This Morning’s Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard bravely take on Gladiators Diamond and Giant ahead of the BBC shows final

Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley hilariously took on the famous Gladiators on Thursday’s episode of This Morning.

The ITV presenting duo donned padded red and blue helmets as they competed against the iconic Diamond and Giant.

Ben, 49, admitted he was ‘terrified’ as he stood on a small stage with a padded pugil stick hoping to knock 6ft 3in bodybuilder Giant off the opposite stage.

The former GMB presenter, who is 6ft tall, quickly sprang into action and managed to kick him off, prompting Giant to say the presenter was ‘cheating’, while referee Giles turned a blind eye.

Next up was the glamorous Cat, who donned a white blouse and patterned wide-leg trousers as she faced Diamond.

The ITV presenting duo donned padded red and blue helmets as they competed against the iconic Diamond and Giant

Unfortunately for Cat, her time on stage was very short-lived as Diamond immediately pushed her off the stage, leaving her unimpressed.

The final episode of the new series of Gladiators airs on the weekend with the athletes telling ITV viewers to ‘expect some really good competition’.

However, viewers needn’t be too disappointed as Gladiators has officially been commissioned for a second series.

The BBC’s reboot of the iconic sports entertainment game show – which originally aired on ITV in the 1990s – has proven hugely popular with an average of 8.3 million viewers for the comeback so far, and now the broadcaster has confirmed that he will return for another run on BBC One.

Kalpna Patel-Knight, head of entertainment at the BBC, said: ‘Gladiators’ has really started this year with a bang, and we’re so pleased that fans have flocked to the show.

‘It was great to hear how much families enjoyed watching this together as part of the BBC’s Saturday evening entertainment offering.

“We can’t wait for more action from the Gladiators.”

The show is hosted by father-son duo Bradley and Barney Walsh – who will both return next year – while Gladiators such as Sabre, Legend, Nitro, Phantom, Fire, Giant, Dynamite, Viper and Comet have become household names.

Ben admitted he was ‘terrified’ as he stood on a small stage with a padded punching stick hoping to knock Giant off the stage opposite

Ben quickly acted and knocked Giant off the apron, prompting him to say the announcer was ‘cheating’ while referee Giles turned a blind eye

Next up was the glamorous Cat, who donned a white blouse and patterned wide-leg trousers as she faced Diamond

The final episode of the new series of Gladiators airs this weekend, but viewers needn’t be too disappointed as the BBC show has been officially commissioned for a second series.

BBC will bring more adrenaline-fueled action to screens in 2025 with iconic events such as Duel and Powerball before the climactic Eliminator.

Dan Baldwin, Managing Director of Hungry Bear Media, added: “It’s no exaggeration to say that the response to Gladiators has been phenomenal.

‘The episodes are packed with nail-biting drama, exciting action and enormous emotions.

‘In Series 2 the show goes from strength to strength. We have some great surprises in store for the fans. Are you ready?!?’

And Dom Bird – SVP, MGM Alternative, International – said: ‘It was incredible to see Gladiators reignite the excitement this show always generated in the UK on Saturday nights.

‘We’re delighted that a second series has been confirmed for BBC One and BBC iPlayer and we can’t wait to get back into the arena with our partners at Hungry Bear Media and the BBC.’

The Gladiators final can be seen on BBC One this Saturday at 5.50pm. The series is available on BBC iPlayer.