Eight teams battle it out to get past the initial group stage.

Robot Thor clashes with father-and-son team Will and Ian from Team Shockwave.

Glitterbomb, designed by nine-year-old April, comes complete with a huge pink axe.

Father-and-son team Kan-Opener use a robot with huge piercing claws.

Featuring the tallest robot ever on Robot Wars, with wheels as tall as a washing machine.

Who will become the Robot Wars champion?

Dara O Briain and Angela Scanlon present this series of Robot Wars, with battles commentated by Jonathan Pearce. In this first explosive episode, a brand new spinner has something to prove and a family team pour blood, sweat and tears into keeping their robot wars dream alive. Competing through brutal group battles and fierce head to heads for a place in the heat final are Aftershock, Nuts 2, Jellyfish, Rapid, Sabretooth, TMHWK, Terrorhurtz and Crank-E. They must dodge the arena hazards and the menacing new twist as house robots are unleashed to attack competitors and inflict maximum damage. Let battle commence!

Dara O Briain, Angela Scanlon and commentator Jonathan Pearce oversee the ultimate robot fighting competition. The challenge for competitors is even tougher as those infamous House Robots have been let off the leash in a new twist - Rogue House Robot. This is the second heat - only one of the eight teams can go through to the series grand final. They fight through brutal group battles and head to heads. Robots in this heat are Cherub, PP

Competing in this round are Foxic, Expulsion, Heavy Metal, MR Speed Squared, Thor, Tauron, Chimera 2 and Concussion. We begin with two huge group battles. Four teams progress into a mini league going head to head in a bid for points. The top two teams will face each other in the heat final for the chance to secure their place in this series' grand final. The battles are all overseen by our judges Professor Noel Sharkey, Professor Sethu Vijayakumar and Dr Lucy Rogers. During the fights, teams must try to dodge the arena hazards - The Pit, The Spikes, The Flipper and Fire. They also have four deadly House Robots to deal with - Matilda, Dead Metal, Sir Killalot and Shunt. And this series, there is a menacing new twist as the House Robots are going rogue. Hitting the Arena Tyre can now release a House Robot to inflict maximum damage on the competitors anywhere in the arena. Let battle commence!

This fourth heat is an explosive display of spinners as old favourites take on new hopefuls. Competing through brutal group battles and fierce head to heads for a place in the heat final are Supernova, Frostbite, Wyrm, High 5, Crushtacean, Ironside 3, Pulsar and Apex. They must dodge the arena hazards and the menacing new twist as house robots are being unleashed to attack competitors and inflict maximum damage. Let battle commence!

This penultimate episode sees reigning champions Apollo mount their defence of the title. They face stiff competition from Ms Nightshade, Coyote, Rusty, Crackers'N'Smash, Meggamouse, Trolley Rage and second-place finalist from last series Carbide. They must dodge the arena hazards and the menacing new twist as house robots are being unleashed to attack competitors and inflict maximum damage. Let battle commence!

Who will become the new Robot Wars Champion? The grand final is upon us as Dara O Briain and Angela Scanlon present the robot fighting extravaganza, with battles commentated by Jonathan Pearce. 40 teams of roboteers have fought it out over the past five episodes for a place in the grand final. The finalist robots are Aftershock, Eruption, Ironside 3, Concussion and Carbide. They are joined by the wild card, but will it be Sabretooth, Cherub, Thor, Pulsar or reigning champions Apollo who are given a second chance by the Robot Wars judges? In order to take the title, the teams must dodge the arena hazards and, in a menacing new twist, they can also hit the Arena Tyre to unleash the dreaded House Robots, allowing them to inflict maximum damage anywhere in the arena. Let battle commence!

Dara O Briain and Angela Scanlon present a new format for the contest. Among the new twists are a new hazard that fills the arena with fog, Robot Redemption rounds, in which losing teams have a chance to get back into the contest, and the show's biggest ever battle, the Ten Robot Rumble, in which 10 teams battle to the death with no time limit. The teams this week are Donald Thump, Behemoth, Sabretooth, Apollo, Apocalypse and The Swarm. Along the way, they must dodge arena hazards, menacing house robots and the all new Fog of War. Let battle commence!

Six more robots compete in the second heat, with last year's champion Carbide returning to face brand new challengers Eruption, Aftershock, Crackers N Smash, Gabriel 2 and Big Nipper. Dara Ó Briain and Angela Scanlon present the show, with commentary from Jonathan Pearce.

Dara Ó Briain and Angela Scanlon present the third round, with robots Apex, Vulture, Terrorhurtz, Track-Tion, Bucky the Robot and Rapid battling it out. Among the contestants controlling the machines are a group of schoolchildren who are this series' youngest entrants and a team that has spent more money on their robot than any of their rivals.

Six more teams compete in the fourth heat, as robots Iron-Awe 6, the Kegs, Tauron, Nuts 2, Concussion and Androne 4000 battle through a series of group battles and knock-out rounds. Among the contestants controlling the machines is a veteran of the series, returning to defend his legacy. Presented by Dara O Briain and Angela Scanlon.

This penultimate episode determines which of the incredible fighting machines makes it into the grand final, along with the final two robots to compete in the Ten Robot Rumble. The competition in the final heat is fierce with Thor, Coyote, Expulsion, Hobgoblin, Push to Exit and Magnetar all battling it out in the bulletproof arena. Along the way, they must dodge arena hazards, menacing house robots and the all new Fog of War.

The illustrious grand final begins with the biggest battle in Robot Wars history. The second- and third-place robots from the heats battle it out in a ten-way, no time limit, last-robot-standing fight to the death to determine the sixth robot in the final. Once the carnage of the Robot Rumble is over, there are two brutal group battles followed by the nightmarish knockout rounds in order to determine the two robots that will fight it out to decide who the Robot Wars champion is.