The Prisoner

Director: Don Chaffey
Writing Credits: George Markstein & David Tomblin
Guest Cast: Virginia Maskell, Guy Doleman, Paul Eddington, George Baker, Barbara Yu Ling, Stephanie Randall, Jack Allen, Fabia Drake, Denis Shaw, Oliver MacGreevy, Frederick Piper, Patsy Smart & Christopher Benjamin

A man resigns from his top-secret post - for his crime he is gassed, abducted and taken to The Village. When the prisoner wakes up, as far as he can tell he is in the same room in which he passed out, until, that is, he opens the blinds - the streets of London have been replaced by a quaint cosmopolitan village - a facade which belies its true nature. The locals seem to be friendly although they are unhelpful and evasive when questioned. The maps of the area are just as useless. Back at his new home the prisoner receives a telephone call from a man who invites him over for breakfast. They want to know why he resigned, they want information, he is now known as Number Six.

Director: Don Chaffey
Writing Credits: Vincent Tilsley
Guest Cast: Leo McKern, Nadia Gray, Finlay Currie, Richard Wattis, Kevin Stoney, Christopher Benjamin, David Arlen, Hilda Barry, Jack Le White, John Maxim & Lucy Griffiths

It is another lovely day for Number Six, woken as ever by the cheery voice on the radio and loudspeakers dotted around the village. A new arrival to the community and Number Six's new neighbour engenders his sympathy when 'they' try to break her spirit. Whilst talking to the present Number Two, Number Six is informed that the village is "an international community - a perfect blueprint for world order". Number Six wants none of it. He enters the upcoming Arts & Crafts competition so that he can craft a means of escape for the woman in distress as well as himself.

Director: Pat Jackson
Writing Credits: Anthony Skene
Guest Cast: Katherine Kath, Sheila Allen, Colin Gordon, Peter Bowles, Georgina Cookson, Annette Carell, Lucille Soong, Bettina Le Beau, Terry Yorke, Peter Brayham & Bill Cummings

Breakthrough dream technology and drug treatment is used on Number Six to find out what information he has and why he resigned. Number Two believes that Number Six would have divulged this information to one of three people had he not of been taken prisoner. So over successive days A, B and C are introduced into Number Two's dreams to discover who he was going to sell-out to, and what information he has. Number Two is keen for the results since he has been reminded that he is expendable and can easily be replaced.

Director: Patrick McGoohan
Writing Credits: Patrick McGoohan
Guest Cast: Eric Portman, Rachel Herbert, George Benson, Harold Berens, John Cazabon, Dene Cooper, Kenneth Benda, Holly Doone, Peter Brace & Alf Joint

It is election time for the position of Number Two. The current Number Two is the only candidate, so he encourages Number Six to run a campaign for the position, with the inducement of finding out Number One's identity if he wins. Number Six is sceptical that there can be a democratic process in the village, but hopes he can persuade the villagers to join his cause. First of all the rules demand that the prospective opposition candidate has to undergo a form of brainwashing called "The Test".

Director: Pat Jackson
Writing Credits: Terence Feely
Guest Cast: Jane Merrow, Anton Rodgers, Earl Cameron, Gay Cameron, David Nettheim, Pat Keen, Gerry Crampton & Dinny Powell

When you go to sleep you most likely will not give it a second thought as to who you will be when you wake up. Number Six wakes to find he is now Number Twelve, he has a moustache when he used to be clean shaven, is now left handed instead of right handed, lives in an apartment he does not recognise, the villagers recognise him as Number Twelve and to make matters even worse Number Six looks and acts just like him. Nothing is as it was when he went to sleep. He has gone Schizoid - or has he?

Director: Peter Graham Scott
Writing Credits: Joshua Adam
Guest Cast: Colin Gordon, John Castle, Peter Howell, Al Mancini, Betty McDowall, Conrad Phillips, Michael Miller, Keith Pyott, Ian Fleming, Norman Mitchell, Peter Bourne, George Leech & Jack Cooper

Everyone is expected to be a student of the 'speed learn' course - a three year course subliminally learnt in three minutes. The Professor who developed this revolutionary technique makes an unsuccessful attempt to escape across the beach, witnessed by Number Six who also finds a tape recorder in the sand. On the tape recording The Professor warns the villagers that they are being tricked, 'speed learn' is an abomination and the only way to be free is to destroy the general.

Director: Patrick McGoohan
Writing Credits: Anthony Skene
Guest Cast: Donald Sinden, Patrick Cargill, Georgina Cookson, Brian Worth, Richard Caldicot, Dennis Chinnery, Jon Laurimore, Nike Arrighi, Grace Arnold & Larry Taylor

Number Six awakes without his usual radio wake-up call, there is no water or electricity and the village is disserted. He quickly uses this opportunity to make his escape by building a raft as well as collecting all he needs for his journey. After many days at sea the raft is spotted by some gunrunners who steal his belongings and leave him to drown. Number Six is not done for yet though, he manages to board the pirate's boat, overpower the crew and make it back to London. Safe and sound... er, well maybe.

Director: Don Chaffey
Writing Credits: Anthony Skene
Guest Cast: Mary Morris, Duncan Macrae, Norma West, Aubrey Morris, Bee Duffell, Camilla Hasse, Alan White, Michael Nightingale, Patsy Smart, Denise Buckley, George Merritt, John Frawley, Lucy Griffiths & William Lyon Brown

Number Two does not want Number Six to be broken, but rather tricked into revealing the information they are looking for. Number Six is invited to the village carnival and dance - an enticement to join the village ranks, that Number Two states are "democratic, in some ways". The prisoner discovers a dead body on the beach, a radio and the man's wallet - he then hides the body in a cave so that he can later float the dead man out to sea with a note explaining his situation, hopefully leading to his rescue. During the carnival dance Number Six is charged with the possession of the radio which is against the rules.

Director: Don Chaffey
Writing Credits: Gerald Kelsey
Guest Cast: Ronald Radd, Patricia Jessel, Peter Wyngarde, Rosalie Crutchley, George Coulouris, Bee Duffell, Basil Dignam, Michael Danvers-Walker, Denis Shaw, Victor Platt, Shivaun O'Casey, Geoffrey Reed & Terence Donovan

Number Six is invited to join a game of human chess, taking the position of queen's pawn. As with everything in the village this game is not one for the individual, therefore when a Rook takes it upon himself to make an illegal move he is substituted and taken to hospital. Number Six is told that the game is to determine who is for you or against you by the moves they make. Obviously the Rook is an independent as is Number Six, so the pair team up to look for others in the community who will help with an escape bid.

Director: Pat Jackson
Writing Credits: Roger Woddis
Guest Cast: Patrick Cargill, Victor Maddern, Basil Hoskins, Norman Scace, Derek Aylward, Hilary Heath, Arthur Gross, Victor Woolf, Michael Segal, Margo Andrew, Susan Sheers, Jack Cooper, Fred Haggerty & Eddie Powell

The new Number Two is a nasty piece of work. He believes he is the hammer and those he wishes to break are the anvil. Number Seventy Three breaks spectacularly with his guidance - the fragile woman commits suicide by throwing herself out of the hospital window rather than undergo any more mind games. After this and being threatened by 'the hammer', Number Six leads Number Two on a merry old dance of conspiracy to see if he is really up to the job.

Director: Robert Asher
Writing Credits: Michael Cramoy
Guest Cast: Derren Nesbitt, Annette Andre, Mark Eden, Andre Van Gyseghem, Martin Miller, Wanda Ventham, Mark Burns, Charles Lloyd Pack, Grace Arnold, Arthur White, Michael Bilton & Gerry Crampton

A pretty blonde girl sneaks into The Prisoner's apartment to covertly ask for his help to avert an assassination. The young woman explains that if the assassination is carried out the villagers would suffer reprisals. Number Six is highly sceptical, suspecting that she is sent by 'them' as part of another plot. He is not far wrong - although the young woman is unaware she is being manipulated and that both are being observed by Number Two. Number Six is later tricked into discovering that the young woman's father is the one making an explosive device for the assassination attempt.

Director: Patrick McGoohan
Writing Credits: Roger Parkes
Guest Cast: Angela Browne, John Sharp, George Pravda, Kathleen Breck, Thomas Heathcote, Bartlett Mullins, Michael Miller, Joseph Cuby, Michael Chow, June Ellis, John Hamblin & Michael Billington

Individuality is pretty well a no-no in the village, the people will not put up with it for long, nor will the authorities. Number Six has been deemed to be 'unmutual' and the villagers are warned by the authorities that, under no circumstances should they associate in any way with Number Six. For a while this 'unmutual' person has to suffer the indignity of being shunned by everyone. The condition he is suffering from is treatable by a new surgical technique, involving disconnection of the 'link point of the frontal lobes' which will stop his anti-social games, once and for all.

Director: Pat Jackson
Writing Credits: Vincent Tilsley
Guest Cast: Zena Walker, Clifford Evans, Nigel Stock, Hugo Schuster, John Wentworth, James Bree, Lloyd Lamble, Patrick Jordan, Lockwood West, Fredric Abbott, Gertan Klauber, Henry B. Longhurst & Michael Danvers-Walker

Mind swapping technology is used to transfer the mind of Number Six into the body of 'The Colonel'. After the process Number Six awakens in his London apartment in The Colonel's body, therefore necessitating attempts to convince his fiancé and colleagues who he really is. Number Six also needs to find a close friend, who invented the technique called Dr. Seltzman, in an effort to reverse the process. Without his knowledge, Number Six is under surveillance by the authorities who are trying to track down the elusive Dr. Seltzman.

Director: David Tomblin
Writing Credits: Ian Rakoff & David Tomblin
Guest Cast: Alexis Kanner, David Bauer, Valerie French, Gordon Tanner, Gordon Sterne, Michael Balfour, Larry Taylor, Monti DeLyle, Douglas Jones, Bill Nick, Leslie Crawford, Frank Maher, Max Faulkner & Bill Cummings

A man rides across the plains to turn in his badge and gun to the Marshal. On his way back from quitting his job the man is set upon by a gang, beaten up and taken to a town called Harmony, for reasons unknown. He shortly finds out that the local judge wants to appoint him as Sheriff and that he is effectively imprisoned within the confines of the town. Eventually with some persuasion and emotional blackmail involving a salon girl, he agrees to take the post with an eye on his eventual escape from Harmony.

Director: David Tomblin
Writing Credits: Terence Feely & David Tomblin
Guest Cast: Kenneth Griffith, Justine Lord, Christopher Benjamin, Michael Brennan, Harold Berens, Sheena Marshe, Max Faulkner, John Rees, Joe Gladwin, John Drake, Gaynor Steward, Graham Steward & Stephen Howe

Number Six is assigned to find the whereabouts of a mad scientist called Schnipps, after the murder of Col. Hawke-Englishe at a cricket match. Death is now stalking Number Six in the shapely form of murder obsessed Sonia, who will stop at nothing to get rid of Number Six. Sonia enjoys setting new and unusual ways of snuffing out our hero whilst proclaiming her love for him. One could not have a more dangerous admirer.

Director: Patrick McGoohan
Writing Credits: Patrick McGoohan
Guest Cast: Leo McKern & John Cazabon

Number Two evokes a method called 'decree absolute' in a final attempt to break Number Six. Using various hypnotic methods, Number Six is regressed to a childlike state and taken underground to 'the stage' for seven days of intense therapy. Progressing through the seven ages of man, Number Two hopes to extract the information they are looking for. There can be only one winner in this final game - who will finally succumb to the seventh age? who will be the victor?

Director: Patrick McGoohan
Writing Credits: Patrick McGoohan
Guest Cast: Leo McKern, Kenneth Griffith, Alexis Kanner & Michael Miller

? Be seeing you.

Broadcast Information
Trivia
Episode Sequence
The Seven Ages of Man

Patrick McGoohan Obituary
No Escape for Sky: The Curse of The Prisoner
Interview with Patrick McGoohan

• Movies

THX 1138 (1971)
The Prisoner (1955)

• Television

Danger Man (1960 - 1968)
Nowhere Man (1995 - 1996)
The Prisoner: Documentary - Don't Knock Yourself Out (2007)

• Literature

The Trial, Franz Kafka (Full Online Text)