Gladiators (2008 Australian TV series)

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For the original 1995 - 1997 series, see Gladiators (Australian TV series).
Gladiators

2008 Gladiators Logo
Genre Sports entertainment
Created by Dan Carr
John Ferraro
Developed by Endemol Southern Star
(Licenced from MGM Television)
Presented by Tom Williams
Zoe Naylor
Narrated by Andy Paschalidis
Theme music composer Neil Sutherland
Country of origin Flag of Australia Australia
Language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 10 (as of June 10, 2008)
Production
Executive
producer(s)		 Rikkie Proost
Lisa Fitzpatrick
Editor(s) Thom Cochoran
Location(s) The Dome, Sydney Showground, New South Wales
Camera setup Multiple-camera setup
Running time 60 minutes
(including commercials)
Broadcast
Original channel Seven Network
Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
Audio format Dolby Digital Pro Logic II
First shown in Flag of Australia Australia
Original airing March 30, 2008
Chronology
Preceded by Gladiators (1995-1997)
External links
Official website

Gladiators is an Australian television series which began airing on the Seven Network in 2008. It is a revival of the earlier series of the same name, and is based on the American and British versions of the show, which were also both revived in 2008.

The show is filmed at The Dome at the Sydney Showground, and is hosted by Tom Williams and Zoe Naylor. Respected NRL referee Bill Harrigan is one of the two referees for the show, the other is John Forsythe, who was a referee on the original series.

The revival of Gladiators was first announced on September 9, 2007,[1] and premiered on March 30, 2008 at 6:30 pm.[2] The Challengers in this series compete to win AUD $50,000 and a new Subaru Forester.

Contents

[edit] Events

Further information: Gladiators (Australian TV series)#Events

Each episode features four events chosen at random, followed by the final round, The Eliminator. The 2008 series has featured many events that were initially featured in the first incarnation of Gladiators.

Events currently played include Atlaspheres, Duel, Gauntlet, Hang Tough, Hit & Run, Powerball, Pyramid, Suspension Bridge, The Wall and Whiplash. Pendulum, Sumo Ball and Vertigo were introduced as events for the first time in 2008. The events Joust, Pursuit, Skytrak, Swingshot and Tilt from the original series have not been contested in the new series.

As before, The Eliminator is played at the end of every episode.

[edit] New events

[edit] Pendulum

The Challenger and Gladiator engage in a game of hide and seek on a ball 5 metres in diameter, which hangs from the roof of the arena. On the whistle, the ball begins to swing from side to side. The aim of the Challenger is to avoid the Gladiator, who must track the Challenger down and remove the Velcro flag from their back. Once this is done, the game is over. If the Challenger or Gladiator falls off, the remaining participant wins. Ten points are awarded to the Challenger if the Gladiator falls from the pendulum or if they do not fall off after a minute.

[edit] Sumo Ball

The Challenger and Gladiator stand on a platform with a giant 'sumo ball' suspended between them. They have thirty seconds to push their opponent off using the sumo ball, which they must hold onto using a loop for the entire time. Neither may touch the platform with their hands. Ten points are awarded for a Challenger win, five for a draw. Either player loses if they are forced off the platform yet still hold onto the ball.

[edit] Vertigo

The Challenger and Gladiator compete in a one-on-one race across five poles, each ten metres high. On the whistle they must climb the first one to the top. Once there they swing their pole and must use this method to transfer to each of the remaining poles. They must complete a left-to-right swing before transferring. They do this until the end where a silver ring awaits, the first to grab this wins the event.

[edit] The Eliminator

The obstacle course in the 2008 series is similar to that of the original series. It consists of padded hurdles of varying heights, a short rope climb, monkey bars, traversing across a quarter pipe, climbing up a longer rope ladder, going down a flying fox, walking across a balancing beam, running up a travelator which is going in the opposite direction, then after that, the first challenger to swing on a tarzan rope through a waterfall at the finish line is the winner of the episode.

[edit] Disqualifications

If Harrigan sees a rule broken in any way (confirmed by video replay), he may give the offender a yellow card. A red card is given if the offender breaks a rule again during the episode, argues the ruling or walks away from the referee when he's talking to them. The red card means the offender is out for the rest of the episode. A clip of this happening to gladiator Amazon is available at www.gameshowvideos.com.[3] Another case where a red card was given out was when Thunder received a yellow card for pushing a challenger inside an atlasphere, after the whistle had been blown. Thunder then took the yellow card from Harrigan and ate it. As the red card was given in the last event before the Eliminator, it didn't affect Thunder in any way for that episode.

[edit] Results

Note: Challengers which are bolded advanced through to the next stage. Times listed next to the challengers' name is their runtime for the Eliminator. DNR indicates the challenger did not run the Eliminator due to the other challenger pulling out from injury.

[edit] Men

Heats   Quarterfinals   Semifinals   Grand Final
  Damien Nicholls 0:55  
  Sam Brodie         Damien Nicholls    
  Simon Pavolo       Nick Hicks 1:01  
  Nathan Wood 1:05            
  Nick Hicks 1:04            
  Marcus Saltmarsh         Nathan Wood  
  Phillip Breslin 0:57     Phillip Breslin    
  Shane Elisara            
  Shaun Baxter            
  Joseph McKay 1:06       Joseph McKay    
  Lincoln Burns 1:08     Lincoln Burns    
  Nikolai Sawaszenko            
  Simon Orton DNR            
  James Stretch         Simon Orton  
  Hayden Forder       Paul Baird    
  Paul Baird 0:56  

[edit] Women

Heats   Quarterfinals   Semifinals   Grand Final
  Natasha Haines 1:19  
  Bryony Barker         Nicole Sawon    
  Georgie Leake 1:27     Natasha Haines 1:11  
  Janere Reid              
  Julie Casella              
  Nicole Sawon 1:21       Georgie Leake  
  Rony Lebovics       Ashleigh Kelly    
  Ashleigh Kelly DNR          
  Jacqueline Watson 1:26          
  Emily Sharp         Kim Papp    
  Kim Papp 1:26     Jacqueline Watson    
  Louise Symonds            
  Michelle Halemai              
  Michaela Williams 1:26       Kristine Banks-Smith  
  Kristine Banks-Smith 1:36     Michaela Williams    
  Jessica Scott    

[edit] Episode events

Episode 1 - March 30, 2008

Gauntlet, Duel, Pyramid, Pendulum

Episode 2 - April 6, 2008

Hit and Run, Wall, Sumo Ball, Pyramid

Episode 3 - April 13, 2008

Hang Tough, Atlasphere, Suspension Bridge, Vertigo

Episode 4 - April 20, 2008

Pendulum, Gauntlet, Hang Tough, Powerball

Episode 5 - April 27, 2008

Pyramid, Vertigo, Hit and Run, Duel

Episode 6 - May 4, 2008

Gauntlet, Hit and Run, Sumo Ball, Wall

Episode 7 - May 11, 2008

Gauntlet, Duel, Pendulum, Pyramid

Episode 8 - May 18, 2008

Suspension Bridge, Powerball, Hang Tough, Atlasphere

Episode 9 - May 25, 2008

Pendulum, Whiplash, Gauntlet, Wall

Episode 10 - June 1, 2008

Atlasphere, Vertigo, Suspension Bridge, Pyramid

Episode 11 - June 8, 2008

Gauntlet, Powerball, Hang Tough, Sumo Ball

Episode 12 - June 15, 2008

Hit and Run, Wall, Duel, Pyramid

[edit] Gladiators

[edit] Male


[edit] Female

[edit] Development

In early 2007, an episode of the television series Where Are They Now featured some of the original Gladiators as special guests. The Seven Network used this segment as research towards reviving the show depending on viewer numbers for the episode as well as if the ratings fell after the end of the segment.

On September 9, 2007, it was officially announced by Seven that the show was being revived and will return for its fourth series in early 2008. Auditions for new gladiators took place via e-mail and closed on October 16, 2007 while auditions for challengers took place in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth from October 20 to November 4, 2007. Once the gladiators and challengers had been chosen, filming of all the episodes for season four took place from January 6, 2008 to February 10, 2008 at The Dome, Sydney Showground, New South Wales. Tickets went on sale for seats in the audience for $5 AUD each from Ticketmaster.[16].

Speculation around who was going to host the new series was evident, with many reports in the media about celebrities which have either successfully or unsuccessfully auditioned. Seven Network presenter Tom Williams was reportedly the only male who was auditioned, and was picked up for the male co-host role immediately. For the female co-host role, the process was more intense, with many females auditioning, including swimmers Elka Graham and Brooke Hanson as well as actors Zoe Ventoura[17] and Samantha Noble.[18] On December 18, 2007, it was reported in the media that former McLeod's Daughters actor Zoe Naylor was being seriously considered as the female host, with an insider stating that "She looked amazing in the screen tests and there was a great vibe between her and Tom. She's fresh and fun." [19] She ultimately ended up being chosen for the female co-host position.

With new Gladiators being chosen for the new series, it was reported on December 30, 2007 that former Australian rules footballer Anthony Koutoufides and Olympic Pole vaulter Tatiana Grigorieva were two of the new gladiators for the new series, but the Seven Network refused to confirm the selections, even though these reports ended up being true.[20] Strongman Derek Boyer is the third celebrity to be picked up as a Gladiator, followed by former ironwoman Hayley Bateup being the fourth.[21] The other ten Gladiators have a non-public background.

[edit] Ratings

The following Table displays the Total Audience (5 City Metro) for each episode, as recorded by OZTAM and reported on MediaSpy[22]

Airdate Total Viewers Position in Nightly Position in Timeslot
Top Ten
March 30 2008 1,847,000 #1 Winner
April 6 2008 1,571,000 #1 Winner
April 13 2008 1,427,000 #5 Winner
April 20 2008 1,560,000 #3 Winner
April 27 2008 1,366,000 #7 Second
May 4 2008 1,276,000 #6 Second
May 11 2008 1,298,000 #6 Winner
May 18 2008 1,379,000 #4 Winner
May 25 2008 1,262,000 #6 Second
June 1 2008 1,229,000 #8 Second
June 8 2008 1,035,000 #9 Second

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.sevencorporate.com.au/_uploads/Files/gladiators.pdf Seven Network press release Retrieved on October 11, 2007
  2. ^ Clune, Richard Gladiators Back The Daily Telegraph January 6, 2008. Retrieved on January 6, 2008.
  3. ^ www.gameshowvideos.com
  4. ^ http://bunbury.yourguide.com.au/articles/1224994.html?src=topstories "Bunbury's Gladiator Star", "The Bunbury Mail", April 16, 2008. Retrieved on April 18, 2008.
  5. ^ a b Downie, Stephen. "Glamour gladiator", The Daily Telegraph, March 26, 2008. Retrieved on March 26, 2008.
  6. ^ [1]. Retrieved on 23 April 2008
  7. ^ Rothfield, Phil. "Wendell Sailor goes it alone", The Sunday Telegraph, April 6, 2008. Retrieved on April 9, 2008.
  8. ^ [2]. Retrieved on 23 April 2008
  9. ^ [3]. Retrieved on 23 April 2008
  10. ^ Reines, Ros. "Gladiator dad", The Courier-Mail, April 6, 2008. Retrieved on April 9, 2008.
  11. ^ Tejszerski, Eva. "This Amazon woman is the girl next door", St George & Sutherland Shire Leader, March 27, 2008. Retrieved on March 27, 2008.
  12. ^ "Tiffiny Hall gets ready to join the Gladiators", Herald Sun, March 13, 2008. Retrieved on March 26, 2008.
  13. ^ Cartwright, Darren. "Gladiators wins ratings war", The Courier-Mail, March 31, 2008. Retrieved on April 9, 2008.
  14. ^ Smart, Nick. "Bateup is back - bigger and better", Gold Coast News, March 11, 2008. Retrieved on March 26, 2008.
  15. ^ [4]. Retrieved on 23 April 2008
  16. ^ Official Ticketmaster site. Gladiators tickets, and team schedule Retrieved on December 14, 2007.
  17. ^ Gladiators role for Ventoura? Herald Sun December 2, 2007. Retrieved on December 2, 2007.
  18. ^ New top tip for gladiators The Daily Telegraph December 11, 2007. Retrieved on December 11, 2007.
  19. ^ Grant, Sarah Zoe Naylor the new host of Gladiators The Daily Telegraph December 18, 2007. Retrieved on December 30, 2007.
  20. ^ Byrne, Fiona Anthony Koutoufides and Tatiana Grigorieva join Herald Sun December 30, 2007. Retrieved on December 30, 2007.
  21. ^ Field, Katherine Hayley turns from ironwoman into Gladiator The Daily Telegraph January 10, 2008. Retrieved on January 10, 2008.
  22. ^ Media Spy - Forums -> Television Ratings

[edit] External links

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