1 Law Associates

The 1 Law Associates were a team from the East Midlands (Derbyshire in Series 2 and 3, Leicestershire from Series 5 onwards) that fought over four series of Robot Wars, entering two robots, Sting in Series 2 and 3, and S3 in Series 5, 6 and Extreme 2.

The captain of the team was Dave Barker, who was joined by Ian Pritchard in all their appearances. Dave’s son Matthew was part of the team for Series 2 only, claiming his role was “tactician”. "Matthew Barker’s main job in the team; polishing Sting!"

- Jonathan Pearce

Pete Allsopp joined the team in all their subsequent appearances.

The team's name is a reference to the “Three Laws of Robotics”, as laid down by author Isaac Asimov in the book “I, Robot”.

Sting
"Our initial aims with both Sting and Sting 2 were simple enough. To build a robot which would qualify for the program and thereafter to do the best we could. This was an achievement in its own right, with several thousand applicants to beat. There was never any real thought of winning given the materials and equipment we were working with."

- The 1 Law associates website

The team originally entered Series 2 and 3 with Sting, a simple box-shaped robot with spikes on the front, and a “articulated spike steel tail”. Sting performed poorly on the show, falling at the trial stage of Series 2 and the first round of Series 3.

S3
"Things had changed however, the selection process for the current series consisted of the same technical scrutineering, but instead of a simple driving test, the robot had to take part in a bout with another robot. Just "looking good" would no longer hack it! The decision was made for us therefore - if we wanted to be selected we would need a robot that would deliver the goods. If it could deliver the goods, well, then it stands a real chance of going all the way.... Our ambitions had just changed up a gear!"

- The 1 Law Associates on building S3

The team originally intended to enter Series 4 with an upgraded Sting, but as the team was unhappy with their first entry, particularly its lack of reliability, the team decided to build a new robot. The team did not enter Series 4, but did keep watching the show to see the improving quality of robots. "In the end, you "cant have your cake and eat it" as they say, so a decision has to be made on the best all round compromise - albeit with a slant towards armour, power or weapon ... In the finish, the deciding factor was the nature of Robot Wars itself. After all we didn't want to just win, we wanted to do it in style with lots of good TV to boot, and that meant damage infliction and lots of it! A big weapon it was to be then!"

- The 1 Law Associates on designing S3

Seeing the higher quality of robots in Series 4, the team was convinced they needed to enter a robot that was capable of winning the competition, rather than just qualifying, as their aim had been with the original Sting. The team designed a robot with a very effective weapon. Inspired by Hypno-Disc, the team chose a large spinning flywheel, but chose to mount it vertically to avoid it being seen as a “Hypno-Disc clone”.

S3 proved much more successful than Sting, reaching two Semi-Finals and winning the Most Original Entry Award in Series 5.

Retirement
However, after two Series with S3, the team to retire from Robot Wars, as they felt the process of repairing, maintaining and improving their robot was taking too much time and money. S3 made one last appearance in Extreme 2, before the team retired, and did not enter Series 7. "I guess we had enough by the end of Series 6. You won't believe the time and energy was needed to get a working robot that is good enough to stand a chance together for the TV show - not including the time for the recordings themselves - family holidays had to suffer. Was great fun though - but very stressful!"

- Dave Barker on YouTube

Wins/Losses

 * Wins: 8
 * Losses: 6

Series Record

 * Series 1: Did not enter
 * Series 2: Heat, Trial with Sting
 * Series 3: Round 1 with Sting 2
 * Series 4: Did not enter
 * Series 5: Semi-Finals, Round 2 with S3
 * Series 6: Semi-Finals, Round 2 S3
 * Series 7: Did not enter

Trivia

 * In Series 3, Johnathan Pearce mentioned how Dave Barker had been a Hang gliding pilot for 15 years.
 * In Series 5, the team was repeatedly referred to as newcomers despite fighting in two previous wars, with S3 even being nominated for the Most Promising Newcomer Award.