Gladiators: The Brutal Truth

Documentary featuring Monty Python star Terry Jones, who investigates the dark side of the gladiator's life in Roman times. Wild animals, enemies of the state, and Christians were pitted against professional fighters to symbolically prove Rome's superiority over the rest of the world. Terry Jones also reveals that while Romans certainly thought little of the lives of their gladiator-slaves, many fights didn't end in death. If both participants fought bravely, the crowd would often spare their lives.

Terry Jones also investigates the truth about the Roman Games, uncovering what it took to be a gladiator and looking at why, to the noble ladies of Rome, these brave men were the rock stars of their day.

Also find out how the legacy of the games lives on in the great sports arenas of the 20th century and why the Romans would be as shocked by our violent entertainments as we are by theirs.