I focus more on sentitivity and balance... now doesn't that just make sense? In explaining the value of "Mun Sau", one of my teachers once told me that at the highest level of full-contact sparring in Hong Kong, the guy who attacks first is nearly always the loser. This may be difficult to understand but by the end of my seminar I hope all attendees will be satisfied that this is true after having experienced what one can learn from an hour or so of sticking hands.

See my splash page - Martial Art in Birmingham UK
http://martialart.birminghampr.co.uk/

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