Life as a Gladiators pin-up was carnage – we partied with A-listers like the Spice Girls and Jet’s fan mail was insane
SKIMPY costumes, massive muscles and huge personalities made it easy for the original Gladiators to become pin-ups.
The ITV show set pulses racing back in the 1990s as men and women at the peak of physical fitness competed against members of the public in a battle of brains and brawn.
For Hunter, real name James Crossley, 51, and Jet, real name Diane Youdale, 54, becoming a fixture on bedroom walls was surreal.
In an exclusive interview, Diane tells The Sun: “I found it really bizarre.
“I’d been in TV for quite a few years, and theatre before Gladiators, and for me, it was just a job so suddenly, then to be a pin-up and I got all this fan mail.
“It was really flattering, but just a little bit surreal and weird for me, because it was something I didn’t quite expect.”
James added: “I think that for Diane was really full on, because she was the most popular girl ten-fold. You know, she got more fan mail than all the girls.”
Diane was 22 when she joined the line-up, while James was just 19. The pair ended up dating for two years, after meeting on the show, but Diane is now married to Zoe Gilbert.
Decades later, they nonetheless remain close and are now joint-hosting a day of the Crystal Maze experience alongside other TV legends from decades past.
Unlike Diane, James had no experience being in the public eye when he was signed up for Gladiators, which first ran from 1992 to 2000, and couldn’t quite believe the perks of the job.
He said: “What was amazing about Gladiators was the variety it gave us. We were only filming the series.
“It only took two-and-a-half to three weeks to film the whole series. We were doing two shows a day, and each show took about five or six hours.
“So it was a very intense time for the filming. And then the rest of the year, we were travelling all around the world, doing appearances.
“We’d go to Euro Disney and turn on the Christmas lights one day, and then next thing you know, you might be doing a video with the Spice Girls.
“It was an amazing and varied lifestyle.”
Legend lost
While on Gladiators, the athletes both worked closely with the late John Anderson, who refereed the show and became iconic for his catchphrase: “Contender, ready! Gladiators; ready!”
The sports coach, who guided the careers of more than 100 Olympians, passed away on Sunday, leaving behind a huge legacy across both TV and athletics.
James was trained by the Scotsman when he joined the famous BBC show as an inexperienced teenager.
“When I did my audition for Gladiators, it was John… he was very transformational for me,” he said.
“I struggled the first year. I was a bodybuilder, they gave me ten days notice, and I was filming Gladiators, and I’d never really climbed a wall or anything before.
“So you really had to change your body and train to be a gladiator, not to be a bodybuilder or a runner or an athlete.”
James added: “I was very lucky that I got to see him last year. Myself and Cobra (Michael Willson) did a pilot together, and he was there, at 92 years old, and I kind of knew that might be the last time I saw him.
“So we did this show together. It was really amazing to spend that last bit of time with him.”
Diane emotionally said: “I had a few tears yesterday, and this morning having talked about him, having done some research on him.
“I just wish that for Dorothy, his surviving wife and his family, and if his dogs are still alive, we just wish them all the best. He’ll be a big miss. He was a force.”
Reflecting on John’s training record, Diane added: “He trained so many Olympians as well.
“We’ve got the Olympics on at the moment, even our own Judy Simpson, who is Nightshade, will always be Nightshade, to me, she was trained by him.
“And some absolutely amazing athletes, Liz McColgan, that he got to the Olympics.”
John Anderson's career
John Anderson was born on November 28, 1931, in Glasgow, Scotland.
His sporting achievements started early as he represented his country at a youth level in football. He then went on to found Maryhill Ladies AC in Glasgow.
In 1996 he started training Commonwealth Games champion and former World Record Holder David Moorcroft. He mentored David to a world record for 5,000m in 1982.
He also trained three-time Olympic heptathlete Judy Simpson (known as Nightshade on Gladiators) and double Olympian Sheila Carey.
Also on his training books were marathoner John Graham, 1988 Olympic 10,000m silver medallist Liz McColgan, middle-distance runner Lynne MacDougall, 1972 Olympic 4×400m silver medallist David Jenkins, and sprint hurdler David Wilson.
In 1965, he became the first full-time National Coach in Scotland. He stepped down from the position in 1970.
From 1964 until 2006, he was a coach to an athlete competing in every Olympic Games.
He coached five world record holders and over 170 different track and field athletes.
In 1992, he took up the position as head official on sports game show Gladiators. He stayed in the role until the show ended in 2000.
In 2008, he briefly reprised the role in a spin-off of Gladiators but decided to retire from TV work.
In 2016, he made an appearance on Top Gear alongside Chris Evans and Matt LeBlanc, as a guest referee.
John died on the July 28, 2024, at the age of 92.
Legacy left behind
John’s legacy is being carried on with the new version of Gladiators on BBC1, which was broadcast in January this year.
Diane and James think that the new generation of athletes are perfectly placed to pick up where they left off.
“I just think they are another generation of superb, multifunctional athletes who are better suited than possibly some of us were in our day because we were coming in quite blind as to what to train for,” Diane said.
“It helps if – unlike the bodybuilders that came on – Kim and I, Lightning, we were ex-gymnasts, so we had the multifunctional dexterity and skills to be able to blend into the arena more easily.
“So this new show, I think a lot of them have come in as Gladiators, far more prepared with unique USPs.”
New fitness skills
James added: “When our show was on, there were only four channels, of course. There was no Sky, there was no Internet, we were eating nuts and bolts for breakfast.
“That was a very different time. And I think fitness has moved on. There was no CrossFit when we started the show.
“I know some of the guys on it, they’re great guys. So wish them the best of luck.”
While James and Diane may no longer be on TV competing in Gladiators, they are giving people a chance to go up against them now.
The pair are hosting a special experience at the Crystal Maze experience.
James said: “We’re guest hosts. So when you do the crystal maze, they have a maze master who goes around with them, room to room, who gives them clues and shows them where to go.
“And they’re doing a 90s theme night, and Diane and I are going as the former Gladiators.
“Competition winners can go on the links, and they can apply, and they can win, and they can come around with us, and we’ll be their maze masters for the evening.”
The Crystal Maze LIVE Experience is offering a summer of 90s fun, with a line-up of unique experiences and takeovers from iconic TV stars of the decade. Visit the-crystal-maze.com
