Gladiators

Gladiators is an Australian television series which aired on Saturday nights on the Seven Network from 29 April 1995 until 12 October 1996 almost consecutively for eighteen months. It was based on the popular franchise of the same name, which started with American Gladiators in 1989. However the Australian show was more heavily based on the British version of the 1990s with events, format and even music being used from that show. All three series of the show were filmed at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in 1995, and was hosted by Kimberley Joseph and Aaron Pedersen, with Mike Hammond replacing Pedersen after the first series. The show was refereed by John Alexander in the first series, and Mike Whitney thereafter. John Forsythe served as assistant referee. A short-lived revival of the show aired in 2008. In July 2023, following the BBC’s revival of the British version, the show was confirmed to return for the second time, set to be revived by Warner Bros. Television Studios and is set to premiere on Network Ten in 2024, hosted by Beau Ryan and Liz Ellis. Format The premise of the show involves permanent competitors called "Gladiators" being put up against one-time-only "Challengers" in several different events which tests both physical and mental capabilities. In a typical episode, two men and two women compete for points against the Gladiators across four different events, with separate events for males and females. After this, each pair then competes against each other in The Eliminator, an obstacle course, of which any points they have won previously go towards time for a head start on their opponent. The winner of this is dubbed the champion of the episode. The episode champions then compete in the finals series.