Holly Willoughby ‘being eyed by BBC to front Gladiators reboot: ‘They’re hoping she’ll be the new Ulrika!’

3 November 2023

Holly Willoughby is reportedly being eyed by the BBC to front their ‘Gladiators’ reboot.

Holly Willoughby is reportedly being eyed by the BBC to front their ‘Gladiators’ reboot

The presenter, 42, quit her long-term job hosting ITV’s ‘This Morning’ in October in the wake of the Phillip Schofield scandal and a stalker scare, and it’s now said Beeb bosses hope she will sign up to become the “new Ulrika Johnson” – host of the original 1990s version of the endurance show, which initially aired on ITV.

A TV source told The Sun about the idea of her joining the current dad-and-son ‘Gladiators’ presenting team of Bradley and Barney Walsh: “The BBC love Brad and Barney, but it’s also been proved Brad and Holly have an amazing dynamic as they featured together on the Beeb show ‘Take Off’.

“Since Holly’s departure from This Morning, lots of channels and broadcasters have been thinking about what she could bring to their shows.

“And as she’s such a big star, she’s a natural fit for a huge entertainment show, which the reboot of ‘Gladiators’ unquestionably is.

“The Beeb will let the dust settle on her ‘This Morning’ exit, and for the first series to run, before kicking off talks. But she's an obvious choice to become the new Ulrika.”

Bradley, 63, and his boy Barney, 35, are set to come back for the second series of ‘Gladiators’, which will be shot in the summer of 2024.

The first series has already been recorded with the pair at the helm, and will air in January.

Ulrika, 56, co-presented the original ‘Gladiators’ from 1992 to 2000, and Holly narrowly missed out on hosting the BBC reboot of ‘Survivor’.

Holly left ‘This Morning’ after 14 years in October, and her presenting job on ITV’s ‘Dancing on Ice’ is yet to be decided.

Her TV producer husband Dan Baldwin, 48, already has strong ties to the BBC as his company Hungry Bear is producing the ‘Gladiators’ revival.

He is also behind Michael McIntyre’s ‘Big Show’ hit, which has aired on the channel since 2015 and the 47-year-old comic’s ‘The Wheel’ game show which launched in 2020.