TVNZ 2 Benches Gladiators for Ambulance Australia
September 15, 2025 
4 Comments
TVNZ 2 is bumping Sunday night’s Gladiators for season five of Ambulance Australia.
The emergency medics show will air 7.30 Sundays ahead of the 007 movie season from this weekend.
Presumably, Gladiators was defenceless in the ratings against TVNZ 1’s New Zealand’s Best Homes With Phil Spencer, which launched Sunday, and/or Three’s The Floor Australia.
S1 of Gladiators was a big hit for the BBC, averaging nearly 10 million total viewers during its run and was the broadcaster’s biggest entertainment launch in seven years.
S2 ratings haven’t been as beefy but a third season and a celebrity special are in the works for next year.
S5 of Ambulance Australia already streams on TVNZ+ and went to air 18 months ago on Network 10.
The eight-part series focuses on Australian’s busiest ambulance service, NSW Ambulance, and its emergency medical call takers, inspectors, control supervisors, dispatchers and specialist clinicians.
This show should have been left in its usual Thursday slot rather than taking a gamble on Sunday. — Leo.
Is TVNZ 2 brain dead again, when it comes to scheduling they always takes risks and failing so badily let’s hope for Ambulance Australia can pull ratings higher than Gladiators. —- Sheldon.
You have to give them some leeway Sheldon, they must of thought a Sunday night audience would gravitate towards Gladiators. That Sunday slot has been trouble for TVNZ 2 and they’ve tried so many shows there even Shortland Street to no success. MKR maybe the only show to reverse its Sunday night fortunes. — Leo.
TVNZ 2 should have only stuck with movies for Sunday 7pm slot. — Sheldon.