Ulrika Jonsson on the 'bizarre' disparity in Gladiators security: 'I was left to walk on my own in the dark'

Ulrika Jonsson has opened up about her time co-presenting Gladiators between 1992 and 2000.

The reality TV format, which is being rebooted by the BBC in 2024, saw two male and two female contestants competing in a string of physical tests against the programme's 'Gladiators' - including Cobra, Warrior, Flame, Jet, Rebel, Scorpio, Zodiac, Hunter, and Wolf - in a bid to reach the grand finale.

By its third series, the fandom surrounding Gladiators had gone stratospheric, as Jonsson told The Express in a new interview.

Read more: Ulrika Jonsson struggling with sleep and breathing after breaking rib

"We used to film in Birmingham," she recalled. "In the third year we were doing the show, the Gladiators had to have their own security. It's really bizarre but they became so popular and had to be transported in a coach back to the hotel – but I was left to walk on my own in the dark. But the TV bosses were like, 'She's all right'.

"The third year I was pregnant and I was like, 'Maybe somebody could give me a lift or help me cross the bridge?'"

According to Jonsson, who appeared on both Celebs Go Dating and Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins in recent times, the Gladiators were deeply fixated on the quality of their bodies.

"They became massive stars and their egos popped," she said.

"Bodybuilding obviously becomes a kind of addiction. I went through a phase of being into fitness, but for them they created something extraordinary as they are not ordinary bodies."

Read more: Original Gladiators stars predict possible health and safety changes for reboot

Interestingly, the presenter suggested that she went against ITV's wishes when it came to her script and wardrobe for the show.

"They used to say typical ITV things like, 'Oh Cinderella, she is going to a ball' and I was like, 'I would never say that,'" claimed Jonsson. "So I used to rewrite the scripts and just work it all out and do little links.

"I also asked for my clothes to be changed."

Watch: Ulrika Jonsson feels 'sexier than ever' at the age of 56