How this Bolton primary school teacher became one of the best Warhammer players in the world

Being a primary school teacher, a father and one of the best Warhammer players in the world is no easy feat. But that is the life of 41-year-old Mike Porter.

Last month, the Bolton Primary School teacher finished third in the Warhammer International Tournament Circuit (ITC) that saw him travel to places like Austria, Spain, Canada and America. Beating almost 3500 players, he finished the tournament in third place during a tense final in Las Vegas.

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Originally from Southport, Mike fell in love with the board game through his older brother when he was just 11-years-old. After catching the bug he spent his youth in Warhammer stores up and down the North West, like Stockport’s Element Games, honing his craft.

“It’s a wonderful hobby, you paint, you build and you make figures. There’s so much to do in the social aspect as well as the gaming aspect.” He told the MEN.

“We meet up first thing Saturday morning in the early hours, five or six o’clock. Go to a McDonald’s and get breakfast then go to our venue which was an old mill in Stockport," he said.

“It was very run down and you get 50, 60 people in there, all piled in playing the game you love. You get there at nine in the morning and be playing until seven, eight at night and then you’d get up the next day and do it all again.”

“There was the typical ‘you’re playing a board game, you’re a nerd," Mike added.

“I grew up with high level sports, I represented my county at hockey, football and athletics. I’ve always been very competitive and competed at a good level. There certainly was a stigma but when you get past that college, university stage, everybody accepts