It was one of the Nineties most beloved Saturday night shows.
So Gladiators fans will undoubtedly be overjoyed to see stars of the show reuniting to ring in 25 years since its launch, with Katie Price’s ex Warren Furman, Helen O’Reilly, James Crossley and Diane Youdale appearing on Tuesday’s Lorraine.
The faces of the show, who starred as Ace, Panther, Hunter and Storm respectively, gathered on the chat show for a where are they now segment alongside referee John Anderson, during which they displayed their incredibly youthful looks.
Back again! Gladiators fans will undoubtedly be overjoyed to see stars of the show reuniting to ring in 25 years since its launch, with James Crossley, Diane Youdale, Helen O’Reilly and Warren Furman (left-right) appearing on Tuesday’s Lorraine to celebrate
Gladiators, which was presented by Ulrika Jonsson, John Fashanu and later Jeremy Guscott, first hit screens on 10 October 1992, with the series comprising of contestants fighting against a Gladiator in a series of events to secure points.
After the Lorraine appearance, fans were going wild on Twitter over the return of the TV favourites to their screens as they focused on both their youthful appearances while also marvelling at how 25 years had passed.
Users penned: ‘Errr who remembers Ace from Gladiators?! He’s only on This Morning talking about Jesus! Day & life is made!… @thismorning not sure #god has been linked to ‘taking the turd out the pool’ before…
‘How amazing is it to see the Gladiators 25 years on! Great childhood memories #ThisMorning #Gladiators… Jet you were my hero! I always wanted to be you! @thismorning @di_youdale #Gladiators….
Way back when! The faces of the show, who starred as Panther, Ace, Hunter and Storm respectively, gathered on the chat show for a where are they now segment alongside referee John Anderson, during which they displayed their incredibly youthful look
Pin-up: Jet, played by Diane Youdale, was one of the show’s most beloved stars although her chances were thwarted when she suffered an injury during the Wembley Arena show in 1996
Way back when: Jet looks incredible despite first finding fame 25 years ago on the show
‘Wow. Just remembering how much I was in love with Jet from Gladiators back in the day. Mmmmm, essential Saturday TV… Absolutely loved Gladiators!!! Hunter & Jet were my favourites!… Ooo i used to love watching #Gladiators Hunter was my favo’.
After the show came off air in 2000, the stars led a variety of other pursuits, with Warren’s being perhaps the most shocking – as he revealed he has turned to God and founded a gospel choir after revealing he needed to change his life.
The blond-haired hunk, who was engaged to Katie Price, then known by her moniker Jordan, spoke of his discovery of God following excesses of his fame.
He told Lorraine: ‘I used to worship myself, I thought I was fantastic. I have now turned to God’s grace. I am a Gladiator of the gospel.
Ace: Warren Furman, 45
Show favourite: After the show came off air in 2000, the stars led a variety of other pursuits, with Warren’s being perhaps the most shocking – as he revealed he has turned to God and founded a gospel choir after revealing he needed to change his life
Name: Warren Furman aka Ace
Age: 45
Occupation: Having turned his back on showbusiness, Warren found God and now runs a Gospel choir in York, where he lives with his wife and two kids
Gladiator history: Four years after the show began in 1996, the blond hunk beat 60 other hopefuls for a place on Gladiators, where he stayed on the series until its end in 2000. He returned for the revival in 2008
Fun facts: Warren was engaged to Katie Price in the late Nineties, during which time they enjoyed a particularly lavish lifestyle. He previously said: ‘We travelled the world first class, went for expensive dinners, had big houses and fancy cars’, yet things later broke off acrimoniously
Way back when: Warren (pictured in 1998) was previously engaged to Katie Price at the height of their fame
Shocked: Fans were left in shock as they saw the return of their TV favourites to screens
‘You’ll never know God until you change your direction and so I realised this. It was great, we had loads of money and women, but I realised I had to change’.
Using a rather bizarre interpretation for his turn to faith, he said: ‘I had a turd in a swimming pool moment’, in which he insisted his lifestyle was like excrement that he was forced to remove to make himself a better person.
Discussing a return of the show, referee John said: ‘I would love to do it again. They the Gladiators were very good, professional and easy to work with. Everything they did they were supposed to do.
Ripped: Using a rather bizarre interpretation for his turn to faith, he said: ‘I had a turd in a swimming pool moment’, in which he insisted his lifestyle was like excrement that he was forced to remove to make himself a better person
Youthful: Helen O’Reilly, 56, who starred as Panther, where she was seen to sport an entirely different image with mounds of brunette curls as opposed to the blonde blow-dry of the present day
James, who was the youngest Gladiator on the show, said: ‘If I got a bit of notice because it’s a very different body training. It’s very specific events. We would have runners and sprinters but if I was given a few weeks, I would do it again.’
Discussing his time on the show, he said: ‘The first year I joined I couldn’t do anything – I locked myself away for a year to get better. You can be muscular and look good but it doesn’t mean you can climb those walls’.
Training it up: James, who was the youngest Gladiator on the show, said: ‘If I got a bit of notice because it’s a very different body training. It’s very specific events. We would have runners and sprinters but if I was given a few weeks, I would do it again’