"Box of Tricks" is the seventeenth episode of the second series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series '' The Avengers'', starring

Patrick Macnee Daniel Patrick Macnee (6 February 1922 – 25 June 2015) was a British film and television actor. After serving in the Royal Navy during World War II, he began his acting career in Canada. Despite having some small film roles, Macnee spent much ...

and Julie Stevens. It was first broadcast in the Teledu Cymru region of the

ITV network ITV is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network. It was launched in 1955 as Independent Television to provide competition to BBC Television (established in 1936). ITV is the oldest commercial network in the UK. Since the passin ...

on Friday 18 January 1963.

ABC Weekend TV ABC Weekend TV was the popular name of the British broadcaster ABC Television Limited, which provided the weekend service in the Midlands and Northern England regions of the Independent Television (ITV) network from 1956 to 1968. It was one ...

, who produced the show for ITV, broadcast it the next day in its own regions. The episode was directed by Kim Mills and written by

Peter Ling Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

and Edward Rhodes.

Plot

The death of a nightclub magician's assistant leads through a crippled general and his quack, to employment opportunities and secret documents. Steed enlists the help of Venus to root out the criminals by becoming the new assistant.

Music

Julie Stevens sings ''It's A Pity To Say Goodnight'' by

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

and ''

It's De-Lovely "It's De-Lovely" is one of Cole Porter's hit songs, originally appearing in his 1936 musical, '' Red Hot and Blue''. It was introduced by Ethel Merman and Bob Hope. The song was later used in the musical ''Anything Goes'', first appearing in the ...

'' by

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

, during which - in a rarity for the entire series - she briefly breaks the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

Cast

as John Steed * Julie Stevens as Venus Smith * Jane Barratt as Kathleen Sutherland * Maurice Hedley as General Sutherland *

Edgar Wreford Edgar Wreford (29 December 1923 – 20 January 2006) was an English stage and television actor. Biography He trained at the Old Vic School and went on to have a long and distinguished career on stage. His television roles included guest a ...

as Dr. Gallam * Ian Curry as Gerry Weston *

April Olrich April Olrich (17 July 1931 – 15 April 2014), born Edith April Oelrichs, was an English ballerina and actress, born in Zanzibar, now part of Tanzania. Early life Edith April Oelrichs was born in Zanzibar in 1931 (some sources give 1933), where h ...

as Denise *

Dallas Cavell Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

as Manager *

Jacqueline Jones Jacqueline Jones (born 17 June 1948) is an American social historian. She held the Walter Prescott Webb Chair in History and Ideas from 2008 to 2017 and is Mastin Gentry White Professor of Southern History at the University of Texas at Austin. ...

as Henriette *

Robert Hartley Robert Hartley (1915-1998) was a British stage, film and television actor. Selected filmography Film * ''At the Stroke of Nine'' (1957) * '' Bread'' (1971) Television * ''Z-Cars'' (1962–1974) * '' The Avengers'' (1963) * ''David Copperfield ...

as Nena the Barman *

Royston Tickner Royston A. Tickner (8 September 1922 – 7 July 1997) was a British actor. Biography Born Roy A. Tickner in Leicester, a tailor's son, he trained as an actor at Scarborough repertory theatre. He served in the Royal Navy in World War II; howe ...

as Maitre D' * Gail Starforth as Maid * Lynn Taylor as Valerie

References

External links

*
Episode overview on The Avengers Forever! website
{{The Avengers The Avengers (season 2) episodes 1963 British television episodes