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Social media users can’t get over a viral clip of a man storming off Robot Wars after being beaten by children – with many comparing it to another iconic moment from British TV.
Robot Wars was a popular robot combat competition series that ran from 1998 to 2004 and 2016 to 2018.
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It saw teams of amateur and professional roboteers battle it out with their own remote-controlled bots in a purpose-built arena, complete with various hazards and ‘House Robots’.
It was during its more recent, revived series – which was hosted by Dara Ó Briain and Angela Scanlon – that viewers watched and cringed as a competitor called Anthony stormed off after losing to a team of kids.
While the moment has been living rent-free in people’s heads ever since, it’s also found an enduring fanbase online after going viral earlier this year - when it was posted by Twitter user David Callaghan (@DavidCallaghan) - and again this week when it resurfaced on Instagram.
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Callaghan wrote: “Remember when that man stormed off Robot Wars because he was beaten by a team of children? I could watch hours of this kind of thing.”
Someone else commented: “The kinda pettiness I live for.”
Another joked: “Should bring back Robot Wars with VAR that would end such debate.”
A third said: “Spot the biggest kid!”
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Some compared the clip it to other iconic TV moments, from ‘What a sad little life, Jane’ on Come Dine With Me to Huey Morgan storming off on Never Mind the Buzzcocks.
One person also said it had the ‘same vibes’ as Piers Morgan’s sudden departure from Good Morning Britain.
Many who had seen the actual episode pointed out that Anthony didn’t actually storm off because he lost to a bunch of children, arguing that his anger stemmed from internal drama within his team.
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“It wasn't because he lost to kids, it was because he was disappointed that their team chose the experimental grabber config instead of their scoop in a crucial match,” one explained.
But someone else replied: “I think you’re missing the point. Being this bad at accepting defeat and this ungracious when faced with child opponents is appalling.
"You can be as disappointed as you want but they ARE children. The first act should be to congratulate them.”
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Echoing that same point, another said: “Not sure if it makes it better, but I do remember him saying something like he was upset with the poor performance of his team. He thought the kids did great. But still, it's huffing off Robot Wars.”
It was only a matter of time before someone tagged presenter Angela Scanlon for ‘any backstage goss’, to which she diplomatically replied: “Ant. A gentleman. Passionate about his creation…”
At the time the programme originally aired, the show also defended Anthony, tweeting: “Everyone’s been talking about the Behemoth walkout, but remember he was upset with his own team and not the opposition.
“Teams like Behemoth work incredibly hard to create their brilliant robots, and we love them for it.
“The frustration stems from passion and care.”
Anthony also addressed the moment in his own statement, confirming that he apologised to his competitors after cameras stopped rolling.
“I want to clarify that in Sunday’s episode I didn’t walk off because I was beaten by children I walked off because I was very frustrated by the decision we made for Behemoth’s weapon for the battle," he said.
“I respect Cherub as competitors and age is not something I took into account, as such I would have acted the same way with any other competitor.
“I apologised to the Cherub Team and Angela after the cameras stopped rolling for that moment.”
Topics: TV and Film, Viral
Jess Hardiman