The return of the Gladiator

Ancient Rome missed out on all the media hype. Only the spectators inside the amphitheatres could witness the gladiatorial contests, where men fought men with sword and lance. Today however, the weapons are the willow and the cherry, red or white depending on the time of the contest, but the gladiatorial thrill has been revived and can be viewed around the world. Our erstwhile cricketing superheroes are even being projected on the small screen dressed in war metal, faces hideously grimaced with bloodlust. The bat is the sword, the chest guard is the shield and the pads and gloves, the chain mail.

And what more appropriate place than South Africa? Rome had to import its lions with which to feed the losers, but there is an abundance of them right at the doorsteps of the stadia. Of course, some losing teams might even prefer the teeth and talons of the actual lions to the media lions who, with their characteristic morbidity, will gleefully tear them apart with their pens.

And the contest begins tomorrow!