He was one of the best known Gladiators from the original ’90s BBC series, having dated host Ulrika Jonsson and fellow cast member Jet. And James Crossely, aka Hunter, tells Closer that he’s still in touch with his former flames.
He says, “I’m still in touch with both Ulrika and Diane [Youdale – Jet’s real name]! I recently did a podcast with Diane, it was great to catch up with her. And Ulrika and I both have bulldogs, so we bond over that.”
Gladiators is back in the headlines as the iconic show has been rebooted, with the first episode proving a huge hit and attracting 6.3 million viewers. But James warns the new raft of Gladiators are in for a rough ride.
He says, “These Gladiators are all brand new, they’ll be finding their feet and the first year will be difficult… I’m sure that will all come as the show flows.
“During the first year, a director actually came up to me and said, ‘Hunter, you’re s**t’. As a body builder, I’d never even run for a bus!
“My dad used to say to me, ‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail’ – that’s been a lifetime mantra for me and that’s what the games are like.”
Now, after training twice a day for seven years during his time on the show, James says that at 50, he still likes to take care of himself.
He adds, “I train five days a week and I’m in pretty good shape.”
Joining the show as the youngest Gladiator at just 19 (22 years younger than “bad guy” Wolf), James says the catalyst for his road to stardom started when he was bullied as a child.
He says, “One of my neighbours bullied me quite a bit because I was younger, smaller and weaker. People took advantage of that. I think it really affected me. I wanted to be the underdog that came through. I was obsessed with superheroes and the Hulk. As a child you see that as your way out of a situation – to become a superhero.
“But it’s been transformational. Maybe if he hadn’t bullied me, I might not have had that bit between my teeth.”
Fast forward 11 years and not only did James bump into his childhood bully at a local pub (who “ducked his head down and shuffled quickly past”), but the Gladiators team spotted him in a body-building magazine, where he had been compared to Tarzan. The rest is history, and now James – who still boasts a six-pack and confesses he listens to the Rocky theme tune for every workout – has opened his own sound-healing school after being “transfixed” by the healing art on a trip to Bali.
He practises all over the world with his partner of five years and fiancée, a yoga instructor and aerial enthusiast.
However, he says he wouldn’t rule out returning to the show that made his name. He says, “If I were to go on the show again, I reckon I’d need three months and I’d probably become 75 per cent of what I was – which I think would be enough!”