- "We're back on Robot Wars Revealed with the undercover secrets and unmuzzled action from behind the scenes of Robot Wars Series Semi-Finals! We follow six more fearless teams, who have reached this last Semi-Final. The pressure is mounting... up for grabs, every roboteer's dream - a place in the Robot Wars Grand Final! Let's meet the teams, and see how they got here..."
- — Philippa Forrester’s introduction
Episode 14 of Robot Wars Revealed was originally aired on BBC Choice as the penultimate episode of the spin-off series. The episode focused on the second Semi-Final of Robot Wars: The Second Wars, beginning with recaps of the second group of six competitors to reach that stage of the main competition. Behind-the-scenes footage of the Semi-Final itself followed, including highlights and interviews relating to the episode’s Gauntlet, Pinball Trial and Arena battle events.
As in earlier episodes, Mat Irvine provided technical insights into all four competitors reaching the Arena stage (Haardvark, Cassius, Roadblock and King Buxton). These were in turn the same segments repurposed from the episodes covering each robot’s respective Heat.
Robots Featured[]
Newcomers[]
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|---|---|---|
| King Buxton (winner of Heat I) | ||
| Weight | 78.0kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.9 x 0.85 x 0.27m | |
| Speed | 18mph | |
| Turning Circle | 0m | |
| Ground Clearance | 50mm | |
| Power | 2 x 12V batteries | |
| Weapons | Moveable titanium spikes | |
| Notes | 3mm aluminium shell and four wheel drive | |
| From: Hornchurch | ||
| Team Members: Simon Harrison, Steve Monk & Phil Brett | ||
 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Haardvark (winner of Heat L) | ||
| Weight | 79.8kg | |
| Dimensions | 1.5 x 0.85 x 0.4m | |
| Speed | 12mph | |
| Turning Circle | 0m | |
| Ground Clearance | 10mm | |
| Power | 2 x 12V batteries | |
| Weapons | Lifting forks and circular saw on arm (removed to meet weight restrictions) | |
| Notes | Chassis strengthened with strip steel and aluminium beams | |
| From: Cannock in Staffordshire | ||
| Team Members: Owen Barwick, Liz Harrison & Mike Evans | ||
Veterans[]
 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Roadblock (seeded 1st, winner of Heat G) | ||
| Weight | 80.9kg | |
| Dimensions | 1.6 x 1.1 x 0.45m | |
| Speed | 5mph | |
| Turning Circle | 0m | |
| Ground Clearance | 5mm | |
| Power | 4 x 12V batteries | |
| Weapons | 12' tungsten tipped circular saw | |
| Notes | Reigning Robot Wars Champion, seeded number one | |
| From: Bodmin Community College | ||
| Team Members: Hender Blewett, Chris Kinsey & Peter Kinsey | ||
 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cassius (seeded 5th, winner of Heat H) | ||
| Weight | 79.3kg | |
| Dimensions | 1.45 x 0.84 x 0.35m | |
| Speed | 25mph | |
| Turning Circle | 0m | |
| Ground Clearance | 0-110mm (Variable) | |
| Power | 2 x 12V batteries | |
| Weapons | 1.5 tonne gas powered ram | |
| Notes | Controlled with 2 microprocessors, weapon powered with CO2 | |
| From: Stowmarket | ||
| Team Members: Rex Garrod, Simon West & Edward Bull | ||
 | ||
|---|---|---|
| G.B.H. (winner of Heat J) | ||
| Weight | 79.3kg | |
| Dimensions | 1.31 x 0.7 x 0.45m | |
| Speed | 5mph | |
| Turning Circle | 0m | |
| Ground Clearance | 25mm | |
| Power | 2 x 12V batteries | |
| Weapons | Lifting ramp and rear 7" circular saws | |
| Notes | Fought in the First Wars with Scrapper | |
| From: London | ||
| Team Members: Mike Rickard, Mike Smith & Charles Lavery | ||
 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Plunderbird 2 (winner of Heat K) | ||
| Weight | 81.3kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.9 x 1.1 x 0.37m | |
| Speed | 10mph | |
| Turning Circle | 0m | |
| Ground Clearance | 20mm | |
| Power | 2 x 12V batteries | |
| Weapons | Pneumatic steel screw ram | |
| Notes | Fought in the First Wars with Plunderbird 1 | |
| From: Bordon in Hampshire | ||
| Team Members: Mike Onslow, Bryan Kilburn & Ken Burt | ||
Content[]
Competitor Recaps[]
Cassius[]
Rex Garrod's interviews from Episode 8 were interspersed with highlights of Cassius' fast Gauntlet and Football runs. In its Heat Final against Loco, Cassius prevailed by tipping it over using its wedge shape, before flipping Matilda onto her side during an attack on the House Robots.
G.B.H.[]
G.B.H.'s run – previously covered in Episode 10 – saw the Team On-The-Edge machine perform a steady run through The Gauntlet while suffering considerable damage to its front scoop. This was rectified when the scoop cover was bolted directly to its frame, though this – along with a pair of front spikes attached to its base – did not prevent G.B.H. from being pulled into the pit by Matilda during the Tug of War. G.B.H. survived long enough to turn both Talos and Ivanhoe over during the Arena stages, thus securing its place in the Semi-Finals.
Plunderbird 2[]
The ever-exuberant International Wreck Crew were 'quietly confident' that Plunderbird 2 would perform significantly better than its original incarnation did in The First Wars. Plunderbird 2 demonstrated excellent pulling power by dragging team member Ken Burt's Range Rover in testing – as first broadcast in Episode 11 – but got off to an inauspicious start by driving straight into the pit during its Gauntlet run. Other teams began calling the International Wreck Crew 'chickens' as a result of Plunderbird 2 avoiding Matilda in the process, though these claims were quashed when Plunderbird 2 vanquished both Dead Metal and Sergeant Bash in King of the Castle. Highlights of the team and its Heat Final against The Mule were set to a sample of their theme tune; Plunderbird 2 would win the fight on a Judges' decision. As in Episode 11, clips of the team attempting an introduction for their video diaries rounded off this segment.
Haardvark[]
The last robot to progress from the Heat Finals, Haardvark overcame major technical issues with its circuitry to perform strongly in the Gauntlet and Sumo, as documented in Episode 12. The team's first video diary clip – where Mike Evans prepared a batch of its bearings and their heat-treated aluminium housings – was shown before its Heat Final triumph against Havoc.
Roadblock[]
Rebuilt by Bodmin Community College for its title defence, the Series 1 champions made steady progress to beat The Sentinel on the revised Gauntlet course, and to knock down 34 barrels in Skittles in an otherwise difficult run. As previously seen in Episode 7, Roadblock sustained damage to its rear saw weapon from Dead Metal prior to its Heat Final against Onslaught, where the Bedford machine failed to move at all. This set of highlights also included Craig Charles' interview with Bodmin Community College from the main Heat G, touching upon Hender Blewett's disappointment that Onslaught was immobile from the start.
King Buxton[]
Highlights for King Buxton (previously aired in Episode 9) included clips from the team's video diaries – as they obtained components and began to assemble their machine – and a blistering Gauntlet run where it was only stopped by Sir Killalot. These were followed by the Heat Final against All Torque, where King Buxton prevailed by pushing the Scottish machine over the edge of the pit. Sir Killalot tipped All Torque in with his lance, with Simon Harrison both excited and unsure about its prospects in the Semis.
Gauntlet[]
- "We've followed the road to the Series Semi-Finals, and find ourselves left with six teams of intrepid roboteers – all dreaming of making it through to the Robot Wars Grand Final! Only two can make it through. Who will it be?"
- — Philippa Forrester
A battered Plunderbird 2 receives maintenance
Bodmin Community College work on Roadblock
Admitting that Plunderbird 2 had 'a bit of a beating' by this stage, Mike Onslow revealed that it had started to get twitchy and that the International Wreck Crew were attempting to get it working fully again. As the team needed to find a suitable transmitter in order to test it, Onslow highlighted a particular concern with multiple roboteers using the same radio frequencies from the transmitters that were available. While repairing Plunderbird 2's pneumatic ram, Ken Burt suffered a setback by accidentally damaging it with the robot's own ramming blade.
- "Part of the problem is... is getting hold of a transmitter so we can test it. Because there's so many people on the same frequency, we've gotta be careful who has the transmitter and when, because, if someone switches on, and there's power to one of these, they're gonna get squashed, or even worse."
- — Mike Onslow brings up the issue concerning transmitters and shared radio frequencies
Liz Harrison from the Haardvark team remained just as amazed about her machine's progression to this stage, while the robot itself needed further 'last-minute' repairs. Team B's main tactic was to 'survive' the forthcoming stages without their robot catching fire, while Mike Rickard aimed to avoid getting stuck underneath the see-saw ramp in the same way that the mostly-reliable G.B.H. did during its Heat.
Philippa Forrester’s introduction from the main Semi-Final 2 was followed by quick highlights of all six runs. King Buxton became the only competitor to reach the end zone as the majority of the rest - including defending champions Roadblock – struggled. Plunderbird 2 was eliminated through covering the shortest distance (0.9m); though it was mainly hampered by getting stuck on a breeze block, Mike Onslow admitted that the International Wreck Crew had been 'a bit too lairy' when facing the House Robots at this crucial stage.
Trial (Pinball)[]
- "Pinball? You tell us about Pinball! We're just gonna go in there and do it! We don't know what's really going on – looks like they've got some targets, so I suppose we just go and hit them!"
- — Simon Harrison, prior to King Buxton's run
Stacks of bricks and barrels are assembled for Pinball
Crewmembers extract the sphere from the pit, as Team Cassius (background) prepare for their run
Similarly to the previous episode, the segment began with a montage of the brick and barrel stacks being assembled for the Pinball arena, and a clip of Robot Wars crewmembers extracting the sphere from one of the pits. Roboteers including Simon Harrison, Liz Harrison, Mike Smith and Chris Kinsey shared opinions and strategies on the Trial ahead, with Liz also updating the cameraman on Haardvark's rewiring and repaired forks. Some of the aforementioned clips, including that of Kinsey, were identical to those from the main Semi-Final 2 episode.
- "We're worried about this one. We don't like the Trials, because it's very, very, very unlucky. We don't mind the fights, because we can get into a good fight, we feel good with that. But we've seen a few of the competitors, and they've had a bad time through luck. We've had good luck, I don't want it to end... it could be the time!"
- — Simon Harrison weighs more views on Trial stages in general as King Buxton is ready to start its Pinball attempt
Craig Charles' introduction from Semi-Final 2 was followed by quick highlights of all five competitors' runs. The most significant moment occurred during Cassius' run, where it became the first robot to self-right in the televised Robot Wars, with Roadblock also putting in an imperious run to win the Trial on 355 points. G.B.H., which was attacked and carried to the pit by Sir Killalot, scored the fewest points at 145, eliminating it from the running.
- Philippa Forrester: "Well, you look like a bunch of miserable old sods!"
- Mike Smith: "We're tired, we lost and we want to go home!"
- Mike Rickard: "We want some sleep!"
- Philippa Forrester: "But we'll be back. I think it's in the blood now, so... we do last year, we came back again, I think we've better do. Bigger and better robots for next year!"
- — Team On-The-Edge following their Pinball defeat
Arena[]
Liz Harrison performs soldering work for Haardvark's internals
Craig Charles' introduction from Semi-Final 2 was followed by clips of Liz Harrison and Rex Garrod working on Haardvark and Cassius respectively. Mat Irvine's segments on each from Episodes 12 and 8 were next shown, before Harrison and Mike Evans collectively shared their quiet apprehension about being drawn against Garrod's machine. Regardless of whichever robot won, both teams pledged to put on the most entertaining performance possible; Garrod's pledge would also end up being shown in the Grand Final itself.
- "I want to put on a good show, above all. If I go out in a blaze of glory, I wouldn't mind that a bit, but if I go out looking like a wimp, I shan't be very happy."
- — Rex Garrod
A burnt Haardvark is about to be taken out of the arena
In combat, Cassius immediately drove under and tossed Haardvark over using its arm, ultimately re-righting the Cannock machine in an effort to continue the fight. Cassius pushed and thrust Haardvark into the PPZ where both were attacked by Sir Killalot, who proceeded to carry and turn Haardvark over on the Flame Pit. A behind-the-scenes clip of a charred Haardvark being loaded on its trolley was shown, as was Rex Garrod's post-battle interview where he explained his motives and - as ever - complemented his opponent's team.
- Rex Garrod: "Well, the other team... I had to give them a really good chance, because above all, they're really nice people. That crew are really lovely! I met them last night, they were really nice, so I couldn't dish out too much aggression. As I tipped them over so quickly, I thought I'd better put them back on their feet again so we had another go!"
- Philippa Forrester: "I told you, we've got a pacifist on Robot Wars!"
- — Rex Garrod complements the Haardvark team as Cassius reaches the Grand Final
A similar sequence was shown for Roadblock vs King Buxton, complete with Irvine's technical segments from Episodes 7 and 9. Hender Blewett and Simon Harrison were both optimistic about the battle, with King Buxton only having sustained superficial bodywork damage up to this point. Roadblock proved the more aggressive by consistently getting underneath King Buxton in the early stages; King Buxton retaliated by slamming into the back of Roadblock, but caught fire and became immobilised shortly after. Roadblock inflicted more damage to King Buxton's wheel with its tungsten saw before 'Cease' was called, confirming its place as the last Grand Finalist.
- "King Buxton didn't give us an easy fight. They were pushing us about and we had a few close calls with Sir Killalot. I only just outran [Sir Killalot], because he was coming in with his lance to pick us up again!"
- — Chris Kinsey
While Chris Kinsey reflected on a tough challenge for Bodmin Community College - especially with Sir Killalot's attempts to attack their machine - Simon Harrison explained that the heat issues which previously affected King Buxton against Robo Doc proved to be its undoing.
- "So it was. Put a lot of power through this, and it... builds up a lot of heat, because it's so small. But we know what to do to fix it. So... we're going to duct it all out and have all the heat coming out better next year. And we'll, um... win!"
- — Simon Harrison promises improvements to King Buxton's cooling for its next series entry
Trivia[]
- King Buxton was incorrectly announced as being from Hornchurch in Essex, whereas Hornchurch has been part of the county of Greater London since the 1960s.
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