M.A.C.H.1 was one of the starting line-up of stories in 2000AD Prog 1. M.A.C.H. was an acronym for Man Activated by Comp-puncture Hyperpower, and M.A.C.H.1 was the codename for John Probe, an agent of the British government. An experimental treatment known as compu-puncture had been used on him to give him huge strength and speed, and computer circuitry had been hard-wired into his brain to help him control the extra power. The strip was clearly heavily influenced and inspired by the 1970s TV show The Six Million Dollar Man which was very popular in 1977, when the strip began.