THE DOG'S BLOG
FIRST GLADIATORS RECORDING, SERIES 1
SATURDAY APRIL 19, 2008
The time had come. The Gladiators were officially back and ready for action in their brand new home at Shepperton Studios. After saying a quick hello to a few of the members of the Gladiators Zone in the queue, I was met by Gladiators producer Marc who had come to give me and my friend Suzi a grand VIP tour of the new arena. As we walked onto the set the first thing that really hit us was the amazing lighting they have in place for the new series. Every section of the arena is superbly lit and it was absolutely massive! On the tour we were given the rare opportunity to climb the Pyramid (which is so hard as your feet literally sink into the mats!), run the newly caged Gauntlet, stand beneath The Wall and we even got a quick glimpse of new event Earthquake which was neatly hidden up in the rafters. The biggest change from the original series was the new pool area that filled one half of the set. This was replacing the crash mates that were previously used for the likes of Duel and Hang Tough. After squaring up to Suzi with some pugil sticks (and stopping myself from knocking her into the water) we went to hunt down some Gladiators!
First up was the green room where Tornado, Spartan and Atlas were chilling out before the show. Tornado and Spartan were quick to remind me I cut short their interview the previous week due to spending too much time chatting to Ice and Tempest. Sorry guys!
Next was the wardrobe department where I was introduced to the amazing designer of the brand new 'sparkly' lycra costumes. The room was really warm as it was filled with washing machines, towels, lycra and the brand new body armour and helmets the Gladiators would be wearing. The new Gauntlet body armour is amazing, they are very complimentary to the original but have new brilliant metallic emblems that were designed for each of the Gladiators. Just as we were leaving Inferno walked in and after a quick chat (apparently she was a massive fan of the original show, has a Gladiators scrap book and regularly visits the Gladiators Zone forums!) we wandered into hair and make-up. Battleaxe (who was eating her lunch), Enigma, Panther and Tempest were busy getting their make-up and hair sorted for the first recording and said they were all excited about getting out in front of a live audience.
Wandering down the corridor we enter a room with the four Contenders who are preparing for tonight's show by talking tactics and how they are going to bring down the mighty Gladiators. "Will the fans hate us if we take down the Gladiators?" one of them asks, "No definitely not, just bring what you've got to them and put on a good show." I reply.
Finally we arrive at the VIP room where we can see the view of the arena on a TV screen, it looks amazing! We grab a few chocolate bars (the Gladiators wouldn't be proud), a drink and head off to our seats in the Arena for the first recording… Let the games begin!
Paul Noddings
Editor & Designer of the Gladiators Zone
