Time Out
Gladiaattorit Returns for 2017
On 6th April 2017, it was announced that Gladiaattorit (Finnish Gladiators) would be making a sensational return to Finnish TV screens after a whopping 23 years!
The brand new series will be hosted by Heikki Paasonen, who is best known for presenting many entertainment shows such as Finnish Idols, The Voice of Finland and as the commentator of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Gladiaatorit was recorded at Tampere's Tähtiareenalla during June and will be broadcast on Finnish television channel Nelonen in September.
The brand new team of 16 Finnish Gladiators has been revealed ahead of filming, with 12 of the new 2017 stars controversially taking on the names of the original Gladiators team.
Female Gladiators: Barbi (Minna Pajulahti), Cobra (Terhi Lumme), Hurrikaani (Laura Saarinen), Laser (Rita Niemi-Manninen), Pantteri (Martina Aitolehti), Safiiri (Oona Tolppanen), Salama (Suski Mantila) and Skorpioni (Milena Abbas Mamode).
Male Gladiators: Hurja (Hannes Hyvönen), Häjy (Rami Hietaniemi), Kivinyrkki (Amin Asikainen), Mohikaani (Jere Tiihonen), Terminaatori (Jucci Hellström), Titaani (Vertti Harjuniemi), Turbo (Aki Manninen) and Viikinki (Juha Mentula).
The gruelling events in the series include: Pyramid, Suspension Bridge, Powerball, Hang Tough, Earthquake, Snapback, Gauntlet and of course, The Eliminator.
Gladiaattorit originally aired for 3 seasons between 1993-1994 on MTV3 and made household names of the likes of Viikinki (Tony Halme), Salama (Marjo Krishi), Pantteri (Kirsti Tapiola) and Terminaatori (Mikko Tukonen). Finnish TV channel Sub has recently been re-broadcasting the original series which has helped to reignite the nostalgic interest in the show.
More information can be found in the Gladiaattorit section or the official Nelonen website.
