Louise Minchin, best known for presenting BBC Breakfast, was left with a bloody nose during Gladiators.
It was revealed last month that the 55-year-old TV star would be competing in the celebrity version of the iconic show alongside the likes of Ellie Taylor and Joel Dommett.
Hosted by father-son duo Barney and Bradley Walsh, the BBC One special, which aired on New Year’s Day, involved famous Contenders taking on the resident Gladiators in a series of physical challenges before facing the Eliminator, an obstacle course spanning the length of the arena.
Louise was brutally knocked from a walkway while taking part in the show’s Collision challenge, which saw her on a bridge trying to dodge Gladiators as they swung over her head.
She scored an impressive eight points before being knocked off the bridge by a Gladiator, at which point host Bradley let her know she’d been injured. “Am I bleeding?” Louise replied, prompting Bradley to quip: “You’re actually a bit of a warrior Louise. Who knew?”
The star-studded line-up for New Year’s Day was revealed late last month and Louise made it clear she was delighted to be taking part in the full throttle show, even insisting she was in the best shape of her life.
She said: “I’m probably fitter now than when I was 25. Being the fittest I’ve ever been in my life has changed me in lots of different ways, because I do endurance events you learn about resilience and determination and how to keep going when it feels hard.”
Louise added: “I know it’s a bit cliche but that’s a real lesson in life, you know, when I have hard times, I can think back on races I’ve done and think, ‘do you know what? I’ve done hard things and I can get through this’. That’s inspiring stuff.”
However, Louise drew the line when it came to her costume and admitted she was thankful bosses didn’t make her slip into something the Gladiators would wear. She laughed: “Obviously I’m not going to be wearing Dynamite’s outfit, thank goodness. I did say to them, actually, because I could be wearing a crop top, this midriff thing, it’s just not happening. I mean, I’m really happy to represent the older ladies, but without my midriff – I’m covering it up.”
The oldest contestant on the show, Louise was left stunned when host Bradley Walsh suggested they’d gone easy on her. She said: “It does not feel like they’re taking it easy on you at all. It’s like running into a brick wall and trying to push it down with your hands and then the brick wall attacks you. You look at them and you think they’re lovely – they’re not. They’re super scary but brilliant.”
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