3 Feb 2026
Orthopaedic surgeon Ellie Lederer smashed her way through to the competition’s quarter-finals.
Chris Simpson
Job Title
Ellie evades Electro on her way to winning new game Unleashed. Image: BBC/Hungry Bear.
A vet has described her “amazing experience” competing on BBC Saturday night smash-hit Gladiators.
Orthopaedic surgeon Elspeth “Ellie” Lederer wowed audiences on Saturday (31 January) as she made up a 6.5-second deficit in the Eliminator on her fellow contender, firefighter Millie, to qualify for the quarter-finals.
Along the way, the 37-year-old managed to go the distance on Duel with fearsome gladiator Sabre, recovered from a dramatic trip to evade Electro on Unleashed, and successfully battled past five gladiators to clear the Gauntlet.
The RCVS and European specialist in small animal surgery said it “was an amazing experience”, adding: “It was so much fun, I loved it.”
Dr Lederer, who was a reserve contender on the show in the previous series, described the gladiators as “pretty intimidating” but also “really supportive”.
She continued: “They will tackle you; they’ll smash you, but then they’ll come and give you a hug afterwards and check you’re okay.
“They’re really nice people and they’re really good at what they do, so as much as it hurts when they take you down, they certainly do a good job of inspiring you when you’re around them.”
The vet described Cyclone, whom she clashed with on Gauntlet, as “a force of nature”, adding: “She carries a really positive message to young women as well about how you can be strong, you can be assertive. Women can be those things. You don’t have to make yourself small for other people.”
Dr Lederer, who was diagnosed with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis – curvature of the spine – as a child, said exercise helps her manage pain and discomfort from the condition.
She concluded: “I’ve had three or four messages already from parents of young daughters who’ve got scoliosis that say that their daughters were really inspired by the episode. And that’s really, really nice and amazing to hear.”
Dr Lederer’s Gladiators journey will continue in the quarter-finals; her episode will air on BBC One on Saturday 21 February.
