Robot Wars Extreme (often shortened to just Extreme) was a UK spin-off of the robot combat game show Robot Wars, focusing on a variety of smaller competitions held separately to the main UK Championship.
The show ran for two series, originally broadcast on BBC Choice on Friday evenings from 2001 until 2003, with most episodes being repeated on BBC Two a short time after. Each series was aired in between the main UK Series - Series 4 and 5 in the case of Extreme 1; and Series 6 and 7 in the case of Extreme 2.
Format[]
Robot Wars Extreme was not a single championship like the main UK, Dutch or German series, but instead featured a variety of smaller tournaments and individual battles. The presentation of the show brought in elements of professional wrestling, with pre-match "trash talking" from the roboteers, a "main event" battle hyped up throughout the show, and a championship belt being defended by robots in battles.
Most of these events had a specific theme, ranging from competitions dedicated to lighter weight classes; to grudge matches; to battles focusing on a single weapon type; to single and multi-battle events focusing on robots considered newcomers to Robot Wars. Some events, such as the Tag Team Terror and Annihilator, were based on formats previously shown as Christmas Specials aired alongside the main Fourth Wars.
Many robots from the regular UK version would appear in both series, along with smaller numbers of international competitors including those from the Dutch, German and US versions.
Presenters[]
The show had the same presenters as the main UK Series; Craig Charles, Philippa Forrester and Julia Reed. Charles hosted both series, with Reed co-presenting in Extreme 1 and Forrester in Extreme 2; the latter having been unavailable for early filming of the former due to her pregnancy. Jonathan Pearce provided commentary in both series.
Series 1[]
- Main article: Robot Wars Extreme: Series 1
The first series of Extreme was originally broadcast in 2001 on BBC Choice and repeated from 2001 until 2002 on BBC Two. The series consisted of 18 separate competitions and one-off battles, spread over a total of 17 episodes. Every episode featured five separate battles, usually a mix of the various competitions and battles which were running throughout the series. The exceptions were the two Annihilator shows (simply named Annihilator 1 and Annihilator 2) and the Forces Special, which were episodes devoted to single competitions. The series also featured the UK broadcast of The Second World Championship.
Series 2[]
- Main article: Robot Wars Extreme: Series 2
The second series was originally broadcast in early 2003 on BBC Choice and repeated later that year on BBC Two. The series consisted of 14 separate tournaments and one-off battles aired across sixteen episodes, with each episode being devoted to a specific tournament or group of battles. Extreme 2 contained fewer one-off battles and focused more on small tournaments, such as the European Championship and the New Blood Championship, in which newcomers fought for a place in The Seventh Wars.
External Links[]
[]
|