Gladiators TV reboot at Utilita Arena Sheffield: How to apply for show and when new series will be recorded

There's not long to go now until the long-awaited return of the hit 90s TV show Gladiators, which is due to be filmed at Utilita Arena Sheffield in May and June 2023 before being shown on BBC One. Applications are now open for both the new team of Gladiators and for the contestants ready to take them on in the ultimate test of strength, speed, skill and stamina, and some familiar names are in the running to appear.

Which famous names have applied to be on the new series of Gladiators?

Wolf, who appeared on the programme when it was originally broadcast on ITV between 1992 and 2000, as the villain viewers loved to hate, has told how he would love to return in the new series as a presenter. The 70-year-old bodybuilder whose real name is Michael Van Wijk and who is now living in New Zealand, also revealed how his son Dean, aged 34, has applied to join the cast.

Triple Paralympic medallist Stef Reid, who starred in Dancing On Ice 2022, has also spoken about her desire to join the cast and asked another Gladiators legend Rhino, whose real name is Mark Smith, for advice on how to succeed. Speaking on The One Show, Mark said his tips for anyone wishing to apply were to ‘be focused’ but to ‘have fun’ at the same time.

He added that the key credentials for the new crop of Gladiators and contestants included a ‘great personality, speed, strength and agility’. Mark, who is now a personal trainer to the stars, said that out of all the celebrities he had worked with he felt the actor Jonathan Majors would make the best Gladiator.

Emily Diamond, the daughter of Nikki Diamond, who played Scorpio, also has ambitions to follow in her mother’s footsteps, while James Crossley, who played Hunter, believes he still has what it takes to compete himself.

Who will present the new series of Gladiators?

The new series will feature 11 60-minute episodes and include familiar challenges, like the Eliminator, alongside new events. The presenters have yet to be announced but Holly Willoughby, Alex Scott, Gabby Logan, Davina McCall and Bradley Walsh and his son Barney are among those in the running to become hosts, according to the gladiatorstv.com website.

How can you apply to be on the new series of Gladiators, when is the deadline for applications and when will the show be filmed in Sheffield?

Applications for both the new generation of Gladiators and the contestants willing to take them on are open via the BBC website, which says it is searching for ‘elite athletes at the peak of their physical fitness’ to join the cast and for contenders with the ‘speed and skill to take on the mighty new Gladiators’. Applicants must be aged 18 or above, and the closing date for applications is April 1, 2023.

The show’s creators have said tickets to watch it being recorded at Utilita Arena Sheffield will be made available in 2023, with the new series due to be filmed there in May and June next year. They said they would promote tickets as soon as they are available.

To apply to be on Gladiators, either as a cast member or a contestant, visit: https://www.bbc.co.uk/showsandtours/take-part/gladiators.