Tea drinking is fun for the whole family. Photo: BBC/Hungry Bear Media
Nineties nostalgia lovers: you'll follow my first whistle. New generation of muscle rats with stupid names: you'll follow my second whistle. Gladiators are back and long-time fans of the panto-in-PE family Saturday tea are still very happy with the show.
Football fans will notice the presence of Mark Clattenburg, a former scene-stealer on the Barclays soap opera, who reprises his role as the attention-seeking referee here and steps into the shoes of TV legend Jon Anderson as the man with the whistle and the striped shirt. . Did Clattenburg adopt some vague Scottish accent to pay homage to the loud Glaswegian when he barked, “The challenger is ready?” and “Is Gladiator ready?” So it seemed. Extra points if Clutts was indeed aiming for 'Steve McClaren the Dutchman', although it was hard to tell given the excited buzz at Sheffield Arena, where everyone seemed to be having a great time.
The world of football was also represented by the excellent Guy Mowbray as a commentator, managing to more or less keep a straight face as a Doncaster railway worker was repeatedly hit in the head with a giant Q-tip by a man called Nitro. “Finley took some big shots there,” gasped Mowbray, the first but not the last enjoyable moment of a great evening of camp entertainment that may have ended with the words “Oooh, Miles in a gladiator sandwich.” Reaction on social media shows that many viewers would happily take up this Saturday night option if offered.
Mark Clattenburg (centre) returns to duty — sort of Photo: James Stack/BBC
The show, as in its 1990s pomp, is also a madcap family fare that will encourage a new generation of kids to hit each other with sofas pillows, and also give moms and dads something more.
Presented by father and son duo Bradley and Barney Walsh, it's worthwhile material and an interesting BBC venture. The 1990s original was created by LWT for ITV, and a reboot was attempted by Sky in 2008, but it never took off. It takes place on Saturday at 5.50pm and the retro tea party vibe works. All the music pieces are hits from a previous era, such as I've Got The Power, or even from a previous era: Simply The Best and Another One Bites The Dust. The games are as fun as ever, as mentioned, a boxer with a stick, the one where they have to take on gladiators with big pads, and of course the «Eliminator» at the end, which culminates in what Mowbray called an «iconic A traveler.”< /p> 
Gladiators, including Legend, Ghost, Fury and their friends. Photo: Guy Levy/PA
For the Gladiators, this is a possible path to stardom that may not have quite worked out in their first career. Nitro by day is Harry Aikins-Ariity, a relay sprinter who won a Commonwealth Games gold medal. There's also Phantom (real name: Toby Olubi), who finished 18th at the 2018 Winter Olympics in four-man bobsled and who, according to Wikipedia, once won $12,000 on Deal or No Deal. And all this in one life, what a summary. Jodie Ounsley (Fury) is deaf and played rugby sevens for England. This is an intriguing life story. The rest are fitness instructors, regional bodybuilders and all that. They all look like a million dollars and everyone understood the brief: lots of posing and OTT mugging for the camera. I'm sure their Instagram accounts are very popular. Opening line, especially to Viper (Quang Luong), who plays as a heel and was sent off by Clattenburg for cheating in the first episode.
Will there be a standout star? Jet (Diane Udale) and Wolf (Michael Van Wijk) were truly famous in their day, and who knows, a combination of BBC exposure and social media activity might yet see one or two of them rise above the rest expectations. If you were a betting man, you'd probably tip Legend (real name: Matt Morcia), a Surrey fitness instructor with the body of a classic statue and the self-awareness of a classic statue. «The legend describes himself as a cross between Gandhi and David Hasselhoff,» it was Mowbray's job to tell us. Legend himself assessed his performance this way: “You’re right, buddy, I was great there.” Yes, that's how it was, young man. Indeed, that’s how it was.
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