Gladiators made its triumphant return to screens on Saturday (January 17), bringing with it a fresh new season of the beloved BBC competition. The latest series will introduce a new batch of contenders, ready to take on the superhuman gladiators across five gruelling events before going head-to-head in the infamous eliminator. Fans can look forward to classic challenges like Powerball and Duel, while also experiencing exciting new events this season, as well as the return of father-and-son duo Bradley and Barney Walsh.

Just minutes into tonight's opener, which kicked off on BBC One at 17:45pm, fans flocked to share their excitement over its return. "My Saturday night is complete again! #Gladiators," penned one fan on X and another wrote: " #Gladiators is back. One of those childhood memories that hasn't been ruined by a bad reboot!" A third echoed: "Steel back on telly... My saturday night is complete #Gladiators."

"That's my Saturdays sorted for the next few weeks," while another exclaimed: "Gladiators is back!"

The first two contenders introduced during tonight's episode were 23-year-old welder Finn Hutton from the Lake District and 27-year-old Area Sales Manager Josh McDonald from Glasgow.

Competing in the women's battle was priest Rachael Phillips, 39, from Darlington and Business Consultant Naomi Church, 40, from Birmingham.

This series is bound to be unforgettable, but sadly, not all gladiators will have the best of experiences. Due to the show's intense physical demands, four gladiators sustained serious injuries during the filming of the third series.

Matt Morsia, 39, known to fans as Legend, said he endured the worst few weeks of his life after tearing his distal bicep tendon off the bone on his elbow. The YouTuber underwent surgery which left him with post-operative sickness, causing him not to eat for 12 days and lose 15kg.

Livi Sheldon, 31, known as Diamond, ruptured her ACL and MCL during filming. The personal trainer recalled being in action one moment and in surgery the next.

Bionic - real name Matty Campbell - also sustained an injury to his shoulder and underwent surgery. Meanwhile, Karenjeet Kaur Bains, known on screen as Athena, also suffered a horror injury during the early stages of filming.

The powerlifter, 29, revealed the injury was far worse than originally expected as she suffered a complete ACL tear, a complex lateral meniscus tear and damage to both her LCL and MCL.