Colosseum – Rome’s Arena Of Death

The Colosseum in Rome is one of the world’s most amazing buildings. Built over a 10-year period during the reign of Emperor Vespasian and completed in AD80, this immense oval stadium – bigger than Wembley Arena – was home to the most violent and deadly spectator sport in history; gladiatorial combat. Gladiators thrilled and titillated the 55,000 spectators who regularly filled the Colosseum. They were literally the life-blood of the arena. One of the greatest of them all was Verus, whose story is told in Colosseum – Rome’s Arena Of Death. Like the fictional character Maximus in the blockbuster movie Gladiator, Verus was a slave who rose through the ranks of gladiatorial combat to win his freedom. Unlike Maximus, he really existed and is one of the only gladiators to have had one of his fights recorded in history.

Escaping the relentless grind of slave labour in the stone quarries,Verus is taken on as a trainee fighter and learns the complex and highly skilled techniques of the gladiator. He forges friendships with other trainee gladiators and learns that life as a gladiator can be nasty, brutish and short. But he also learns that, with luck, skill and sheer courage, a star gladiator can become rich, attract admiring hordes of women and, ultimately, earn his freedom.

“ Only if you understand the Roman arena can you understand what ancient Rome was all about,” says producer Tilman Remme.“For hundreds of years, gladiatorial games were right at the heart of Roman society. Romans couldn’t get enough of it.

“ Yet, amazingly, the image we have of gladiators as victims of Roman blood lust simply doesn’t stand up. Gladiators were the celebrities of their age. Not only were they tempted by the thrills of the fight, but there were also huge winnings to be had if they succeeded. For a slave destined to die in one of Rome’s cruel quarries or mines, the chance to become a gladiator was his only hope of ever regaining freedom.

“ Gladiators still strike a chord today because they were the ultimate warriors. Not only were their skills as fighters without parallel, they were also known as ‘netters of women at night’ – a heady combination.”

Colosseum – Rome’s Arena Of Death follows Verus’s rise to fame and relives his dramatic fight during the inaugural games at the Colosseum when he faces a new and terrible challenge. Can Verus’s performance on the day earn him a wooden sword and his freedom, or is he destined for a glorious but bloody death?

The film also explores the building of the Colosseum and reveals the beauty and
ambition of its design.With corridors and staircases leading from 76 public entrances to convey 55,000 spectators to their seats in minutes, the Colosseum also had a maze of subterranean passages and chambers which kept gladiators and wild animals in readiness below. Platforms raised by pulleys to concealed trap doors in the arena floor provided additional excitement.

Using drama reconstruction, choreographed fight sequences and state-of-the-art special effects, Colosseum – Rome’s Arena Of Death takes viewers back to a time and a place where fights to the death, not penalty shootouts, made spectators’ pulses race.

Can be seen on BBC1 in the fall of 2003