Fresh blow for Holly Willoughby as axed Gladiator Giant launches savage attack on her ‘hypocrite’ husband

AS a 6ft 5in Gladiator he used to knock contenders over for fun — but it was behind the scenes of the hit show that Giant faced his biggest battle. Now, four months after his controversial exit, the bodybuilder, whose real name is Jamie Bigg, has launched a scathing attack on Holly Willoughby’s TV producer husband Dan Baldwin, 51. Gladiators’ Giant has taken a swipe at Holly Willoughby’s husband Dan Baldwin Credit: Instagram Holly interviewed adult content creator, Lily Phillips, on her new YouTube show Credit: YouTube/@Holly Willoughby Together Jamie has accused Dan of double standards for platforming porn star Lily Phillips on his wife’s new YouTube show. Awkwardly, Jamie was axed from the BBC show over his relationship with OnlyFans model Taylor Ryan, 28, with bosses claiming it was unacceptable due to the programme’s young fanbase. Top TV exec Dan’s media firm Hungry Bear produces Gladiators and Holly’s Together show, which was recently hit with a backlash for ‘normalising’ 24-year-old content creator Lily who made headlines for having sex with more than 100 men in a single day. In an exclusive interview with The Sun, Jamie, 41, said the Lily interview left a bad taste in the mouth and said his exit “f***ing sucked” after insisting Dan had promised him a future on the show. He said: “To go through what I went through and be told that I wasn’t being invited back by him and then for his wife to do a podcast interview with Lily Phillips, the most polarising OnlyFans star in the world, glamorising the industry, making her up and making it seem totally acceptable like women’s empowerment et cetera. “For the person who deleted or helped delete me, for his wife to do that interview, it just seemed too close to home to be comfortable with it.” Jamie Bigg has claimed he was axed from the BBC show because of his relationship with OnlyFans model Taylor Ryan Credit: Instagram Dan’s production company Hungry Bear Media produces Holly’s YouTube show and Gladiators Credit: Getty Dad-of-two Jamie said Dan allegedly told him in a debrief meeting “you’re definitely in the next series. Giant’s a huge character. We can’t imagine season four without Giant”. But when he refused to end his relationship, he was axed and unceremoniously stripped of his Gladiators social media account. Of Lily’s appearance on Together, he said: “It smells a bit, doesn’t it? That this interview has happened between those two people. You would have thought that Dan was like, ‘Oh God, we can’t do this, it looks really bad’, but then it just says again everybody’s got their own agendas and perhaps looking after their own journeys.” Jamie, who split from Taylor in June and is going through a divorce from wife Katie after they separated last year, said he held onto hope that he would be brought back into the Gladiators fold and wanted a place on the arena tour, but it never happened. He’s critical of the lack of duty of care shown to him, claiming the show completely washed its hands of him despite putting his body on the line for two years to help pull in millions of viewers. “That last year of my life, I’ve been diagnosed with ADHD and going through a divorce, moved out of my family home away from my children, away from my dogs, going through this whole getting older and fear of that as well and what the next 40 years of my life looks like,” he said. “So I think anybody in that situation would have perhaps dealt with it a bit crazily, a few mistakes for sure, but to not be given a chance and just be deleted from that programme, deleted the social media profile straight away, take that away from the fans and take me off air. “They did try and delete me from the past, present and future with no duty of care for my mental health or the ADHD or the divorce or the getting older, which I thought was very, very harsh.” Jamie described himself as a “pawn in their game” and accused the show of exploiting its power over performers, who tow the line to keep their jobs. He said: “I’m in a weak position where I kind of need the job, like I want the job more than they perhaps need me to be on it, and they act from that stance, so yeah I just think the treatment’s very, very unfair and I know like I’m not the only one on the only programme that feels like that.” A representative for Hungry Bear declined to comment. Jamie is now turning his attention to motivational speaking, having signed with Champions Speakers, and wants to use his experience as a bodybuilder and former Gladiator to inspire and help people overcome adversity in their own lives whether it be parenting, lifestyle or body issues. Jamie split from adult content creator Taylor in June Credit: Instagram The 41-year-old is now working as a motivational speaker Credit: PA “I know the challenges that parents face with today’s societal changes from when I was younger,” he said. “The amount of technology there is now, the fact that kids are spending more time inside than outside, which is completely different to my upbringing, and the demands on themselves growing up, that all kind of forces itself onto us as parents right?” He added that by taking care of yourself and concentrating on your own wellbeing first it creates a foundation that can benefit other people in your life, such as family and friends. Jamie continued: “I just thought that was a great opportunity to inspire a very relatable generation because I’m speaking to these people who are between 30 and 50 years old who perhaps have got loads of stress on, who perhaps have let themselves go, and who may think that it’s too late to do anything about it.” Jamie is now working as a motivational speaker and is represented by Champions Speakers for bookings.