TV classics - Gladiators

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

IN 1989, The Samuel Goldwyn Company launched what would quickly become an American television hit, Gladiators.  It challenged ordinary members of the public to compete in a series of physical against a super-fit team of humans, known as the Gladiators.

     In Britain, London Weekend Television (LWT) began to see potential in the programme and suggested to ITV to give it a try in the UK.  They agreed and Gladiators launched to a UK audience in October 1992.  Spearheaded by ‘Nasty’ Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick, two of LWT’s most prolific show producers, the show was filmed at Birmingham’s National Indoor Arena (now known today as the LG Arena.)  An initial nine-week series was commissioned and it immediately got viewers hooked on the format.  The show would eventually run for eight more years, way more than first predicted at the time.

     What captivated the Great British public to show was its entertainment and variety value.  Ulrika Jonsson and professional footballer John Fashanu became a perfect match to host the show, John Anderson was stern and popular in being referee for the events and John Sachs provided witty and down-to-point quotes as commentator for viewers watching at home.  As for the Gladiators, they would range from “hard-to-beaters” like Hunter and Shadow, to “the glamour factor” of Jet and Lightning.  However, the Gladiator that everyone wanted to get a glimpse of was Wolf.  Every week, he would always get on the wrong end of John Anderson by playing silly or just cheating for the publicity.

     The events were also well supported.  It wouldn’t be a surprise to see games such as Powerball, The Wall, Hang Tough, Gauntlet and Duel adorning the line-up each week with other games like Atlaspheres, Pyramid and Skytrack playing a support role, appearing often, but not as much as fans wanted.

     As with other shows, every series would bring in changes to freshen up the programme and outdo what it did before.  New events were brought in each series, but with the exception of Pendulum and Poleaxe, they didn’t seem to capture the imagination of their predecessors.  It was a same case for the Gladiators.  Each series would often see new gladiators come in and others leave, either due to injury or some unknown reason.  Then in 1996, a huge blow came to the show when it was alleged that Fashanu was part of a group of four ex-footballers that had agreed to take pay-offs to fix football matches.  The following police investigation meant he was forced to resign from the show and was replaced the following year by England rugby international Jeremy Guscott.

     This led to a massive change in direction for the programme.  Jeremy was extremely professional at his job but his appointment completely bombed the public who simply missed Fash.  The seventh series in 1998 brought in a raft of new features.  The rules of nearly each game were modified dramatically and the Gladiators lost their individual costume designs and with it, perhaps their dignity and form as they were often well beaten in most of the episodes.  The addition of gladiator Vulcan, who had earned a bad boy reputation from the Australian counterpart of the show, to the line-up, summed up how heavy the show had declined in later years as he made Wolf a pantomime villain throughout the series.

     From its peak of 14 million viewers in 1994, figures plummeted sharply by the close of the 1998 series, now getting under five million and even struggling to hit the weekly top 30 ranks of ITV programmes.  ITV took these failing figures to their advantage and axed the ailing show in February 1999.  LWT were livid, as they claimed that the contract was still valid for one more series.  ITV gave in but were not prepared to help fund the series.  It was left to two fellow ITV regional companies, Carlton Television and Granada Television with their jointly-owned digital venture ONdigital to step in.  This final series was cut down to just four episodes and only a handful of former champions returned to become ‘The Supreme Champion.’  The final episode was broadcast on Millennium Day 2000 and attained an impressive seven million viewers, ensuring the show went out on a high.

     Eight years later, after successful revivals of the format in both the US and Australia, Sky1 tried their hands out on the show with new presenters Ian Wright and Kirsty Gallagher, a new bunch of Gladiators, new commentator Alan Parry and new elements involving fire and water.  John Anderson did return to act as the ref though.  It didn’t have the charm of the original format however and a second series in 2009 saw Caroline Flack replace Gallagher as co-host to Wright, the return of Wolf as a coach to the Gladiators and John Coyle replacing John Anderson as ref.  Add in a new array of Gladiators to the line-up and it killed the programme, as it was axed again afterwards.

     It is with no question however that Gladiators totally changed the perception of Saturday night programming on ITV and although it didn’t quite work out on Sky1, it was nice for there to be a proper attempt at a revival.  Gladiators might be missed by everyone nowadays, but it’s popularity will also remain large.

The UK riots - My view

By Simon Wright (Personal column)

SO, ‘BROKEN Britain’ lies in ruins after last week’s horrific scenes of rioting and looting across the country.  Note to toy manufacturers, no batteries have been included in these burnt out shops, homes and businesses.  Some shops look like the burnt out shell that was The Loft nightclub after the 2009 fire in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks, whilst others remain open for business as if last week was a storm in a teacup.

     It wasn’t though.  Approximately 3,000 arrests have been made by police, with at least 60 per cent of these having been charged for the crimes.  The damage is likely to end up reaching £1billion pounds and it is a dreadful promotion for the capital city, with the 2012 Olympics now less than a year away.  Chelsea Ives, one of the rioters, was an Olympic ambassador.  That’s an embarrassing image sight for the organisers and I’m pleased the IOC (International Olympic Committee) has backed us.  I’m shocked to realise that we have so many idiots in our country.  London was the worst hit, but there were also severe disturbances in Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool and Bristol, with minor damage reported in Nottingham, Gloucester, Oxford, Wolverhampton, Milton Keynes and West Bromwich.  So, why did we end up all fearing for the establishments we live and love last week in the worst riots seen in this country for many a generation.  Many reasons have been given, which I will go into detail later on in this blog.

     First of all, as I tuned into Sky throughout Monday night last week, I was appalled to see what was happening.  It shook me to a core and I felt sick to the stomach.  Anger was building up inside me; as the pictures saw London look like a disaster movie, with many industries looking as battered and bruised as you would if you’d taken on Mike Tyson in his prime.  I was leaving the country in 48 hours time and when I heard of trouble reaching my own hometown, I started to wonder what I would come back to.  Luckily, it has calmed down since then, but the damage has been done and left so many heartbreaking stories.

    Ashrof Rassle is brave to say he still loves this country and wants to stay.  The Malaysian student is recovering in hospital after he was attacked and robbed on the streets by thugs.  The video was recorded and uploaded to YouTube and is an absolutely disgraceful act.  I feel massively for Trevor Reeves, who could only watch in horror as his local furniture store burnt down in Croydon.  It had survived two World Wars and lived through four generations of family, what a tragic way for the business to end.  Then there’s Richard Bowes, who was attempting to remonstrate yobs that set fires to bins near his home in Ealing, only to be beaten to death in an act of cynical behaviour.  Finally, there are the three young lads in Birmingham, who were protecting their livelihoods (businesses and mosques) and ultimately paid the price, with their lives.  I’m so proud to see the community of Birmingham come together at a time of such overwhelming tragedy.    

     The government has taken a load of stick for their handling of the carnage to have descended on the UK and some of it is fully merited.  More organisation has to be used around holidays, with rotas the only way forward.  I’m sorry, but you cannot have the five main figureheads of the country (Home Secretary, Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Mayor of London and Chancellor) on holiday at exactly the same time.  The one politician I did feel sorry for was Boris Johnson.  He was heckled in the streets, but he was trying to help and also got involved in the cleanup in Clapham.  It got worse when Boris was bullied in an interview last Tuesday night (August 9) by ITN anchor and Daily Mirror columnist Mark Austin.  Johnson did really well to get his points across, despite Austin’s ignorant attempts to butt into his answers.  The way he handled the interview was very professional and dignified.  As for Austin, it was a foul piece of journalism and a bad example of how to do it.  For me, a respected news anchor dropped the ball here.

     As the week has progressed, I have been deeply unimpressed by the way David Cameron has handled this national crisis.  If I knew he was going to be this bad, maybe he should have stayed in Tuscany after all, sipping his precious cappuccino!  Despite the destruction, he still wants to cut 16,000 jobs on the police front.  What on earth is he doing!  Has he had his eyes shut throughout?  If anything, we need more police on the frontline as the anarchy broke out.  I’m afraid Mr. Cameron has been just as clueless of late as Arsene Wenger!  One message to Dave; I’m sure they do decent deals on priceless coffees at Starbucks if you really are that desperate for a caffeine boost!

     Last Thursday, he did say this in an emergency Commons debate; “And to the lawless minority, the criminals who have taken what they can get.  I say this, we will track you down, we will find you, we will charge you, we will punish you.  You will pay for what you have done.”  At least he has stuck to that, with magistrates working 24 hours a day to send a lot of the criminals into prison cells for their actions.  However, boot camps might have to be the way forward, because it might teach all of them a lesson in how to behave.  Any confidence I had in the coalition government has disintegrated.  Nick Clegg looks like a spare part, George Osbourne would rather be somewhere else rather than the House of Commons half the time and Theresa May is under huge pressure now, probably fighting a losing battle for her job.

     Now onto those who caused so much damage, fear and grief to the innocent.  It is inexcusable what they have done and an utter disgrace.  This was thuggery of the highest order.  Some don’t look sorry at all – I’ve heard stories of them smirking in court and laughing away without a care in the world.  You are a disgrace to society and I only wish we had bigger wheelie bins to tip you into!  I say to the courts, lock them up and throw away the key.  Boo hoo that you can’t afford the latest Nike Pegasus trainers, a Dell laptop or a 4-pack of Carlsberg Special Brew – it’s a tough life and we have all had to make sacrifices in the recession.  If you don’t like it, we don’t need you in the country, bugger off onto another planet!

    Despite some of the compensation packages that have been set-up by the government for affected businesses, it will end up being us that pays for most of the damage, not the loonies who did the damage.  Most taxpayers wouldn’t mind seeing these clowns having benefits and hand-outs being taken away from them.  It might help them learn, though that’s unlikely. 

    The parents need to take some responsibility too for the actions of their children.  For some of the criminals, running back to Daddy is probably the best option.  Oh wait, your Daddy probably encouraged you or is getting smashed out of his head at the local watering establishment!  The parents must take more control of their kid’s actions.  I’m pleased to have seen many parents hand their kids into the police.  Well done to you, no matter how hard it must have been, you’ve done the right thing.  To those parents who are protecting their violent youngsters, hang your head in shame, because you are not much better!

    Historian David Starkey will also probably need to find a new occupation.  His comments on last week’s edition of Newsnight have no place on television and he’d better hope that TalkSport offer him a place on their radio programming for sporting history.  After all, they seem to accept those disgraced professionals who make barbaric comments on TV.  Richard Keys and Andy Gray spring to mind!

     After what has happened last week, I have to ask myself, do I want to be a part of this country anymore?  I have to question it.  Our country might recover – but it will take lots of work to repair the burnt-out buildings and shattered glass windows.  I’m afraid, unless these police cuts are reviewed, the EMA (Education Maintenance Allowance) is restored and parents take more responsibility, this could easily happen again anytime soon.

     Lastly of course, my symphonies go out to those who have lost loved ones and been significantly affected by these devastating riots.

London riots escalate

ONLOOK: Riot police watch a fancy dress shop on fire in Clapham

FEAR, astonishment and disgust are amongst the emotions for many British citizens after the dramatic pictures and videos last night.  For the third successive night, the police were fighting a losing battle against hundreds of violent gangs, simply intent on causing as much destruction and damage as possible.  Hundreds of arrests have been made as London begins to count the cost of the damage.  Homes and businesses have been looted and set ablaze as British society faces upto its biggest problem for many decades.  Prime Minister David Cameron has had no choice but to cut short his summer holiday in Italy and make pleas for calm.  Tonight, 15,000 policemen will be out on the streets of London, but the trouble has now also descended outside the capital.  There were major disturbances in Birmingham last night, along with minor skirmishes in Liverpool, Nottingham and Bristol.

     The trouble began at the weekend in Tottenham, after the shooting of Mark Duggan by police last Thursday.  It spread to Ealing and Brixton on Sunday, with cars being smashed up, shops looted and set on fire, with police seemingly standing back and allowing the mob to take whatever possessions they felt like.  Yesterday, the initial trouble began in Hackney, as hundreds of youths attacked riot police and looted stores in broad daylight.  As the Hackney situation was brought under control, fires began in Peckham, with a Greggs store and a local electrical shop set ablaze; the gangs having no regard for the safety of innocent bystanders.  As YouTube footage came in of a man having his bag pack ransacked, dripping blood on the pavement floor, more London boroughs were targeted.  Gangs flooded the high street at Lewisham, once again, torching cars and looting stores at almost freewill. 

     At Clapham Junction, remarkable footage came in from a Sky News reporter close to the scene of a Ladbrokes store being robbed, with windows smashed, cash points targeted and a plasma TV being hauled off the wall.  Amazingly, it seemed like these idiots were being cheered on by people who found it funny!  The spread of violence has come through organised rumours on social networking sites Twitter and Facebook, as well as the BlackBerry private messenger service.  Research in Motion, the Canadian company that owns BlackBerry has promised it will help police to catch those responsible.  In Croydon, a large local furniture store was set on fire and destroyed in one of the most dramatic images of the evening.  The owner is devastated, as it was a business that had gone through four generations of his family.  168 years of graft all burnt out in less than half an hour.

     Prime Minister Cameron has faced a barrage of criticism for his lack of response to the dire situation.  CNN figurehead Piers Morgan wasn’t impressed on Twitter; “Now Cameron’s finally woken up, he should recall Parliament NOW.  This is a national emergency and the British public need protecting.”  This morning, the PM held a meeting with the police and under-fire Home Secretary Theresa May, before revealing in a statement that parliament will be recalled on Thursday for one day.  London Mayor Boris Johnson and Labour leader Ed Miliband are also returning home early from their summer breaks. 

     May went on BBC breakfast this morning to refute claims that heavy-hitting police tactics should be the order of the day, rejecting calls for the army and water cannons to be used, which would be a first in this country.  Yesterday, she pledged that those responsible will face strict action;

“I want to be clear – those responsible for the violence and looting will be made to face the consequences of their actions.”

     The outrage on social networking sites was clear from many shocked onlookers watching on their television screens.  Journalism student at the University of Northampton Chris Ola told me via Twitter the implications will be felt for many; “I can understand the outrage over the police killing the man…but this is ridiculous…it’s going to hurt the taxpayer.”  Another student at the University of Northampton, Stef Ventura fears the worst; “I fear for our country, we might be rewinding to the 1980s.”

     The blame game has already started, with some of the blame being laid at the Metropolitan police, who were over-stretched massively last night.  They made pleas for parents to know where their children were and get them inside as the mayhem continued.  From the skyline, London looked more like a disaster movie, not a bustling capital city that should be looking forward to host next year’s Olympic Games.  Former Labour mayor Ken Livingstone blamed the coalition’s dramatic spending cuts, telling the Daily Mirror; “The economic stagnation and cuts have inevitably created social division.”  Ex-deputy Prime Minister John Prescott expressed his viewpoint by setting-up a Twitter hash tag #where’sthegovernment.

BURNING: The Sony warehouse in Enfield burns to the ground

     However, it isn’t now London where this is happening now.  Birmingham saw trouble too.  Over 50 businesses were targeted by yobs in the Bullring shopping centre.  Melissa Hicks gave me a quick update of the situation on Facebook; “Birmingham City Centre is being smashed up and the big Primark shop has been burnt down.”  In Liverpool and Bristol, it was a similar, if quieter story.  This morning, the large Sony CD warehouse store on the corner of the M25 in Enfield was still burning to the ground, after it was set on fire in the early hours.  The FA have cancelled tomorrow’s night international friendly at Wembley between England and Holland and Carling Cup matches at Crystal Palace, Charlton, West Ham and Bristol City have been postponed on police advice.  The Premier League is also in contact with the police on a regular basis, with significant doubts over the fixtures taking place on the opening weekend involving Tottenham, QPR and Liverpool.  However, despite the Birmingham trouble, the third Cricket test at Edgbaston between England and India is set to go ahead on time tomorrow morning.

     As the cleanup began this morning, the whole country has to reflect on the trouble and the damage it has done to our society, with fingers crossed that tonight doesn’t bring the same amount of carnage and chaos in the country that last night did.

2011 Autosport International Show Review - Back to its best

AFTER last year’s disappointing and lacklustre affair, the Autosport International Show returned to its action-packed and breathtaking best.  The exhibition, held at the newly renamed LG Arena (the NEC) in Birmingham on 15 – 16 January produced plenty of thrills and spills, that would whet the appetite of anyone motor racing fan.  I went to experience the event on Saturday, and came away delighted with the whole day.

CHAMPION: Lewis Hamilton's winning 2008 car was on show

First stop was the exhibition of world championship winning cars by the McLaren Formula One team.  From the early days of Bruce McLaren, all the cars were shown to the public in stunning detail.  Amongst them were the first winning world championship car, driven by Emerson Fittipaldi in 1974, the beasts that were designed which saw Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost dominant the late 80’s, all the way through to Lewis Hamilton’s world championship winning car in 2008.  The public were allowed to get fairly close and personal to these monsters, and all credit has to go to McLaren for allowing fans to experience the intensity of what a winning Grand Prix racing car looks like.

SEXY: Lotus Renault's new F1 challenger looks stunning

McLaren may be a championship frontrunner for the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship, but it will take something special to overhaul Renault for the title of F1’s sexiest car of the year.  With official backing from Lotus, the cracking black and gold colour, synonymous with the Lotus team in the 1980’s is back for the new season.  It will be driven by Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov, and although it wasn’t the official launch, Lotus Renault showed off its new model, which looks stunning and breathtaking.  As this was a new car, access was limited – but the breathtaking pictures suggest that it will be one to watch – in many different ways.  In Kubica’s talented hands, I predict it will be a winner too.

DEMONSTRATION: The Virgin Racing pitwall was a starring spectacle

Last year’s dismal Autosport show was lifted by the appearance of the Formula One world champion, Jenson Button.  This year, motorsport stars were few and far between.  BBC F1’s anchorman Jake Humphrey and new main commentator Martin Brundle were in attendance.  Martin was quick to deny the media reports of a personality clash with Jonathan Legard, which led to Legard’s departure from the BBC team in midweek.  BTCC champion Jason Plato, 1979 world champion Jody Scheckter and sportscar aces Tom Kristensten and Allan McNish were the other picks.  Virgin Racing also allowed fans the chance to sit on their pitwall, play with some of the technical buttons and experience what the engineers go through during an everyday F1 race weekend.  I spoke to an employee from the team, who gave me a lot of useful information.  I asked him the validity of the pitwall, which he confirmed; “After the show, we will take down the wall, change the electrics and give the screens a dust and then, it is off to Valencia for the first pre-season test in three weeks time.”

SPONSORED: Fifth Gear put on a great show at the Live Action Arena

Plato went onto present the action from the Live Action Arena.  Sponsored by Channel Five, it was a show for those who are fans of Fifth Gear.  Plato was alongside the boring, useless Tiff Needell, with the glamour girl Vicky Butler-Henderson setting a series of challenges for the male stars to compete in.  In the show I went to, which I got front row seats for!  Needell got the better of Plato 2-1 in the challenges, but that sounded like a fluke, as people had been telling me that Plato had thrashed him all day.  This proved why Jason Plato stars on the British Touring Car circuit and why Tiff Needell is only a clueless TV presenter.  Sadly, he is nowhere near the class of Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond.  Nevertheless, the banter between the pair was well worth the entrance fee.  Once they disappeared, the crowd were treated to stunts from Terry Grant, and three-wheel racing from the likes of ‘Walliams,’ ‘McLauren’ and ‘Red Ball!’  By far, it was the best live action arena experience I’ve ever had.

LETDOWN: The F1 Racing Grid was the main disappointment

In previous years, there has been a lot of content at the LG Arena, but a lot of half-hearted attempts from manufacturers.  This year, the only main letdown was the F1 Racing Grid.  The cars of Ferrari, Sauber and Hispania were missing, making in half incomplete and by being sealed off, it made the exhibit very difficult for fans to take photographs of.  The F1 Racing Grid has been a dismal letdown for many years now, and I don’t think it will meet the highs of cars hanging from the walls, like they did in 2007.  Maybe they should do like the World Rally Championship, and scrap this display, because it isn’t getting any better.

That aside, it was a great day and a great event.  Last year, I left feeling very short changed and disappointed.  This year, it was totally value for money and a great experience.  I will be back in 2012 to visit again, but first – here’s to a classic motorsport season in 2011! 

© HappyDude88 2011 (All pictures and text is copyrighted under the name of HappyDude88 2011)

Crufts - Is It Healthy or Wrong?

This weekend, the NEC Arena (now known to some as the LG Arena) played host to the most spectacular dogs show in the world, Crufts 2010.  For the first time in nearly two years, the annual event was shown on our TV screens last night.  Whilst some will have seen Danny Young’s departure from Dancing on Ice on ITV1 or highlights of a snoozy Formula 1 opener on BBC Three, More 4 had won the rights to this colourful event.

Sponsored by the furniture group, DFS, Crufts is in a strong position, maybe stronger than it ever has been, but there are those who won’t agree it is healthy competition, instead it is animal cruelty.  More 4 were the first company to show Crufts, since a controversial BBC documentary on 'Pedigree Dogs Exposed' was screened in the summer of 2008.  Having held the rights to Crufts for ages, the documentary showed disturbing breeding practices of dogs and consequently, saw the BBC scrap its coverage, ending a prestigious relationship.

However, despite no TV deal last year, the event was still declared as a rousing success and the final line-up last night for the hotly-contested Best in Show was very interesting.  All seven finalists were declared fit and healthy to take part, with the award going to a Hungarian dog, called Yogi.  Yogi had won his category ‘Gun Dog’ earlier in the weekend and is a Vizsla breed, so winning the overall show must have been a massive surprise to his overjoyed owner, John Thirlwell. 

Of course, as ever with this type of event, controversy ran over the winner of the ‘German Shepherd’ category.  Experts were dismayed to see that the winner, Clokelly’s Lagos clearly was suffered with poor back legs and ankles.  The chief vet of the event has insisted that he inspected all dogs during the four-day event and insisted that all dogs passed the demanding medical trials.  Others disagree, including the maker of that BBC documentary, Jemima Harrison.  Harrison now campaigns to improve the health of all dogs, and in preventing cruelty, many believe she is a strong believer of the banning of such an event like Crufts.  It is known that all associated bodies, including The Kennel Club and the RSPCA are working closely together to make sure that all dogs are kept to a strict and healthy regime, should they take part in such prestigious competition events, such as Crufts.

The debate of animal cruelty will rumble on and personally, I don’t want to drag myself into such a controversial and hotly-debated topic as animals being harmed.  However, if Crufts disappeared from the event schedule, it would be a major shame.  Crufts is an established and prodigal event for the British and for me, as long as the dogs are all healthy, then I can’t see a problem with such a competition taking place.