Gladiators reveals star-studded line-up for BBC reboot's first celebrity special

The Gladiators are ready, the celebrity Contenders are ready, but are BBC viewers ready for what a special star-studded version of the competition has in store for them?

Gladiators Celebrity Special will air on BBC One on New Year’s Day at 6pm, with host Bradley Walsh and his son Barney returning to present the first edition of the reboot to feature some familiar faces taking on the mighty Gladiators.

The special show will see four famous Contenders take on the resident Gladiators in a series of physical challenges before facing the Eliminator, an obstacle course spanning the length of the arena.

From a former Strictly Come Dancing contestant to I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! legends, we take a look at which celebrities will be donning some spandex shorts and taking on the ultimate physical challenge on national TV!

Louise Minchin

She is the oldest contestant on the show but Gladiators beware - Louise Minchin is in the best shape of her life.

The former BBC Breakfast host rediscovered sport when she was 45 and has gone on to compete in a string of triathlons. But despite this she ruled out wearing revealing costumes, arguing that getting out her midriff was “just not happening”.

Louise, 56, reckons her newfound fitness put her in a prime position to take on the Gladiators both physically and mentally. She said: “I’m probably fitter now than when I was 25. Being the fittest I’ve ever been in my life has changed me in lots of different ways, because I do endurance events you learn about resilience and determination and how to keep going when it feels hard."

She added: “I know it’s a bit cliche but that’s a real lesson in life, you know, when I have hard times, I can think back on races I’ve done and think, ‘do you know what? I’ve done hard things and I can get through this’. That’s inspiring stuff.”

While she’s happy to inspire older women, Louise drew the line when it came to her costume and was thankful bosses didn’t make her slip into something the Gladiators would wear. She laughed: “Obviously I’m not going to be wearing Dynamite’s outfit, thank goodness. I did say to them, actually, because I could be wearing a crop top, this midriff thing, it’s just not happening. I mean, I’m really happy to represent the older ladies, but without my midriff - I’m covering it up.”

Fans will see her take on events like Powerball and The Gauntlet as she tries to sneak past the likes of Diamond and Sabre. And she was left stunned when host Bradley Walsh suggested they’d gone easy on her. She said: “It does not feel like they’re taking it easy on you at all. It’s like running into a brick wall and trying to push it down with your hands and then the brick wall attacks you. You look at them and you think they’re lovely - they’re not. They’re super scary but brilliant.”

Ellie Taylor

Ellie Taylor feels like she’s “reclaimed” her body by taking on the Gladiators just eight months after giving birth. The former Strictly star took on the challenge determined to show other mums watching at home what they are made of. Despite giving herself the nickname “Prolapse” on the show, mum-of-two Ellie says she’s proud to represent women who have recently had a baby.

“I just want to hopefully inspire new mums to give something a go, think ‘sod it’ and say yes to stuff. When you’ve had a kid, I think physically especially, it’s only recently that I’ve started to feel strong again. It feels lovely to reclaim my body to a point where I can do this.

“And I know it’s obviously an extreme thing and not every mum is going to take on some Gladiators as her first way back into fitness. But it does feel great to do something, to be fierce and strong and I love showing that to my little girl, this vibe. I love her seeing me trying to be strong, I think that’s a really good example for her.”

The last time fans saw Ellie competing on TV it was a rather different challenge, dancing with Johannes Radebe in the Strictly ballroom. But donning those skimpy outfits was the perfect preparation for slipping into the iconic Gladiators tracksuit. Ellie, 41, laughed: “I prefer a nice, pretty, sparkly, Strictly dress.

"I was tempted to ask them for a more sparkly outfit. But what an honour to wear this and to wear the tracksuit. I feel like a PE teacher. I feel very brave being on TV next to professional athletes, having had a baby eight months ago. And wearing lycra - this is probably the bravest thing I’m doing rather than all the games. Their bodies are insane and they’re all fake tanned within an inch of their lives.”

Joel Dommett

He might claim to be the fittest man in comedy, but Joel Dommett says he’s never felt so inferior standing next to the Gladiators. The Masked Singer host was given just three days notice before stepping out in front of 5,000 fans at the Sheffield Arena. And he admits that despite boasting how fit he is, he was quickly humbled by the likes of Legend, Giant and Steel.

He laughed: “I’ve got to say I’m the fittest comedian in the country because I’m not the funniest! These Gladiators are insane, you feel inferior because they are so huge. It’s like hitting a brick wall. The problem is I’m not that competitive, I just do my best and try not to be rude.”

Giving himself the nickname ‘The Inhaler’, one of the events he faces is Duel, in which he must attempt to knock a Gladiator off a platform. Joel, 39, admits it was impossible to have a game plan. “You can’t plan it, I just tried my best to survive,” he admitted. “I’ll be honest, it’s so much easier doing the celebrity version of The Chase! These boys are unbelievable, they are absolutely huge in real life.

“It’s weirder when you put them in a smaller, confined space, like a corridor backstage, they look even bigger. And the stench of fake tan backstage is absolutely unbelievable. Every time you brush past them, you have to change your outfit! It’s bad. He said their need for protein was incredible. “They have a fridge full of cooked chicken just for them! Their food bills must be insane. I need to do more weights and eat twice as much chicken if I want to grow up to be a Gladiator one day.”

One thing is certain, Joel’s experience in the arena has given him a new respect for the real contenders who take on the Gladiators in the main BBC1 series. He said: “Us being here makes you realise how good the contenders are on the regular show. It’s a bit like seeing normal people do the Olympics - it’s hard.

“Hopefully people at home will be like, ‘Oh, you know what? It’s more difficult than it looks’, because it really is! I just think it’s really lovely to see a generation of people looking up to strong women and men. We’ve needed that for a really long time, I can’t tell you how important that is.”

Rob Beckett

Funnyman Rob Beckett signed up to the show to face his fears and impress his daughters after admitting panic attacks left him feeling like “a ghost of a dad”. The comic is known for taking on a string of challenges for his Sky show Rob & Romesh Versus, but he admits behind the scenes he’s had to handle difficult moments when he feels he can’t breathe.

And he says signing up to Gladiators was about proving to his girls that he can overcome his fears both physically and mentally. Rob, 38, said: “I’ve always been super down on myself physically. I’ve always been an overweight child and stuff like that and physically can’t do stuff. So I was like, ‘it’ll be a good challenge’. I’m doing it for the slightly overweight dads at home watching!

“I’m trying to use my children’s experiences for me to confront things that I struggle with. “So, for example, rollercoasters. I was petrified of them, I get anxious and have panic attacks. My kids want to do them, and Lou loves them but instead I’d find myself in the gift shop, doing 300 selfies with all the British tourists in Disney, spending more money than I’ve ever spent to stand in a shop and wait for two hours.

“I saw them coming off a ride with Lou, and I felt almost like a ghost of dad that wasn’t around anymore, watching his family have fun. I was like, ‘no, I’m not going to allow that to stop me doing stuff’.” Rob, who dubbed himself ‘Angry Beaver’ during filming, admits he underestimated just how enormous the Gladiators are.

He laughed: “They are just so strong, so huge and big. They’re like superheroes. It’s so hard because they are so tall. It’s like they are Stretch Armstrong, their arms just keep going and going. There’s just limbs everywhere, I felt like I was trapped in my kids’ doll drawer, just legs and arms flying at me!”

He will take on the likes of Legend and Giant while tackling Collision, Powerball and the Gauntlet and said the prospect was terrifying. “The nerves are off the scale and what I’m having to do is mindfulness meditation and breath work out there,” he confessed.

“So I get up there and I’m on the verge of a panic attack. I need to get it to a point where I’m not panicking. But then I also have to think, ‘gotta get up for this now’, because no one wants a Buddha on Duel! You need something slightly unhinged on Duel. So I have to bring it down and then tap into the rage, otherwise the panic takes over.”

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