The Great Panjandum — Britain's Funniest Failed Weapon

The Great Panjandum was a massive contraption designed by the British Department of Miscellaneous Weapons Development (an actual government department with that actual name). It consisted of two 10-foot wooden wheels with rockets attached to the rim, designed to be a self-propelled mine-clearing device. It was tested on beaches in Devon in 1943 and was a spectacular disaster. The rockets fired unevenly, the wheels wobbled, the structure caught fire, and it eventually careened uncontrollably across the test beach toward the military officers and journalists who were filming the demonstration. A cameraman, Lt. Col. B. T. H. H. Smith, was killed in a related test when a section of rockets went off unexpectedly. Winston Churchill was reportedly delighted by the failure and ordered the footage to be preserved. The project was cancelled after three more failed tests.