I went to the African town with a beautiful Italian-style attraction… but without the crowds or the price

ARE you not entertained? You will be if you are at a gladiators’ colosseum with no queues and no crowds for just three quid.

El Jem is the world’s third-biggest Roman amphitheatre, but it is not in Italy. You’ll find it in Tunisia instead.

The 35,000-seat stone structure dates from the 3rd century AD.

Built by local imperial official Gordian, later emperor Gordian II, it is as spectacular as the 50,000-capacity Rome Colosseum it is based on, minus the £15.80pp admission and crowds. 

At some point you will likely be told Russell Crowe’s epic movie Gladiator was shot at El Jem. Unleash hell on that film “fact” as it wasn’t! 

But if you want to channel your inner Maximus Decimus Meridius in a real gladiatorial arena, there is ample space. 

SHORT HAUL

Spanish sandbar that ‘looks like Florida’ and gets 300 days of sunshine a year

SERF & TURF

The Med island with 340 days of sunshine & perfect beach bar owned by BGT star

It is well preserved despite being plundered for local construction after the Romans left, then bombarded by Ottoman troops in the 17th century when rebels sheltered inside.  

Today it hosts summer classical music concerts and offers a fascinating insight into Roman times. 

My wife Debbie and I were amazed how much freedom to, er, roam we had when we visited in early September. 

No queues to get in, no forests of selfie sticks – we went straight in to the underground chambers where lions, tigers, leopards and bears were kept. 

Then we headed up past the posh seats (close enough to the action for blood splashes!) to the lofty third tier for great photo opps from where the plebs jeered and cheered. 

We finished in the arena where gladiators – in what was imperial outpost Thysdrus in Roman times – battled those animals and each other and criminals were executed by being thrown to leopards. Lion v bear fights? Yep, that too. 

Take a sun hat, as this place is on the edge of the Sahara and can get ferociously hot. But there is a shady cafe for a cooling drink or ice cream.

While Sousse is brilliant for soaking up the sunshine year-round, with September temperatures in the high 20s, heading out to discover more of this fascinating country makes a perfect break from the sunlounger. 

You can visit El Jem (in the town of the same name) by taxi or train if you are staying around Sousse or Monastir, but we joined an excellent all-day coach tour with easyJet holidays’ partner Musement from our Sousse hotel (£60pp, with lunch). 

While Sousse is brilliant for soaking up the sunshine year-round, with September temperatures in the high 20s, heading out to discover more of this fascinating country makes a perfect break from the sunlounger. 

Our day-trip itinerary also included the 670 AD Great Mosque of Kairouan, one of the most prominent in Islam, and the ornate ‘Barber’ Mosque, where guide Ibrahim offered a toe-curling “snippet” about 17th-century circumcision techniques.  

There’s a genuine movie moment at the final stop in charming, historic Monastir. 

The Ribat, an 8th-century Islamic fort, featured in Monty Python’s Life Of Brian but, whether you are the Messiah or just a very naughty boy, it is a must with the tower offering fine views over the mausoleum of Tunisia’s first president, Habib Bourguiba, the beach and marina. Like El Jem, it’s social media selfie heaven. 

Definitely a thumbs up for this gladia-tour.