Introduction
Rex Garrod (10 September 1943 – 8 April 2019) was an inventor and roboteer, notable for building the radio controlled car which starred in Brum and co-presenting The Secret Life of Machines. He also entered several successful robots into the early series of British TV series Robot Wars. Garrod died on 8 April 2019, aged 75, after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.
Brum
Brum was a British television series which ran intermittently between 1991 and 2002. It told the story of a small car called Brum, which in reality was a giant remote control car. Garrod is credited with both designing and building Brum.
Team Cassius
Garrod was Team Leader of Team Cassius, a team of roboteers which entered several robots into Series 1, 2 and 3 of Robot Wars.
In Series 1, Team Cassius entered "Recyclopse", which reached the Grand Final but lost to Roadblock.
In Series 2, Team Cassius entered 5th seeded "Cassius", a wedge-shaped robot armed with a front-pivoted flipper. Cassius was the first competitor in the show's history to "self right" (i.e. to turn itself over when it was upside down), and as such Garrod is often credited with inventing the so-called "srimech". Cassius also reached the Grand Final, but lost to Panic Attack.
In Series 3, Team Cassius entered 2nd seeded "Cassius 2", a similar robot to its predecessor "Cassius", which lost to Series 4 runner-up Pussycat in the 2nd round of the heats.
The Secret Life of Machines
Rex Garrod co-presented The Secret Life of Machines with Tim Hunkin.