ANGELA SCANLON
IN the 1990s and 2000s it was one of telly’s brashest, noisiest hits.
Now Robot Wars is back on the BBC in a new series filmed in Glasgow.
And Angela Scanlon, co-presenter alongside Dara O’Briain, says the revamped rampant robots are so scary that she had to shelter behind bullet-proof glass.
“The technology has come on so far from when the series was last on TV about 12 years ago,” Angela told iN10.
“They can put so much more power into the robots and the axes or whatever they use.
“For safety they are in what’s essentially this bullet-proof cage and at times Dara and I were seeing huge chunks flying off towards us.”
The series was launched on BBC Two in 1998 and ran on the channel until 2003 when it moved to Channel 5.
Jeremy Clarkson and Craig Charles were among the original presenters and at its peak it was pulling in six million viewers.
Roboteers pit their creations against one another in metalcrunching combat while also avoiding brutally big house robots.
Irish-born Angela, 32, remembers enjoying the previous shows, especially tuning in to the Craig Charles series.
But she says she found the hundreds of fans who packed out each filming session in Glasgow were on a different level.
“We had busloads up from London, people across from Ireland and even flying in from Holland,” said Angela.
“Even if you consider yourself a fan of the show it doesn’t compare with the super-fans who came along.
“I got to know quite a few over the filming weekends and let’s just say their dedication was pretty extreme.
“They had been waiting for years for it to be back on TV and it had obviously had such an effect on them. Some had gone into careers like engineering because they’d been so inspired by the show.
“And you couldn’t make a mistake because they knew every robot that had ever been there and had attended all the live shows.”
Former The Apprentice: You’re Fired! presenter Dara has taken over the main duties and as a big fan who’d bought tickets for his live shows in Dublin, Angela admits it was a dream pairing.
“We’re both Irish, obviously, so that was nice and he was wonderful to work with.
“He’s the ultimate professional and his instinct was always to entertain a crowd. So when there were all the gaps in filming he would step right out there and keep things going.”
After long, tiring filming days Angela says the team were more than ready to let their hair down.
And Dara was the man to lead the revelling.
“We danced our way around Glasgow on a few occasions,” she laughs.
“There was a local crew who knew the pubs and Dara knew the city, too, from previous visits so we really let loose.
“It was great craic, like I expected it would be, and we had a great old time.”
Angela has hosted coverage of T in the Park and this year became a reporter on The One Show.
But there is one programme the flame-haired presenter admits is closer to her heart than most.
Oi Ginger! was a documentary she made about how the world views redheads. And having suffered childhood taunts, Angela knows that’s not always favourably.
“I’ve always been really proud of my hair colour but you do struggle as a teenager when you want to be the same as everybody else,” she adds.
“I think growing up as one of four sisters in Ireland where redheads are pretty common helped me, but I still got the comments.
“One woman told me that her 11-year-old daughter was being bullied and suffering really hurtful remarks when she was at such a very vulnerable age.
“It is changing, I hope, with people talking about how they were really embracing it now and stopping dyeing their hair.
“And Prince Harry and Damien Lewis are doing wonders for redheads among the guys!”
Robot Wars, tonight, 8pm, BBC Two.