{"id":406622,"date":"2026-05-01T11:30:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T11:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/406622\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T11:30:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T11:30:09","slug":"gladiators-star-giant-calls-bbc-archaic-for-axing-him-over-onlyfans-model-girlfriend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/406622\/","title":{"rendered":"Gladiators star Giant calls BBC \u2018archaic\u2019 for axing him over OnlyFans model girlfriend"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Gladiators<\/a> star Giant has expressed his surprise at the BBC\u2019s \u201carchaic\u201d decision to allegedly axe him after telling bosses he was in a relationship with an OnlyFans model.<\/p>\n

Last week, the former professional bodybuilder and firefighter, real name Jamie Bigg, claimed he was dropped from the BBC reboot of the hit 1990s show after informing them he was going to make details of his romantic life public.<\/p>\n

Bigg said concealing the truth about his partner\u2019s job would \u201cnot align\u201d with his values, telling The Independent: \u201cIt wasn\u2019t something I expected, especially given the commitment I\u2019ve shown to the role. I\u2019ve always taken being in the public eye seriously, and I believe being a role model is about honesty as well as professionalism. For me, that means not hiding parts of who I am or the people I care about.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\u2018Gladiators\u2019\u2018Gladiators\u2019 star Giant has been dropped from show (BBC)<\/p>\n

He\u2019s now opened up about the alleged conversation he had, revealing he feels \u201clet down by certain individuals, certain people, certain teams\u201d, telling Metro.co.uk<\/a>: \u201cI think some organisations have some archaic views.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bigg added that his girlfriend Taylor Ryan\u2019s OnlyFans presence is a small part of her life; she also spends time raising awareness for numerous charities.<\/p>\n

He called her \u201can incredible person\u201d, adding that he has \u201chuge respect for everything she does\u201d and is \u201cproud to stand by her\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m grateful to the BBC and everyone involved in the show for the opportunity and the experiences I\u2019ve had. Now, my focus is on the future. I\u2019m excited for what\u2019s next and ready to move into a new chapter, both personally and professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the BBC and Hungry Bear, who produces the programme, told The Independent: \u201cAfter three formidable series, Giant is leaving Gladiators. We\u2019d like to thank him for everything he has contributed to the show and wish him well for the future.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"GiantGiant \u2013 real name James Bigg \u2013 appeared on first three series of BBC reboot (ITV)<\/p>\n

Gladiators\u2019 official Instagram page confirmed his departure with a post honouring the performer.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter an incredible run, Giant\u2019s journey on Gladiators has come to an end, but what an adventure it has been. As well as being a towering force when battling contenders, Giant has always inspired confidence and kindness in others, a winning combination proving he is a true giant, not just in strength, but also in spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":406623,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[430,156,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-406622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/406622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=406622"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/406622\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/406623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=406622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=406622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=406622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}