Kids ask the Gladiators all the questions grown-ups never would

These days, kids don’t watch TV – but they do watch Gladiators. Somehow, the lycra-clad '90s throwbacks of BBC1’s shiny-floor revival have managed to compete with all videogames, TikTok and general brainrot to enchant children across the UK and beyond.

“My brother lives in Dubai, and his kids, my niece and nephew and all of their friends, do watch parties at my brother’s house to watch Gladiators,” Gladiator Sabre, AKA Sheli McCoy, tells Radio Times. “Series one had 90 million global downloads.”

“We are like real-life superheroes to them,” adds Zack George, AKA Steel. “When they come to see us in any sort of capacity, there’s just the joy, and the biggest smiles that you have and that you see on all the kids’ faces, is absolutely amazing.”

So when quizzing six of the Gladiators on their stories, what else could we do but hand the reins over to the real experts, some of the TV show’s youngest fans who had their own… unique… queries for the musclebound stars. Starting with…

Fire, AKA Montell Douglas

Charlotte, aged 8, asks: What makes you so quick?

What makes me so quick? Well, like we mentioned, the hair, because this is my superpower. When you go fast, it looks like flames. But I genuinely think that’s a part of it.

However, I am well-versed, and ran for a very long time, and trained really, really hard for a very long time. Though part of that is because it’s my superpower to be super, super fast, which also adds to my strength.

So lots and lots of training. Lots of sprinting. It’s why I’m so fast.

Isaac, aged 5, has asked: Who are better, the old Gladiators or the new Gladiators?

Oh, that is controversial! We have to defend our throne, Isaac. Who are better? So I have, like I said, empathy. I’ve got massive respect… You know what? Those that laid the path before us are why we’re here. And I pay homage to the original Gs – I call them the OGs – because without them, we cannot be here.

And I feel like we are a thread and a legacy of what it is that they created. That, for me, literally is it.

And Izzy, aged 7, has said: Do your muscles hurt all the time?

Not as much as the contenders. No, I’m joking.

No, but we work. Sometimes you work hard, and you’ve got to make sure that you work hard enough that you can feel that you’re working. Hard work does sometimes feel really, really, really tough.

However, you just know that you’re working your best, and you know that you’re going to get the real gains, and you’re going to get really good results from that. They don’t hurt all the time, because I take very good care of my body, because our body is our temple. You have to look after it.

Steel, AKA Zack George

Penny, aged 5: How is Steel so steel? (This is one of my favourite questions from the whole list.)

I love that. I always get that. It’s like, “How much of your body is actually steel? Are your arms steel?”

OK. So how did I get so steel? How did I get so strong? So, my training regime, I train about 12 times a week. So I train twice a day, six days a week, and I’ve done that for about 10 years.

I have six meals a day, and it’s just about 4,500 calories a day. I always stay well-hydrated. I always get good sleep. And I’ve done that in a professional athletic environment for 10 years.

So it’s a lot of training sessions, a lot of calories. I love every single of it. I’m an all-rounded Gladiator, so I have to play pretty much every game. So my training is extremely varied.

For my cardio, I do running, swimming, cycling, rowing. For my weightlifting, I’ll do things like Olympic weightlifting – so, clean, jerk, and snatches. I’ll do squats and bench-press. And then I’ll also do gymnastics. It’s an extremely varied amount of training. And I’ve done a lot of it.

And I’ve been very healthy for about 10 years.

What kind of meals are you having?

So my breakfast is the meal that’s always the same. The breakfast is a bowl of porridge, two bagels, and six eggs. And then the other five meals are very varied. It might be a pasta dish. It could be a jacket potato. It could be a chicken salad. It’s very varied. But the morning breakfast is always the same.

The breakfast of champions.

The breakfast of champions. The breakfast of Gladiators.

Charlotte, aged 8, asks: Can you bend a steel bar (with your bare hands)?

Yes.

Seb, aged 8, asks: If you woke up tomorrow and all your muscles disappeared, what job would you do?

Hmmm. I would… So, here’s an interesting fact for you. I used to be a really, really good table tennis player when I was young. I played for the county.

So if I lost all my muscle, I’m going to go back to my pursuit of being a table tennis player.

Are you still good now?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Unless you’ve trained in table tennis, you probably won’t win. It’s quite known in my gym – I can play people with a shoe. I can use a phone. I can use whatever, really.

That’s great. Is it harder to play when you’re in Gladiator shape, when you’re a bit bigger, or no?

It would be. That’s why it works quite well, because now, when you’re quite bulky, you don’t move as well. But if I lost all my muscle, I’d actually be prime for table tennis.

And a final question from Josie, aged 11: What piece of advice would you give your 11-year-old self?

When I was younger, I didn’t have any confidence. I was embarrassed about how I looked. So I used to skip school if I knew I had swimming, because I was too ashamed to take my top off. And I just didn’t eat healthy at all.

So I would say to my younger self – I had a real issue with judging myself constantly on other people. And I would say, “Why don’t I look like them? Why don’t I look like them?”

I just wish I could tell myself, “Don’t judge yourself on anyone else, because everyone’s unique. Everyone’s special in their own way. And it’s just about being happy and confident with who you are, and not judging yourself on anyone else.”

And I’d also say: “Run your own race.” Everyone’s on their own journey. Everyone’s on their own path. And everyone will achieve their goals in different stages. Just because it took me a year longer, it doesn’t mean my journey was wrong or that I’m doing something wrong. It’s just that, for me, that was the time length it was going to take.

So I would say: “Run your own race, because everyone will achieve goals at different stages, and don’t judge yourself on other people. It’s just about being happy and confident with who you are.”

Legend, AKA Matt Morsia

The first question is from eight-year-old Aurelia, who says: Are you really a legend?

I would say: it’s such a stupid question. Do you know what I mean? Who has cleared that question? I think Aurelia and her parents need to go back to the drawing board. I think she needs to work on her comprehension and questioning skills. Not only is that question ridiculous, it’s also highly insulting. So I’m going to refuse to answer it.

Fair enough. Well, if you didn’t like that one, Charlotte, aged 8, says: Why are you a doughnut?

I feel like Charlotte’s being heavily influenced by an adult in that question, in my opinion. An adult – probably a jealous, bitter adult who looks at me as some kind of unattainable god, and so had encouraged her child to refer to me as a doughnut.

I am not a doughnut. I like doughnuts, but I’m not one myself. I’m actually an extremely gifted human who is good at everything.

This leads to the next question she asked. She said: Why do you have “Simply the Best” as your theme tune?

I think it’s sort of explanatory. That song – this is an unknown fact, but that was actually written for me. The lyrics for that were written for me. It’s just a biography in a song, basically.

Noah, aged 7, asks: How did you get so much muscle?

I am a genetic freak. From a… not a young age but from a relatively young age I had above-average quantities of muscle mass. But also I train extremely hard twice a day, and I’m hyper-intelligent. So I’m able to build my training programme in a way that allows me to continue building muscle, whereas the average person maybe couldn’t do that.

Leila, aged 7, asks: What do you want to be when you grow up?

You grow up. What’s her name? Sienna?

Leila.

Leila? Leila needs to grow up.

Emilio, who’s 10, asks: Are you paid to be arrogant?

I mean, technically yes. I am just… Also, Emilio, it’s not arrogance, is it? If a bush claims to be a bush, that’s not arrogance. It’s just literally an objective observation. So it’s not arrogance. For me to say I’m the best, that’s not arrogance. I’m just explaining. I’m just describing an objective situation. But technically yes, I am literally paid to do that.

Alfie, aged 10, asks: How many marshmallows can you fit in your mouth at once?

I tried it once, and we had to stop because I ate the entire pack. You know one of those big family-sized packs of marshmallows? I can get the entire pack in my mouth, and I’ve still got more capacity. We needed to reset the game just to have more bags available.

But at this point, potentially infinite amounts. Because my jaw is so strong, and my cheeks – it’s like one of those… You know in the factory where they just squash metal?

Yeah. The hydraulic press.

That’s what my mouth does to marshmallows. They just keep going. And by the time they get to the latter ones, the earlier ones have dissolved. It’s almost a conveyer belt.

And Alfie’s last question was: PS, how do I become more of a legend like you?

Alfie, I would say: it’s unrealistic. In the same way if Alfie said, “How do I become a T-Rex?” – I’d say, “It’s not going to happen, mate.” That’s the first thing. A reality check, Alfie – it’s never going to happen.

However, you can be a better version of yourself by being confident, and having that belief in yourself. I think a lot of people don’t believe in themselves. Believe in yourself, and if you want to do something, do it.

Because I quite frequently find that you won’t regret doing something – going something and doing something, you won’t regret that. But you may well regret not doing something. Just send it, mate, and just do stuff.

Seb, who’s eight, says: If you woke up tomorrow and all your muscle disappeared, what job would you do?

Probably either the Prime Minister of the UK or potentially the King. It would depend on what spots are open. But I imagine one of those two roles.

Nitro, AKA Harry Aikines-Aryeetey

From Daniel, aged 7: Nitro, what is your favourite dinner?

Ha! What you need to know about Nitro is that Nitro is a great chef. But my good-luck meal is a pizza. I will have a pizza every week before a big arena day. I make good pizzas, but I like a pepperoni pizza with mozzarella and spicy pepperoni and nduja on top – spicy nduja. Even some hot honey on there as well. And a nice, Naples-type pizza. Stone-baked. A nice, puffy crust. That will go down really well.

Regan, aged 9, asks: what age did you start working out, and what inspired you to become a Gladiator?

I wanted to be a Gladiator from the moment I saw Jet on Gladiators, and became a Gladiator in the sense of mind and body. What people don’t realise is – I’ve always been working out. The moment you start playing – I used to play British Bulldog; I used to play 40/40; I used to play Stuck in the Mud. That’s all forms of training, whether it be agility… Sport is training. Having fun is training.

So I’ve always been training my whole life. Learning how to win and lose, playing Monopoly – it’s a form of training. So all of these moments are built for me to become a Gladiator, and it started from when I was 5, because I’m playing. I’m having fun. I’m learning. I’m being adaptable. I’m learning new skills. These are all parts of being the best person you can be.

Great. So these kids better start getting ready.

Exactly.

Evan, aged 6, has a controversial question. He says, which of the other Gladiators are you the most afraid of?

Ha! Dare I say it: I’d be afraid of Diamond, because she’s very sassy, and when she hasn’t eaten, she gets quite hangry. And she’s a lot to deal with!

Charlotte, aged 8, asks: Who is your best friend on Gladiators?

My best friend on Gladiators? On the boys’ side, it would be Viper. I speak Viper-nese. I understand everything that he’s going through. Me and him, we go way back.

And otherwise, on the girls’ side, it would probably be Diamond or Dynamite. Those two are sort of my go-tos. I can hang out with them, and we’re good energy.

Lovely. And 5-year-old Joe says quite simply: How fast can Nitro run?

Nitro’s completed the 100 metres in 9.90 seconds, and I’ve reached up to 27 miles per hour. So I would get a lot of tickets in London.

Sabre, AKA Sheli McCoy

Charlotte, who’s aged 8, had a lot of questions for you. First: Do you like lions?

I love them. I love them. I actually find that a pride of lions is something that you could watch all day.

Do you have a pet lion?

I have a pet dog that looks like a wolf. His name is Alpha. It’s pretty close.

I think I heard somewhere that you wanted Alpha to be your Gladiator name?

Yeah, and they wouldn’t give me it.

That’s annoying. I guess because then you’d be top.

Yeah. Hierarchy. Although we have one called Legend.

True. Well, this is related: What made you choose the name Sabre?

Because I am wild, fierce, and formidable, and very, very rare – as is a Sabre-toothed tiger.

Finally from Charlotte: How big are your teeth?

My teeth? Average sized, but my jaw is very strong. But I do have shiny, white, pearly teeth. And actually – here’s an example – on my gumshield I have actual, big sabre teeth. Tell her to look closely in the next series for when I smile, because my gumshield has actual teeth on it.

Nathalie, who’s 10, and Cami who’s 6, submitted this together. They say: a question for Sabre, What has been your favourite sign in the audience?

“Sabre, will you marry my dad?”

That’s good. Did you get in touch?

There’s honestly 50 of them. Every audience, it’s all about the dads. The dads have made their kids sit down and make those signs.

I guess the BBC or whoever would probably blur out the phone numbers at the bottom.

Yeah. I don’t actually know. Although I know that Apollo the other day had a sign sent into the dressing room for him with the woman’s number and Instagram handle on it.

Josie, aged 11, asks: What piece of advice would you give your 11-year-old self?

Deep, Josie, aged 11. I would tell her that it’s not… do you know what? I actually wrote a letter to my younger self but it’s very deep and it’s very long. But the underlying thing that I think I needed to hear at 11 was: “It’s not going to be sunshine and roses. Not everyone’s going to help you succeed. And a lot of people won’t be happy when you do succeed. But that shouldn’t slow you down. That shouldn’t stop you. And you should try your best. And it’s OK to be the best in the room. And it’s also OK to be the worst. Effort will always trump the outcome. And whether you know it or not, you’re worth way more than what anyone else thinks about you.”

That’s good advice.

It’s a big question.

Fury, AKA Jodie Ounsley

Charlotte, aged 8, asks: Why did you join Gladiators?

Why did I join it? Well, I think because it runs in the family. My dad was a contender on the previous Gladiators, so it’s always kind of been something we’ve had a lot of interest in. So, yeah, I wanted to see if I could be a Gladiator myself, and see how much I could push myself with it as well.

Penny, aged 5, says: Is Fury furious when she doesn’t win?

Sometimes. Most of the time, I’m not, because I always think you’ve just got to take it, be humble with it, and come back stronger. But no, I’m not furious all the time. Only sometimes.

Sisters Nathalie and Cami, who are 10 and 6, had a couple of questions. They said, first of all, if you could introduce a new event for Gladiators, what would it be? The Scruminator?

The Scruminator – that’s a good one. I actually think… I don’t know if you’re aware – I’ve done an event called The World Coal Carrying Champions, where you basically run with a sack of coal on your shoulders.

So I think coal-carrying needs to be a new event. It’s a Yorkshire event.

Perfect. I could imagine all your fellow Gladiators and contenders with sacks of coal

Yes! And it could be a race. It could be contender and Gladiator, and it’s a sprint race with the sack of coal.

Nathalie and Cami also asked: How long could you survive sharing a house with Legend?

Probably zero. No, I think maybe one day. We’ll see.

Gladiators returns on Saturday 17th January at 5:45pm on BBC One and iPlayer.

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