Gladiators (2008 UK TV series)

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Gladiators (2008 UK TV series)

The 2008 Gladiators logo.
Format Sport
Starring Ian Wright
Kirsty Gallacher
Alan Parry (commentator)
John Anderson (referee)
Country of origin Flag of the United Kingdom United Kingdom
No. of series 1
No. of episodes 15
Production
Producer(s) Shine Limited
Running time 60mins (inc. comms)
Broadcast
Original channel Sky One
Picture format 576i (SDTV),
1080i (HDTV)
Original run 11 May 2008 – present
Chronology
Preceded by Gladiators (1992-2000)

Gladiators is a British television series which is currently airing on Sky One and being filmed in Shepperton,UK is produced by Shine Limited. The show is hosted by Ian Wright and Kirsty Gallacher. It is a revival of the earlier series of the same name and is based on the American version of the show which itself along with the Australian version of the show were both revived in 2008. The winners of the show will earn £50,000.

John Anderson, who was the referee in the original series, has returned for the new series and the only person from the original series to return, Alan Parry now provides the commentary which was previously provided by John Sachs on the original series.

All the Gladiator's names are new except the female Gladiator names of Panther which was used in the old series, Predator which was used in the original Australian series and Ice which was used in the old American Gladiators series.

All the music to the new series was specially composed by British composer Paul Farrer also known for his music for The Weakest Link and Dancing on Ice. However other artists' music has been used, such as "Slam" by Pendulum in the premier episode.

The show has undergone many changes, mainly the new music and changes to the events. Whereas the original show featured five events, the new series only features four. It contains more commercial breaks, three compared to two in the original and are often shown between the womens' event and the mens' event.

Also, there is now one fewer event, the show has four events before the eliminator, previously it was five.

Contents

[edit] Ratings

  • Episode 1 - 1.5 Million Viewers, with the last 15 minutes attracting 1.6 Million viewers[1]
  • Episode 2 - 1.1 Million, however this was a 400,000 viewer loss.[2]
  • Episode 3 - 814,000 viewers, down by 300,000 viewers.[3]

[edit] The Gladiators

[edit] Female

Battleaxe, one of the new female Gladiators in the current series
Battleaxe, one of the new female Gladiators in the current series
Gladiator name Career Real name
Battleaxe Series 1 - Present Shirley Webb
Enigma Series 1 - Present Jenny Pacey
Ice Series 1 - Present Caroline Pearce
Inferno Series 1 - Present Jemma Palmer
Panther Series 1 - Present Kara Nwidobie
Tempest Series 1 - Present Lucy Boggis

[edit] Male

Spartan, one of the new male Gladiators in the current series
Spartan, one of the new male Gladiators in the current series
Gladiator Name Career Real Name
Atlas Series 1 - Present Sam Bond
Destroyer Series 1 - Present Damar Martin
Oblivion Series 1 - Present Nicholas Aldis
Predator Series 1 - Present Du'aine Ladejo
Spartan Series 1 - Present Roderick Bradley
Tornado Series 1 - Present David McIntosh

[edit] The Events

Main article: List of Gladiators events

[edit] Injuries before the show airs

It was announced that there were many injuries involved in making the new Sky One Revival of Gladiators. At least one contestant has had to withdraw from the first opening episode on Sky One, according to MediaGuardian, while one of the Gladiators is said to have slipped on a bridge and had to leave the set. Another Gladiator has a stomach bug and contestants have suffered a broken toe, neck injury and injured ankle (Enigma). Sky One said that health and safety is their number one issue, and want to minimise the injuries. However, Sky One have gone on record saying; "This is Gladiators - a tough physical show for athletes. It's not Family Fortunes!" [4]

[edit] Change in costumes

Sky One producers were forced to change the costumes on the new series of Gladiators, as they are see-through under water. The Sky One series tested out their Lycra outfits on water events in rehearsals and ended up revealing one of the Gladiator's breasts, reports The Sun. A source said: "We have to keep everyone decent. It’s a family show after all."[5]

[edit] Special Shows

[edit] Army Vs. Navy

It is confirmed on Gladiators Zone, that Sky One and Shine will be producing a one off Gladiators spectacular of Army v Navy. As titled, one must be part of the Navy or Army to compete in the special show.[6]

[edit] Legends Special

Sky One and Shine have announced 3 additional 'special' Gladiator shows that are due to be recorded. Gladiators - The Legends will see classic UK Gladiators Hunter, Wolf, Ace, Trojan, Lightning, Rebel, Rocket and Flame return to the arena as special Contenders facing the might of the brand new team.[6]

[edit] Notes and References

  1. ^ Gladiators gets thumbs up from viewers
  2. ^ Gladiators' ratings knocked down
  3. ^ Gladiators audience takes a tumble
  4. ^ Gladiators return hit by injuries
  5. ^ Gladiators scrap sexy costumes
  6. ^ a b Sky One New Series - Gladiators Zone

[edit] External links