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''The Avengers'' is a British
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangibl ...
television series, created in 1961, that ran for 161 episodes until 1969. It initially focused on David Keel (
Ian Hendry Ian Mackendrick Hendry (13 January 1931 – 24 December 1984) was a British actor. He worked on several British TV series of the 1960s and 1970s, including the lead in the first series of '' The Avengers'' and '' The Lotus Eaters'', and played ...
), aided by
John Steed Major The Hon. John Wickham Gascoyne Beresford Steed usually known as John Steed, is a fictional character and the central protagonist on the 1960s British spy series '' The Avengers'' and its 1970s sequel '' The New Avengers'', played by Patr ...
(
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 ...
). Hendry left after the first series; Steed then became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. His most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish and assertive women:
Cathy Gale Dr. Catherine "Cathy" Gale is a fictional character played by Honor Blackman, on the 1960s British series '' The Avengers''. She was the first regular female partner of John Steed, following the departure of Steed's original male co-star, Dr Davi ...
(
Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962 ...
),
Emma Peel Emma Peel is a fictional spy played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, Sir John Knight. She ...
(
Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series '' The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in ''On H ...
), and
Tara King Tara King is a fictional character of British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', played by Canadian actress Linda Thorson. The sixth partner of agent John Steed (and fourth female partner), she appeared in series six (in colou ...
(
Linda Thorson Linda Thorson (born Linda Robinson; June 18, 1947) is a Canadian actress, known for playing Tara King in '' The Avengers'' (1968–69). Personal life Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, she attended Bishop Strachan School, and then moved to the ...
). Dresses and suits for the series were made by
Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin (, , ), born Pietro Costante Cardino (2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020), was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometric shap ...
. The series ran from 1961 until 1969, screening as one-hour episodes for its entire run. The pilot episode, " Hot Snow", aired on 7 January 1961. The final episode, "Bizarre", aired on 21 April 1969 in the United States, and on 17 May 1969 in the United Kingdom. ''The Avengers'' was produced by
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 ...
, a contractor within the
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
network. After a merger with
Rediffusion London Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion London, was the British ITV franchise holder for London and parts of the surrounding counties, on weekdays between 22 September 1955 and 29 July 1968. It was the first ITA franchisee to go on air, ...
in July 1968, ABC Weekend became
Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a Broadcast license, franchise holder for a region of the British ITV (TV network), ITV television network serving Greater London, London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until th ...
, which continued production of the series, subcontracted to ABC Television Films. By 1969, ''The Avengers'' was shown in more than 90 countries. ITV produced a sequel series, '' The New Avengers'' (1976–1977), with Patrick Macnee returning as John Steed, and two new partners. In 2004 and 2007, ''The Avengers'' was ranked No. 17 and No. 20 on ''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
''s Top Cult Shows Ever.TV Guide Names the Top Cult Shows Ever – Today's News: Our Take
''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
'': 29 June 2007


Premise

''The Avengers'' was marked by different eras as co-stars came and went. The only constant was John Steed, played by Patrick Macnee.


Series 1 (1961)

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 ...
produced a single series of '' Police Surgeon'', in which
Ian Hendry Ian Mackendrick Hendry (13 January 1931 – 24 December 1984) was a British actor. He worked on several British TV series of the 1960s and 1970s, including the lead in the first series of '' The Avengers'' and '' The Lotus Eaters'', and played ...
played police surgeon Geoffrey Brent, from September through December 1960. While ''Police Surgeon'' did not last long, viewers praised Hendry, and ABC Television cast him in its new series ''The Avengers'', which replaced ''Police Surgeon'' in January 1961. ''The Avengers'' began with the episode " Hot Snow", in which medical doctor David H Keel (Hendry) investigates the murder of his fiancée, office receptionist Peggy, by a drug ring. A stranger named John Steed who was also investigating the ring appears, and together Keel and Steed set out to avenge Peggy's death in the first two episodes. Steed asks Keel to partner with him, as needed, to solve crimes. Hendry was considered the star of the new series, receiving top billing over Macnee, and Steed did not appear in two of the series' episodes. As the first series of ''The Avengers'' progressed, Steed's importance increased, and he carried the final episode solo. While Steed and Keel used wit while discussing crimes and dangers, the series also depicted the interplay—and often tension—between Keel's idealism and Steed's professionalism. As seen in one of the three surviving episodes from the first series, "
The Frighteners ''The Frighteners'' is a 1996 supernatural comedy horror film directed by Peter Jackson and co-written with Fran Walsh. The film stars Michael J. Fox, Trini Alvarado, Peter Dobson, John Astin, Dee Wallace Stone, Jeffrey Combs, R. Lee Ermey an ...
", Steed also had informants among the general population to aid his investigations, similar to the "
Baker Street Irregulars The Baker Street Irregulars are fictional characters who appear in three Sherlock Holmes stories, specifically two novels and one short story, by Arthur Conan Doyle. They are street boys who are employed by Holmes as intelligence agents. The na ...
" of
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...
. The other regular in the first series was Carol Wilson (
Ingrid Hafner Ingrid Hafner (13 November 1936 – 20 May 1994) was a British actress, born in London. Her father was Raoul Hafner, an Austrian helicopter pioneer, and her mother Eileen Myra McAdam was a descendant of Scottish-born John Loudon McAdam, the roa ...
), the nurse and receptionist who replaced the slain Peggy. Carol assisted Keel and Steed in cases, and in at least one episode (" Girl on the Trapeze") was very much in the thick of the action, but without being part of Steed's inner circle. Hafner had played opposite Hendry as a nurse in one episode of ''Police Surgeon''. The role of Carol Wilson was initially offered to Jan Watson, who turned it down for another film. The series was shot on 405-line videotape using a
multicamera setup The multiple-camera setup, multiple-camera mode of production, multi-camera or simply multicam is a method of filmmaking and video production. Several cameras—either film cameras, film or professional video cameras—are employed on the set an ...
. There was little provision for editing and virtually no location footage was shot (although the first shot of the first episode consisted of location footage). As was standard practice at the time, videotapes of early episodes of ''The Avengers'' were reused. At present, only three complete Series 1 episodes are known to exist and are held in archives as 16-mm film
telerecordings Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film, directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 1940 ...
: "Girl on the Trapeze" (which does not feature Steed), "The Frighteners" and "
Tunnel of Fear "Tunnel of Fear" is the 20th episode of the first series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi (neologism), spy-fi television series ''The Avengers (TV series), The Avengers'', starring Ian Hendry, Patrick Macnee and Ingrid Hafner, and guest starring ...
". Additionally, the first 15 minutes of the first episode, "Hot Snow", also exist as a telerecording; the extant footage ends at the conclusion of the first act, prior to the introduction of John Steed. The missing television episodes are currently being recreated for audio by
Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on cult science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'', the ...
under the title of ''The Avengers - The Lost Episodes'' and star
Julian Wadham Julian Neil Rohan Wadham (born 7 August 1958) is an English actor of stage, film and television. He was educated at Ampleforth College and the Central School of Speech and Drama, third son of Rohan Nicholas Wadham DFC and Juliana Wadham, née ...
as Steed, Anthony Howell as Dr Keel and Lucy Briggs-Owen as Carol Wilson.


Series 2–3 (1962–1964)

Production of the first series was cut short by a strike. By the time production could begin on the second series, Hendry had quit to pursue a film career. Macnee was promoted to star and Steed became the focus of the series, initially working with a rotation of three different partners. Dr Martin King (
Jon Rollason Jon Rollason (9 April 1931 – 20 February 2016) was an English television actor. He is best remembered for the role of Dr. Martin King in '' The Avengers''. He also appeared in episodes of '' Doctor Who'' (as Harold Chorley in ''The Web of Fea ...
), a thinly disguised recreation of the Keel character, saw action in only three episodes, which were produced from scripts written for the first series. King was intended to be a transitional character between Keel and Steed's two new female partners, but while the Dr King episodes were shot first, they were shown out of production order in the middle of the season. The character was thereafter quickly and quietly dropped.
Nightclub singer A nightclub act is a production, usually of nightclub music or comedy, designed for performance at a nightclub, a type of drinking establishment, by a nightclub performer such as a nightclub singer or nightclub dancer, whose performance may ...
Venus Smith ( Julie Stevens) appeared in six episodes. She was a complete "amateur", meaning that she did not have any professional crime-fighting skills as did the two doctors. She was excited to be participating in a spy adventure alongside secret agent Steed (although some episodes—"The Removal Men", "
The Decapod "The Decapod" is the third episode of the second series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series '' The Avengers'', starring Patrick Macnee and Julie Stevens. It was first broadcast by ABC on 13 October 1962. The episode was directed ...
"—indicate she is not always enthusiastic). Nonetheless, she appears to be attracted to him, and their relationship is somewhat similar to that later portrayed between Steed and
Tara King Tara King is a fictional character of British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', played by Canadian actress Linda Thorson. The sixth partner of agent John Steed (and fourth female partner), she appeared in series six (in colou ...
. Her episodes featured musical interludes showcasing her singing performances. The character of Venus underwent some revision during her run, adopting more youthful demeanour and dress. The first episode broadcast in the second series had introduced the partner who would change the show into the format for which it is most remembered.
Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962 ...
played Dr
Cathy Gale Dr. Catherine "Cathy" Gale is a fictional character played by Honor Blackman, on the 1960s British series '' The Avengers''. She was the first regular female partner of John Steed, following the departure of Steed's original male co-star, Dr Davi ...
, a self-assured, quick-witted anthropologist who was skilled in
judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...
and had a passion for
leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...
clothes. Widowed during the
Mau Mau rebellion The Mau Mau rebellion (1952–1960), also known as the Mau Mau uprising, Mau Mau revolt or Kenya Emergency, was a war in the British Kenya Colony (1920–1963) between the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA), also known as the ''Mau Mau'', ...
years in
Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...
, she was the "talented amateur" who saw her aid to Steed's cases as a service to her nation. She was said to have been born on 5 October 1930 at midnight, and was reared in Africa. Gale was in her early-to-mid 30s during her tenure, in contrast to female characters in similar series who tended to be younger. Gale was unlike any female character seen before on British TV, and became a household name. Reportedly, part of her charm was because her earliest appearances were episodes in which dialogue written for Keel was simply transferred to her. Series scriptwriter
Dennis Spooner Dennis Spooner (1 December 1932 – 20 September 1986) was an English television writer and script editor, known primarily for his programmes about fictional spies and his work in children's television in the 1960s. He had long-lasting profess ...
described about this detail: "there's the famous story of how Honor Blackman played Ian Hendry's part, which is why they stuck her in leather and such—it was so much cheaper than changing the lines!"Peel, John. "Dennis Spooner Interview". ''The Avengers Files: Emma's Last Year''. Psi Fi Movie Press, Inc. Canoga Park, CA, 1985, p 46. In "Conspiracy of Silence", she holds her own in a vociferous tactical disagreement with her partner. Venus Smith did not return for the third series, and Cathy Gale became Steed's only regular partner. The series established a level of
sexual tension Sexual tension is a social phenomenon that occurs when two individuals interact and one or both feel sexual desire, but the consummation is postponed or never happens. A common scenario is where the two individuals function in proximity, such as ...
between Steed and Gale, but the writers were not allowed to go beyond
flirting Flirting or coquetry is a social and sexual behavior involving spoken or written communication, as well as body language. It is either to suggest interest in a deeper relationship with the other person or, if done playfully, for amusement. I ...
and
innuendo An innuendo is a hint, insinuation or intimation about a person or thing, especially of a denigrating or derogatory nature. It can also be a remark or question, typically disparaging (also called insinuation), that works obliquely by allusion ...
. Despite this, the relationship between Steed and Gale was progressive for 1962–63. In "The Golden Eggs", it is revealed that Gale lived in Steed's flat; according to Steed, her rent was to keep the refrigerator well-stocked and to cook for him (she appears to do neither). However, this was said to be a temporary arrangement while Gale looked for a new home, and Steed was sleeping at a hotel. During the first series, there were hints Steed worked for a branch of British Intelligence, and this was expanded in the second series. Steed initially received orders from different superiors, including someone referred to as "Charles", and "One-Ten" ( Douglas Muir). By the third series, the delivery of Steed's orders was not depicted on screen or explained. The secret organisation to which Steed belongs is shown in "The Nutshell", and it is Gale's first visit to their headquarters. Small references to Steed's background were occasionally made. In the Series 3 episode "Death of a Batman" it was said that Steed was with
I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...
in the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
in 1945. In the Series 4 episode "The Hour That Never Was", Steed attends a reunion of his
RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
squadron. Since the ties he wears are either cavalry or old school, it is apparent that he has attended a number of leading public schools. A theatrical film version of the series was in its initial planning stages by late 1963, after Series 3 was completed. An early story proposal paired Steed and Gale with a male and female duo of American agents, to make the movie appeal to the American market. Before the project could gain momentum, Blackman was cast opposite
Sean Connery Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...
in '' Goldfinger'', requiring her to leave the series.


Series transformation

During the Gale era, Steed was transformed from a rugged trenchcoat-wearing agent into the stereotypical English gentleman, complete with
Savile Row Savile Row (pronounced ) is a street in Mayfair, central London. Known principally for its traditional bespoke tailoring for men, the street has had a varied history that has included accommodating the headquarters of the Royal Geographical ...
suit,
bowler hat The bowler hat, also known as a billycock, bob hat, bombín (Spanish) or derby (United States), is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown, originally created by the London hat-makers Thomas and William Bowler in 1849. It has traditionally been worn ...
and umbrella, with clothes later designed by
Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin (, , ), born Pietro Costante Cardino (2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020), was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometric shap ...
. (Steed had first donned bowler and carried his distinctive umbrella during the first series, as "The Frighteners" depicts.) The bowler and umbrella were soon revealed to be full of tricks, including a sword hidden within the umbrella handle and a steel plate concealed in the hat. These items were referred to in the French, German and Polish titles of the series, ''Chapeau melon et bottes de cuir'' ("Bowler hat and leather boots"), ''Mit Schirm, Charme und Melone'' ("With Umbrella, Charm and Bowler Hat") and ''Rewolwer i melonik'' ("A Revolver and a Bowler Hat"), respectively. With his impeccable manners, old-world sophistication and vintage car, Steed came to represent the traditional Englishman of an earlier era. By contrast, Steed's partners were youthful, forward-looking and always attired in the latest mod fashions. Gale's innovative leather outfits suited her many athletic fight scenes. Honor Blackman became a star in Britain with her black leather outfits and boots (nicknamed " kinky boots") and her judo-based fighting style. Macnee and Blackman even released a novelty song called " Kinky Boots". Blackman also carried a pistol in "Killer Whale". Some of the clothes seen in ''The Avengers'' were designed at the studio of John Sutcliffe, who published the ''
AtomAge ''AtomAge'' magazine (later ''AtomAge International'' magazine) was a fetish magazine published in Britain by the clothes designer John Sutcliffe in the 1970s as an offshoot of his AtomAge fetish clothing business. The magazine has been called the ...
''
fetish magazine A fetish magazine is a type of magazine originating in the late 1940s which is devoted to sexual fetishism. The content is generally aimed at being erotic rather than pornographic. The most well-known early examples are ''Bizarre'' (1946-1959) p ...
. Series scriptwriter Dennis Spooner said that the series would frequently feature Steed visiting busy public places such as the main airport in London without anyone else present in the scene: "'Can't you afford extras?', they'd ask. Well, it wasn't like that. It's just that Steed had to be alone to be accepted. Put him in a crowd and he sticks out like a sore thumb! Let's face it, with normal people he's ''weird''. The trick to making him acceptable is never to show him in a normal world, just fighting villains who are odder than he is!"


Series 4–5 (1965–1967)

The show was sold to the
American Broadcasting Company The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Cali ...
(ABC) in 1965, and ''The Avengers'' became one of the first British series to be aired on
prime-time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
US television. The US ABC network paid the then-unheard-of sum of $2 million for the first 26 episodes. The average budget for each episode was reportedly £56,000, which was high for the British industry. The fourth series aired in the US from March to the beginning of September 1966. Each episode still finished with the logo of ABC Weekend TV. The US deal meant that the producers could afford to start shooting the series on
35mm film 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film * 35 mm movie film, a type of motion picture film stock * 35MM 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format ...
, with production transferring from ABC's television studios in Teddington to the Associated British film studios in Elstree. The use of film, rather than the videotape of the earlier episodes, was essential, because British 405-line video was technically incompatible with the US
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
videotape format. Filmed productions were standard on US prime-time television at the time. ''The Avengers'' continued to be produced in black and white. The transfer to film meant that episodes would be shot using the
single-camera setup The single-camera setup, or single-camera mode of production, also known as portable single camera, is a method of filmmaking and video production. The single-camera setup originally developed during the birth of the classical Hollywood cinema i ...
, giving the production greater flexibility. The use of film production and the single-camera production style allowed more sophisticated visuals and camera angles, and more outdoor location shots, all of which greatly improved the look of the series. As was standard on British television filmed production through the 1960s, all location work on Series 4 was shot mute, with the soundtrack created in post-production. Dialogue scenes were filmed in the studio, leading to some jumps between location and studio footage. New female partner Mrs
Emma Peel Emma Peel is a fictional spy played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, Sir John Knight. She ...
(
Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series '' The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in ''On H ...
) debuted in October 1965. The name of the character derived from a comment by writers, during development, that they wanted a character with "man appeal". In an early attempt to incorporate this concept into the character's name, she was called "Samantha Peel", shortened to the awkward "Mantha Peel". Eventually, the writers began referring to the idea by the verbal shorthand "M. Appeal", which gave rise to the character's ultimate name. Emma Peel, whose husband went missing while flying over the Amazon, retained the self-assuredness of Gale, combined with superior fighting skills, intelligence and a contemporary fashion sense. After more than 60 actresses had been auditioned, the first choice to play the role was
Elizabeth Shepherd Elizabeth Shepherd (born 12 August 1936) is an English character actress whose long career has encompassed the stage and both the big and small screens. Her television work has been especially prolific. Shepherd's surname has been variously ren ...
. However, after filming one and a half episodes (the pilot, "The Town of No Return", and part of "The Murder Market"), Shepherd was released. Her on-screen personality was deemed less interesting than that of Blackman's Gale, and it was decided that she was not right for the role. Another 20 actresses were auditioned before the show's casting director,
Dodo Watts Dorothy Margaret Watts (1910–1990), known professionally as Dodo Watts, was a British stage and film actress. She played Fay Eaton in the 1929 Broadway version of Ian Hay's play ''The Middle Watch'', and reprised her role in the 1930 British ...
, suggested that producers
Brian Clemens Brian Horace Clemens (30 July 1931 – 10 January 2015) was an English screenwriter and television producer, possibly best known for his work on '' The Avengers'' and '' The Professionals''. Clemens claimed to be related to Mark Twain (Samuel ...
and
Albert Fennell Albert Fennell (29 March 1920, in Chiswick – 17 April 1988) was a British film and television producer. Fennell's film career began as a production designer and writer. His work as a film producer included ''Next to No Time'', (1958), ''Peepin ...
check out a televised drama featuring the relatively unknown Rigg. (She had earlier guested in an episode of ''
The Sentimental Agent ''The Sentimental Agent'' is a television drama series spin-off from '' Man of the World.'' It was produced in the United Kingdom in 1963 by Associated Television and distributed by ITC Entertainment. The series ran for 13 one-hour monochrome ...
'' that Clemens had written.) Rigg's screen test with Macnee showed that the two immediately worked well together. A prologue was added to the beginning of all the fourth-series episodes for the American broadcasts. This was to clarify some initial confusion audiences had regarding the characters and their mission. In the opener, a waiter holding a champagne bottle falls dead onto a human-sized chessboard, a dagger protruding from a target on his back. Steed and Mrs Peel (dressed in her trademark leather catsuit) walk up to the body as the voice-over explains: "Extraordinary crimes against the people, and the state, have to be avenged by agents extraordinary. Two such people are John Steed, top professional, and his partner Emma Peel, talented amateur. Otherwise known as The Avengers". During this voice-over, Steed pours two drinks from the wine bottle and Mrs Peel replaces her gun in her boot. They clink glasses and depart together as the screen fades to black and the opening titles begin. In contrast to the Gale episodes, there is a lighter, comic touch in Steed's and Peel's interactions with each other and their reactions to other characters and situations. Earlier series had a harder tone, with the Gale era including some quite serious espionage dramas. This almost completely disappeared as Steed and Peel visibly enjoy topping each other's witticisms. The layer of conflict with Gale—who on occasion openly resented being used by Steed, often without her permission—is absent from Steed's interaction with Peel. Also, the sexual tension between Steed and Gale is quite different from the tension between Steed and Peel. In both cases, the exact relationship between the partners is left ambiguous, although they seemed to have ''carte blanche'' to visit each other's homes whenever they please, and it is not uncommon for scenes to suggest that Steed had spent the night at Gale's or Peel's home, or vice versa. Although nothing "improper" is displayed, the close chemistry between Steed and Peel constantly suggests intimacy between the two.
Science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
and
fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...
elements (a style later known as Spy-Fi) also began to emerge in storylines. The duo encounters killer robots ("The Cybernauts"), telepaths ("Too Many Christmas Trees") and giant alien carnivorous plants ("The Man-Eater of Surrey Green"). In her fourth episode, "Death at Bargain Prices", Mrs Peel takes an undercover job at a department store. Her uniform for promoting space-age toys is an elaborate leather catsuit plus silver boots, sash and welder's gloves. The suit (minus the silver accessories) became her signature outfit, which she wore primarily for fight scenes in early episodes and in the titles. Some episodes contain a
fetishistic A fetish (derived from the French , which comes from the Portuguese , and this in turn from Latin , 'artificial' and , 'to make') is an object believed to have supernatural powers, or in particular, a human-made object that has power over othe ...
undercurrent. In " A Touch of Brimstone", Mrs.Peel dresses in a
dominatrix A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for inflic ...
outfit of corset, laced boots and spiked collar to become the "Queen of Sin". Peel's avant-garde fashions, featuring bold accents and high-contrast geometric patterns, emphasise her youthful, contemporary personality. For the 1965 season, some of her most memorable outfits were designed by John Bates, including graphic black-and-white
Op art Op art, short for optical art, is a style of visual art that uses optical illusions. Op artworks are abstract, with many better-known pieces created in black and white. Typically, they give the viewer the impression of movement, hidden images ...
mini-coats and accessories, and a silver ensemble comprising a bra bodice, low-slung trousers and jacket. She represents the modern England of the Sixties – just as Steed, with his vintage style and mannerisms, personifies Edwardian-era nostalgia. According to Macee in his book ''The Avengers and Me'', Rigg disliked wearing leather and insisted on a new line of fabric athletic wear for the fifth series. Alun Hughes, who had designed clothing for Rigg's personal wardrobe, was suggested by the actress to design Emma Peel's "softer" new wardrobe.
Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin (, , ), born Pietro Costante Cardino (2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020), was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometric shap ...
was brought in to design a new wardrobe for Macnee. In the US, ''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
'' ran a four-page photo spread on Rigg's new "Emmapeeler" outfits (10–16 June 1967). Eight tight-fitting jumpsuits were created, in a variety of bright colours and made of the stretch fabric
crimplene Crimplene is a texturised continuous fibre launched in 1959, produced by modifying Terylene. The patent was taken out by Mario Nava of Chesline and Crepes Ltd of Macclesfield, and sold to ICI Fibres. ICI licensed the product to various throwsters ...
.


Move to colour

After one filmed series (of 26 episodes) in black and white, ''The Avengers'' began filming in colour for the fifth series in 1966. It was three years before Britain's ITV network began full colour broadcasting. The first 16 episodes of this series were broadcast concurrently in the US, in colour, and the UK, in black and white, from January to May 1967. Eight further episodes were broadcast in the UK beginning in late September, while these episodes were withheld in the US until early 1968, where they would be immediately succeeded by the first batch of episodes featuring Rigg's replacement,
Linda Thorson Linda Thorson (born Linda Robinson; June 18, 1947) is a Canadian actress, known for playing Tara King in '' The Avengers'' (1968–69). Personal life Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, she attended Bishop Strachan School, and then moved to the ...
. The American prologue of the fourth series was modified for the colour episodes. The show opened with the caption ''The Avengers in Color'' (required by the US
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
for colour series at that time), followed by Steed unwrapping the foil from a champagne bottle and Peel shooting the cork away. Unlike the "chessboard" opening of the previous series, this new prologue had no narrative voice-over, and the scene was also included in UK broadcasts of the series. At the end of the closing credits, all previous series had ended with the ABC Weekend TV logo, but the fifth and sixth series — now made by ABC's sister company A.B.C. Television Films — instead featured an animation where the letters "ABC" were revealed to stand for "Associated British Corporation", a name apparently invented for ABC shows exported to the US to avoid confusion with the US ABC network. (The legal name of ABC Weekend TV was originally "Associated British Cinemas (Television) Ltd", later shortened to "A.B.C. Television Ltd".) The first 16 episodes of the fifth series begin with Peel receiving a call-to-duty message from Steed: "Mrs Peel, we're needed". Peel would be conducting her normal activities when she unexpectedly received a message on a calling card or within a delivered gift, at which point Steed suddenly appeared (usually in her apartment). The series also introduced a comic
tagline In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, so ...
caption to the episode title, using the format of "Steed oes this Emma oes that. For example, "The Joker" had the opening caption: "Steed trumps an ace, Emma plays a lone hand". "The Joker" was to a large extent a rewrite of "Don't Look Behind You", a black-and-white Cathy Gale episode. Three other colour Emma Peel episodes were rewrites of Cathy Gale episodes. The "Mrs Peel, we're needed" scenes and the alternate taglines were dropped after the first 16 episodes, after a break in production, for financial reasons. They were deemed by the UK networks as disposable if ''The Avengers'' was to return to ITV screens (Dave Rogers' book ''The Avengers Anew'' lists a set for every Steed/Peel episode except "The Forget-Me-Knot"). Stories were increasingly characterised by a futuristic, science-fiction bent, with mad scientists and their creations wreaking havoc. The duo dealt with being shrunk to doll size ("Mission... Highly Improbable"), pet cats being electrically altered to become ferocious and lethal "miniature tigers" ("The Hidden Tiger"), killer automata ("Return of The Cybernauts"), mind-transferring machines ("Who's Who???") and invisible foes ("The See-Through Man"). The series parodied its American contemporaries with episodes such as "The Girl From AUNTIE", "Mission... Highly Improbable" and "The Winged Avenger" (spoofing ''
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who wo ...
'', '' Mission: Impossible'' and ''
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
'', respectively). The show still carried the basic format: Steed and his associate were charged with solving the problem in the space of a 50-minute episode, thus preserving the safety of 1960s Britain. Humour was evident in the names and acronyms of the organisations. For example, in "The Living Dead", two rival groups examine reported ghost sightings: FOG (Friends of Ghosts) and SMOG (Scientific Measurement of Ghosts). "The Hidden Tiger" features the Philanthropic Union for Rescue, Relief and Recuperation of Cats—PURRR—led by characters named Cheshire, Manx and Angora. The series also occasionally adopted a
metafiction Metafiction is a form of fiction which emphasises its own narrative structure in a way that continually reminds the audience that they are reading or viewing a fictional work. Metafiction is self-conscious about language, literary form, and story ...
al tone, coming close to breaking 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 ...
. In the Series 5 episode "Something Nasty in the Nursery", Peel directly references the series' storytelling convention of having potentially helpful sources of information killed off just before she or Steed arrive. This then occurs a few minutes later. In the tag scene for the same episode, Steed and Peel tell viewers—indirectly—to tune in next week. Rigg's stunt double was stuntwoman Cyd Child, though stuntman Peter Elliot doubled for Rigg in a stunt dive in "The Bird Who Knew Too Much".


Rigg's departure

Rigg was initially unhappy with the way she was treated by the show's producers. During her first series, she learned that she was being paid less than the cameraman. She demanded a raise to put her more on a par with her co-star, or she would leave the show. The producers gave in, thanks to the show's great popularity in the US. At the end of the fifth series in 1967, Rigg left to pursue other projects. This included following Honor Blackman to play a leading role in a James Bond film, '' On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', as James Bond's wife
Tracy Bond Teresa "Tracy" Bond (born Teresa "Tracy" Draco, and also known as the Contessa Teresa di Vicenzo) is a fictional character and the main Bond girl in the 1963 James Bond novel ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service'', and its 1969 film adaptation. ...
. Rigg and Macnee remained lifelong friends. On 25 October 2015, to mark 50 years of Emma Peel, the BFI (
British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
) screened an episode of ''The Avengers'' followed by an onstage interview with Rigg, during which she discussed her reasons for leaving the show and Patrick Macnee's reaction to her departure.


Series 6 (1968–1969)

When Rigg left the series in October 1967, the British network executives decided that the current series formula, despite resulting in popular success, could not be pursued further. Thus, they decided that a "return to realism" was appropriate for the sixth series (1968–69). Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell were replaced by
John Bryce John Bryce (14 September 1833 – 17 January 1913) was a New Zealand politician from 1871 to 1891 and Minister of Native Affairs from 1879 to 1884. In his attitudes to Māori land questions, he favoured strict legal actions against Māori oppo ...
, producer of most of the Cathy Gale-era episodes. Bryce had a difficult situation to handle. He had to find a replacement for Rigg and shoot the first seven episodes of the new series, which were supposed to be shipped to the US together with the last eight Emma Peel colour episodes. Bryce signed his then-girlfriend, 20-year-old newcomer Linda Thorson, as the new female co-star and chose the name Tara King for her character. Thorson played the role with more innocence in mind and at heart, and unlike the previous partnerships with Cathy and Emma, the writers allowed subtle hints of romance to blossom between Steed and King. King also differed from Steed's previous partners in that she was a fully fledged (albeit initially inexperienced) agent working for Steed's organisation; his previous partners had all been (in the words of the prologue used for American broadcasts of the first Rigg series) talented amateurs. Bryce wanted Tara to be blonde, so Thorson's brown hair was bleached. However, the process badly damaged Thorson's hair, so she had to wear wigs for the first third of her episodes, until her own hair grew back. Her natural brown hair was not seen until the episode "All Done with Mirrors". Production of the first seven episodes of the sixth series began, but the financial problems and internal difficulties undermined Bryce's effort. He only managed to complete three episodes: "Invitation to a Killing" (a 90-minute episode introducing Tara King), "The Great, Great Britain Crime" (some of its original footage was reused in the 1969 episode "Homicide and Old Lace") and "Invasion of the Earthmen" (which survived relatively intact except for the scenes in which Tara wears a brown wig). After a
rough cut In filmmaking, the rough cut is the second of three stages of offline editing. The term originates from the early days of filmmaking when film stock was physically cut and reassembled, but is still used to describe projects that are recorded and ...
screening of these episodes to studio executives, Bryce was fired and Clemens and Fennell were summoned back. At their return, a fourth episode called "The Murderous Connection" was in its second day of production. After revising the script, it was renamed as "The Curious Case of the Countless Clues" and production resumed. Production of the episode "Split!", a leftover script from the Emma Peel colour series, proceeded. Two completely new episodes were also shot: "Get-A-Way", and "Look (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellers". Dennis Spooner said of the event: Clemens and Fennell decided to film a new episode to introduce Tara King. This, the third episode filmed for the sixth series, was titled "The Forget-Me-Knot" and bade farewell to Emma Peel and introduced her successor, a trained but inexperienced agent named Tara King. It would be broadcast as the first episode of the sixth series. Tara debuts in dynamic style: when Steed is called to Headquarters, he is attacked and knocked down by trainee agent King, who mistakes him for her training partner. No farewell scenes for Emma Peel had been shot when Rigg left the series. She was recalled for "
The Forget-Me-Knot "The Forget-Me-Knot" is the first episode of the sixth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series '' The Avengers'', starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and introducing Linda Thorson as Tara King. Its first broadcast was on t ...
", through which Emma acts as Steed's partner as usual. Rigg also filmed a farewell scene for Emma that appeared as the tag scene of the episode. It was explained that Emma's husband, Peter Peel, was found alive and rescued, and she left the
British secret service The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
to be with him. Emma visits Steed to say goodbye, and while leaving she passes Tara on the stairway giving the advice that "he likes his tea stirred anti-clockwise". Steed looks out of the window as a departing Emma enters the Bentley driven by Peter, who from a distance seems to resemble Steed (and was played by Steed's regular stunt double, with bowler hat and umbrella). Bryce's original episode introducing Tara, "Invitation to a Killing", was revised as a regular 60-minute episode named "Have Guns Will Haggle". These episodes, together with "Invasion of the Earthmen" and the last eight Peel colour episodes, were shipped to the US in February 1968. For this series the government official who gave Steed his orders was depicted on screen.
Mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given childbirth, birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the cas ...
, introduced in "The Forget-Me-Knot", is a man in a wheelchair. The role was taken by
Patrick Newell Patrick David Newell (27 March 1932 – 22 July 1988) was a British actor, known for his large size. Early life and education The second son of Eric Llewellyn Newell, of High Lodge, Hadleigh, Suffolk, an Oxford-educated physician who served ...
, who had played different roles in two earlier episodes, most recently in Series 5. Mother's headquarters would shift from place to place, including one episode in which his complete office was on the top level of a
double-decker bus A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. They are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and also in cities such as Sydney; the best-known example is the ...
. Several
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
films of the 1970s would make use of a similar gimmick for Bond's briefings. Added later as a regular was Mother's mute Amazonian assistant, Rhonda, played by uncredited actress Rhonda Parker. There was one appearance by an agency official code-named "Father", a blind older woman played by Iris Russell. (Russell had appeared in the series several times previously in other roles.) In one episode, "Killer", Steed is paired with Lady Diana Forbes Blakeney (
Jennifer Croxton Jennifer Croxton (born 1944 in Cambridge) is a British actress. Career Croxton guest-starred as Lady Diana Forbes-Blakeney opposite Patrick Macnee in the 1969 episode of ''The Avengers (TV series), The Avengers'', ''Killers'', a role which remai ...
) while King is on holiday. Scriptwriter Dennis Spooner later reflected: "When I wrote 'Look (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellers', that was definitely the last series. They were going to make no more, so in that series we went right over the top; we went ''really'' weird, because they knew there weren't going to be any more".Peel, John. "Dennis Spooner Interview". ''The Avengers Files: Emma's Last Year''. Psi Fi Movie Press, Inc. Canoga Park, CA, 1985, p 47. Spooner said the series "worked because it became a parody on itself, almost. You can only do that so long." He attributes the overall success of the show to its light approach: "We spoofed everything, we took ''Mission: Impossible'', ''
Bad Day at Black Rock ''Bad Day at Black Rock'' is a 1955 American neo-Western film directed by John Sturges with screenplay by Millard Kaufman. It stars Spencer Tracy and Robert Ryan with support from Anne Francis, Dean Jagger, Walter Brennan, John Ericson, Ernest ...
'', '' High Noon'', ''
The Dirty Dozen ''The Dirty Dozen'' is a 1967 American war film directed by Robert Aldrich and starring Lee Marvin with an ensemble supporting cast including Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, John Cassavetes, Richard Jaeckel, George Kennedy ...
'', '' The Birds''... we took them all. The film buffs used to love it. There were always lines in it that people knew what we were talking about". The revised series continued to be broadcast in the US. The episodes with Linda Thorson as King proved to be highly rated in Europe and the UK. However, in the US, the ABC network chose to air it opposite the number-one show in the country at the time, ''
Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Da ...
''. Steed and King could not compete, and the show was cancelled in the US. Without this vital commercial backing, production could not continue in Britain either, and the series ended in May 1969. The final scene of the final episode ("Bizarre") has Steed and King,
champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...
glasses in hand, accidentally launching themselves into orbit aboard a rocket, as Mother 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 ...
and says to the audience "They'll be back!", before adding in shock "They're unchaperoned up there!"


Cast

*
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 ...
as
John Steed Major The Hon. John Wickham Gascoyne Beresford Steed usually known as John Steed, is a fictional character and the central protagonist on the 1960s British spy series '' The Avengers'' and its 1970s sequel '' The New Avengers'', played by Patr ...
(Series 1–6) *
Ian Hendry Ian Mackendrick Hendry (13 January 1931 – 24 December 1984) was a British actor. He worked on several British TV series of the 1960s and 1970s, including the lead in the first series of '' The Avengers'' and '' The Lotus Eaters'', and played ...
as Dr David Keel (Series 1) *
Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962 ...
as
Cathy Gale Dr. Catherine "Cathy" Gale is a fictional character played by Honor Blackman, on the 1960s British series '' The Avengers''. She was the first regular female partner of John Steed, following the departure of Steed's original male co-star, Dr Davi ...
(Series 2–3) *
Jon Rollason Jon Rollason (9 April 1931 – 20 February 2016) was an English television actor. He is best remembered for the role of Dr. Martin King in '' The Avengers''. He also appeared in episodes of '' Doctor Who'' (as Harold Chorley in ''The Web of Fea ...
as Dr Martin King (Series 2) * Julie Stevens as Venus Smith (Series 2) *
Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series '' The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in ''On H ...
as
Emma Peel Emma Peel is a fictional spy played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, Sir John Knight. She ...
(Series 4–5) *
Linda Thorson Linda Thorson (born Linda Robinson; June 18, 1947) is a Canadian actress, known for playing Tara King in '' The Avengers'' (1968–69). Personal life Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, she attended Bishop Strachan School, and then moved to the ...
as
Tara King Tara King is a fictional character of British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', played by Canadian actress Linda Thorson. The sixth partner of agent John Steed (and fourth female partner), she appeared in series six (in colou ...
(Series 6)


Production


Music

The 1961 series featured a jazz-influenced theme by
John Dankworth Sir John Phillip William Dankworth, CBE (20 September 1927 – 6 February 2010), also known as Johnny Dankworth, was an English jazz composer, saxophonist, clarinettist and writer of film scores. With his wife, jazz singer Dame Cleo Laine, he ...
. Library music was used sparsely as a soundtrack, sometimes with variations based on the main theme. Dankworth's theme music was reworked for the third series. Dankworth's first theme was recorded on the Columbia label, on a 45rpm single, and a new recording, similar to the reworked television theme was issued on Fontana in 1963. A very faithful cover version was released by Johnny Gregory. When Rigg joined the series in 1965, the opening credits of the series were redesigned and new theme music by
Laurie Johnson Laurence Reginald Ward Johnson, (born 7 February 1927) is an English composer and bandleader who has written scores for dozens of film and television series and has been one of the most highly regarded arrangers of instrumental pop and swing ...
was introduced. This was based on a previously released title on LP, called "The Shake" (which capitalised on " The Shake" dance craze of the '60s). For the colour series (1967), a percussion section was added to accompany the new teaser sequence at the start of each episode. Johnson re-scored the theme when Linda Thorson joined the series, adding a counter-melody on trumpet, based on the
leitmotif A leitmotif or leitmotiv () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is an anglici ...
for Tara King from the final Rigg episode "The Forget-Me-Knot". The new theme debuted in the closing titles of the episode "The Forget-Me-Knot", which introduced Thorson. It was altogether more dynamic, and included a much more frenetic percussion section, for the revised teaser sequence. Importantly, the filmed episodes contained specially composed scores by Johnson. To accompany Steed's request "Mrs Peel – we're needed!", he composed a brief 'sting', and there was also a special theme for 'Emma'. For the 'Thorson' series, a characteristic piece was composed to accompany the tag scene, at the end of each episode. Many of the most memorable cues from the Rigg/Thorson series, including the opening, and closing titles themes, and the 'Tag Scene' were released commercially on CD in 2009. Owing to a professional commitment to score for the film ''
Hot Millions ''Hot Millions'' is a 1968 British caper story feature film made by MGM. It was directed by Eric Till and produced by Mildred Freed Alberg, from a collaborative screenplay by Ira Wallach and star Peter Ustinov. The music score was composed by ...
'' (starring
Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...
and
Maggie Smith Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (born 28 December 1934) is an English actress. With an extensive career on screen and stage beginning in the mid-1950s, Smith has appeared in more than sixty films and seventy plays. She is one of the few performer ...
), Johnson requested assistance from his keyboard player,
Howard Blake Howard David Blake (born 28 October 1938) is an English composer, conductor, and pianist whose career has spanned more than 50 years and produced more than 650 works. Blake's most successful work is his soundtrack for Channel 4’s 1982 film ' ...
, who scored some of the episodes of the final season, as well as additional music for other episodes which Johnson did not have time to complete. These were composed in a style remarkably similar to Johnson's. In 2011, to mark the 50th anniversary of the series, these almost-complete scores by Blake−including Johnson's themes for the main and end titles—were issued on a double-CD set. Of the original Johnson theme, countless cover versions have been released on vinyl and CD, and the opening motif was retained on the series ''The New Avengers''. Johnson subsequently collaborated with Clemens on other projects, including the theme for ''The New Avengers''.


Cars

The cars used in the series became almost as famous as the actors. From the 4th series on, Steed's signature cars were six vintage, green 1926–1928
Bentley Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded as Bentley Motors Limited by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Cricklewood, North ...
racing or town cars, including
Blower Bentley Blower may refer to: People * Blower (surname) * Henry Blofeld (born 1939), British sports journalist Other uses * Blower (snake) (''Heterodon platirhinos'') * Blower fan, a type of mechanical fan * Leaf blower, a gardening tool * Party b ...
s and
Bentley Speed Six The Bentley 6½ Litre and the high-performance Bentley Speed Six were rolling chassis in production from 1926 to 1930. The Speed Six, introduced in 1928, would become the most successful racing Bentley. Two Bentley Speed Sixes became known as th ...
es (although, uniquely, in "The Thirteenth Hole" he drives a
Vauxhall 30-98 The Vauxhall 30–98 is a car manufactured by Vauxhall at Luton, Bedfordshire from 1913 to 1927. In its day, its best-known configuration was the Vauxhall Velox (''velox'', ''veloc''- being Latin for "swift"/"fleet" and the source of English ''v ...
). In the final series, he drove two yellow
Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...
s – a 1923
Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost name refers both to a car model and one specific car from that series. Originally named the " 40/50 h.p." the chassis was first made at Royce's Manchester works, with production moving to Derby in July 1908, ...
and a 1927 Rolls-Royce New Phantom. Peel drove
Lotus Elan Lotus Elan is the name of two separate ranges of automobiles produced by Lotus Cars. The first series of cars was produced between 1962 and 1975 as a rear-wheel drive vehicle. The second series was produced between 1989 and 1995 as a front-wheel ...
convertibles (a white 1964 and a powder blue 1966), which, like her clothes, emphasised her independence and vitality. During the first Peel series (Series 4), each episode ended with a short, humorous scene of the duo leaving the scene of their most recent adventure in some unusual vehicle. Mother occasionally appeared in a silver Rolls-Royce. Tara King drove an
AC 428 __NOTOC__ Year 428 ( CDXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Felix and Taurus (or, less frequently, year 1181 ''Ab urb ...
and a
Lotus Europa The Lotus Europa name is used on two distinct mid-engine GT cars built by British automobile manufacturer Lotus Cars. The original Europa and its variants comprise the Lotus Types 46, 47, 54, 65 and 74, and were produced between 1966 and 1975. ...
. Lady Diana Forbes Blakeney drove an MGC Roadster.


Production team

Sydney Newman Sydney Cecil Newman (April 1, 1917 – October 30, 1997) was a Canadian film and television producer, who played a pioneering role in British television drama from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. After his return to Canada in 1970, Newman w ...
, who would later go on to spearhead the creation of ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...
'' for the BBC, never received screen credit as the creator of ''The Avengers''. In his memoir, ''The Avengers and Me'', Patrick Macnee interviewed Newman about this. Newman explained that he never sought on-screen credit on the series because during his previous tenure at the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...
, such credits were not given, and he never thought to get one for ''The Avengers''. The production team changed during the series' long run, particularly between the third and fourth series, but the influence of
Brian Clemens Brian Horace Clemens (30 July 1931 – 10 January 2015) was an English screenwriter and television producer, possibly best known for his work on '' The Avengers'' and '' The Professionals''. Clemens claimed to be related to Mark Twain (Samuel ...
was felt throughout. He wrote the second episode and became the series' most prolific scriptwriter. Succeeding producers Leonard White and John Bryce,
Julian Wintle Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (gi ...
became the producer of the 4th series with Brian Clemens credited as associate producer and
Albert Fennell Albert Fennell (29 March 1920, in Chiswick – 17 April 1988) was a British film and television producer. Fennell's film career began as a production designer and writer. His work as a film producer included ''Next to No Time'', (1958), ''Peepin ...
credited as "In charge of production". For series 5, made by A.B.C. Television Films (which was created during the run-up to ABC Weekend TV and Associated-Rediffusion forming Thames TV) Clemens and Fennell became co-producers, with Wintle as executive producer. For series 6, after its initial producer John Bryce left, Clemens and Fennell returned as co-producers; early episodes also credit Julian Wintle as consultant to the series and
Philip Levene Philip Levene (9 June 1926 – 25 March 1973) was an English television writer, actor, and producer. He trained as an actor at the Webber Douglas School of Dramatic Art and subsequent work included a small role in Brian Rix's long running White ...
as story consultant. Ray Austin became the fight arranger for series 4 and 5, introducing kung fu to the series. Ray Austin had been training with Chee Soo and they worked techniques from Feng Shou Kung fu and
T'ai Chi Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called " shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. ...
into the fight scenes and credit sequences. Ray Austin, Diana Rigg and Chee Soo were later awarded a
Guinness world record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
as the first people to show kung fu on television. Later he became a prolific television director. Joe Dunne took over for series 6.


Episodes

Six series of ''The Avengers'' were made between 1961 and 1969. There was an enforced break in filming and transmission towards the end of series five due to financial problems. Television researcher Andrew Pixley and authors
Paul Cornell Paul Douglas Cornell (born 18 July 1967) is a British writer best known for his work in television drama as well as ''Doctor Who'' fiction, and as the creator of one of the Doctor's spin-off companions, Bernice Summerfield. As well as ''Docto ...
, Martin Day and
Keith Topping Keith Andrew Topping (born 26 October 1963 in Walker, Tyneside) is an author, journalist and broadcaster. He is most well known for his work relating to the BBC Television series ''Doctor Who'' and for writing numerous official and unofficial g ...
in their book ''The Avengers Dossier: The Unauthorised and Unofficial Guide'' consider the last eight episodes produced after the break as constituting a short series six, and therefore count seven series in total. Within the internal production of ''The Avengers'' the last eight episodes were considered to be a continuation of series five.


Reception


In Canada and the United States

Although telerecordings of the second and third series were seen in Canada as early as 1963, the first two series of ''The Avengers'' were not broadcast on television in the United States. ABC purchased the rights to broadcast seasons 4 and 5 in the United States in 1965. The sale of ''The Avengers'' to United States television prompted a change in production style from the 405-line British multi-camera stand to the single-camera shooting method, originated on
35mm film 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film * 35 mm movie film, a type of motion picture film stock * 35MM 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format ...
. The series' stunt man and stunt arranger Ray Austin expressed the opinion that the show's violence ultimately harmed its popular success in the United States. There ''The Avengers'' was given a late timeslot due to its violence: "They did that with the first ''Avengers'' here
n the U.S. N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...
with Diana Rigg. They put us on at 11:30 pm on CBS , because it was too violent". Austin goes on to explain that US television follows a "different code". Austin said that on ''The Avengers'' "we were determined to do the show our way, the English way, and no one was going to stop us! And, indeed, no one did stop us. We never, never got to prime time. And it was our own faults, because we would not comply to the Midwest. That's where the money comes from in this country, nowhere else. Forget Los Angeles, forget New York—you have to aim for the Midwest. If the Midwest watches your show, you've made it".Peel, John. "Ray Austin Interview". ''The Avengers Files: Seasons Three & Four''. New Media Books. Canoga Park, CA, 1985, p 83. In fact the first and second series of Emma Peel episodes mainly aired at 10:00 pm on ABC. The final Rigg episodes and all the Linda Thorson episodes mainly ran at 7:30 pm, also on ABC. American censors objected to some content, in particular the episode "A Touch of Brimstone", which featured a modern-day version of the
Hellfire Club Hellfire Club was a name for several exclusive clubs for high-society rakes established in Britain and Ireland in the 18th century. The name most commonly refers to Francis Dashwood's Order of the Friars of St. Francis of Wycombe. Such clubs, ...
and climaxed with Emma being dressed in a skimpy corset costume with spiked collar and high-heeled boots to become the Queen of Sin, and being attacked with a whip by guest star
Peter Wyngarde Peter Paul Wyngarde (born Cyril Goldbert, 23 August 1927 – 15 January 2018) was a British television, stage and film actor from the late 1940s to the mid 1990s. He was best known for portraying the character Jason King, a bestselling novelist ...
. The American broadcast network refused to air it. In total five episodes from the first Emma Peel series were not initially broadcast by ABC. These were: "A Surfeit of H2O", "Silent Dust" (which featured Emma being attacked with a horsewhip), "Quick-Quick Slow Death", "A Touch of Brimstone" and "Honey for the Prince" (in which Emma performed the dance of the seven veils), although they were seen in later syndicated repeats. Earlier Cathy Gale and Venus Smith episodes had aired in Canada before the arrival of Mrs. Peel. US audiences saw the 1962–1964 Gale and Smith episodes of the series for the first time in the early 1990s when they were broadcast on the
A&E Network A&E is an American basic cable network, the flagship television property of A&E Networks. The network was originally founded in 1984 as the Arts & Entertainment Network, initially focusing on fine arts, documentaries, television drama, dramas, and ...
. No Keel episode of the series was ever repeatedly broadcast outside Britain, contributing to the fact nearly all first-series episodes are now lost, and even in the UK only one surviving episode, "The Frighteners", was rebroadcast (as part of a run of classic episodes on
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
in early 1993, otherwise mostly consisting of Gale episodes).


Home media

Only three complete episodes from the show's first series, plus a portion of another episode, are known to exist, as 16mm film telerecordings. These are "The Frighteners" (an extract of which is playing on a television in the film ''
Quadrophenia ''Quadrophenia'' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released as a double album on 26 October 1973 by Track Records. It is the group's third rock opera, the two previous being the "mini-opera" song "A Quick One, Whil ...
''), "Girl on the Trapeze", which was found in the UCLA Film and Television Archive via an internet search of their on-line database, and "Tunnel of Fear", which was found in 2016. Additionally, part of the show's first episode was also found in the United States. The footage is of the episode's first 21 minutes, up to the first commercial break. All series 2 and series 3 episodes survive as 16mm telerecordings. These have been released to DVD, as have all of the Emma Peel and Tara King episodes, which were shot on film. The two earlier-found surviving complete Keel episodes, plus the remnant of the first episode, have also been released in the UK and US, but are not currently available in the US. None of the original videotapes of series 1, 2 and 3 survive. From the late 1990s to the early 2000s, A&E Home Video, A&E TV Home Entertainment (under license from Studiocanal, Canal+ Image International) released the remaining surviving series on Region 1 DVD in North America, with newly remastered picture and sound quality. Series 4, 5 and 6 were remastered and released on Blu-ray by Studio Canal.


Sequel


''The New Avengers''

The sustained popularity of the Tara King episodes in France led to a 1975 French television advertisement for Laurent-Perrier champagne, in which Thorson and Macnee reprised their roles. The advertisement's success spurred financing interest in France for new episodes of ''The Avengers''. The result was a new series, ''The New Avengers''. Patrick Macnee reprised the role of Steed, with two new partners, Mike Gambit (Gareth Hunt) and Purdey (Joanna Lumley). It aired on
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
in the UK in 1976–1977, CTV television network, CTV in Canada, CBS in the United States (in 1978–79) and TF1 in France (series 1 in 1976–1977 and series 2 in 1979). The final four episodes were almost completely produced by Canadian interests and were filmed there. In some markets they carried the title ''The New Avengers in Canada''. Although Macnee was the only actor from the original series to reprise his role, archival footage of Diana Rigg allowed Emma Peel to make a cameo appearance in a second-season episode "K is for Kill: The Tiger Awakes", while Macnee's first co-star, Ian Hendry, made a guest appearance as a different character in the episode "To Catch a Rat".


Spin-offs


Novels

A number of original novels based on the series were published in the 1960s. The first by Douglas Enefer, published by Consul Books, was the only 60s novel to feature Cathy Gale. Panther Books published four novels written by John Garforth featuring Emma Peel in the United Kingdom in 1967; Berkley Medallion Books reprinted these in the United States. After Panther stopped publishing ''Avengers'' novels in the UK, Berkley Medallion continued publishing original novels of their own: one featuring Peel and four featuring Tara King for the US market only; three by Keith Laumer in 1968; and two by Norman Daniels 1968/69. Berkley Medallion later re-printed all nine novels with new covers that featured photos of both Rigg and Thorson, regardless of which ''Avengers'' girl appeared in the novel. The two novels published by Hodder and Stoughton in 1965/66 were co-written by Patrick Macnee, making him one of the first actors to write licensed spin-off fiction of their own shows. The Macnee novels, ''Deadline'' and ''Dead Duck'', were reprinted in the UK by Titan Books in standard paperback in 1994 and in France by Huitieme Art (1995 & 1996). They were also published in the US for the first time by TV Books in 1998. Titan reissued the books in Trade paperback (comics), trade paperback format (with the same covers) to coincide with the release of the The Avengers (1998 film), 1998 feature film. The 1990 novel ''Too Many Targets'' by John Peel (writer), John Peel featured all of Steed's partners (David Keel, Cathy Gale, Emma Peel and Tara King) with the exception of Venus Smith and Dr Martin King. * ''The Avengers'', Douglas Enefer, 1963 * ''Deadline'', Patrick Macnee and Peter Leslie, 1965 * ''Dead Duck'', Macnee and Leslie, 1966 * ''The Floating Game'', John Garforth, 1967 * ''The Laugh Was on Lazarus'', Garforth, 1967 * ''The Passing of Gloria Munday'', Garforth, 1967 * ''Heil Harris!'', Garforth, 1967 * ''The Afrit Affair'', Keith Laumer, 1968 * ''The Drowned Queen'', Laumer, 1968 * ''The Gold Bomb'', Laumer, 1968 * ''The Magnetic Man'', Norman A. Daniels, 1968 * ''Moon Express'', Daniels, 1969 * ''John Steed: An Authorized Biography Vol. 1: Jealous in Honour'', Tim Heald, 1977 (UK release only) * A four volume fan fiction set produced in Australia but authorised. ** Vol. 1 ''The Weather Merchants'' (1989) by Dave Rogers and Barlow; Rogers had previously written several non-fiction books about the series ** Vol. 2 ''The Monster of the Moor'' (1990) by Barlow ** Vol. 3 ''Before the Mast'' (1991). A Tara short story, produced only in photocopied supplement format ** Vol. 4 (1994). Contains two stories, ''Moonlight Express'' and ''The Spoilsports''. * ''Too Many Targets'', John Peel (writer), John Peel and Rogers, 1990. * ''The Avengers'', Julie Kaewert, 1998 (film novelisation) A short story by Peter Leslie entitled "What's a Ghoul Like You Doing in a Place Like This?" appeared in ''The Television Crimebusters Omnibus'', a hardback anthology edited by Peter Haining (author), Peter Haining, first published by Orion in 1994 (this Steed and Tara story first appeared in the 1969 UK Avengers annual, from Atlas publications). Both of the Macnee/Leslie UK paperback titles were translated and published in Portugal in 1967 as ''Os Vingadores: O Dia Depois De Amanha'' (''Deadline'') and ''Os Vingadores: O Pato Morto'' (''Dead Duck'') by Deaga. All four UK John Garforth Panther book paperbacks were translated and published by Roman in France (1967), a paperback omnibus edition was published in 1998 by Fleuve Noir. Three of the Garforth paperbacks were also translated and published by Heyne in Germany (1967/68) (''Heil Harris!'' was not translated for obvious reasons) and a German hardback omnibus edition of the three titles was published by Lichtenberg (1968), reprinted in paperback by Heyne in 1998. All four titles were also translated and published in the Netherlands by Bruna (1967) and in Chile by Zig-Zag (1968).


Comics

The first UK Avengers comic strips, featuring Steed and
Cathy Gale Dr. Catherine "Cathy" Gale is a fictional character played by Honor Blackman, on the 1960s British series '' The Avengers''. She was the first regular female partner of John Steed, following the departure of Steed's original male co-star, Dr Davi ...
, first appeared in regional TV listings magazines ''Look Westward'' and ''The Viewer'' from 14 September 1963 to 9 May 1964 (and later in 1964, re-printed in the ''Manchester Evening News''). This run consisted of four serials. Steed and Mrs Peel comic strips began in Polystyle Publications' ''TV Comic'' in issue #720, dated 2 October 1965, beginning after the TV debut of
Emma Peel Emma Peel is a fictional spy played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, Sir John Knight. She ...
, and ran until issue #771, dated 24 September 1966 – this run consisted of 10 serials plus one 4-page one-off in ''TV Comic Holiday Special'' (June 1966). At that point the rights were sold to publishers D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, where the next version of the strip appeared in issue #199, dated 10 December 1966, of ''Diana'' the popular paper for girls. Its run ended in issue #224, dated 2 June 1967, with art by Emilio Frejo and Juan Gonzalez Alacrojo – this run consisted of 8 serials. Earlier, ''The Growing Up of Emma Peel'' comic strip had appeared in ''June and Schoolfriend'' comic from issue #52, dated 29 January 1966, to issue #63, dated 16 April 1966. This had featured the adventures of 14-year-old Emma Knight and was run concurrent with the ''TV Comic'' strip and consisted of 11 instalments. The Avengers returned to ''TV Comic'' issue #877, dated 5 October 1968, just after
Tara King Tara King is a fictional character of British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', played by Canadian actress Linda Thorson. The sixth partner of agent John Steed (and fourth female partner), she appeared in series six (in colou ...
debuted on TV, the Tara & Steed strip continued until issue #1077, dated 5 August 1972. This run consisted of 28 serials plus a 4-page one-off in ''TV Comic Holiday Special 1972''. Also in 1966 Thorpe & Porter published a 68-page Avengers comic featuring Steed & Peel, with original art by Mick Anglo and Mick Austin — this consisted of four 16-page stories. A few ''Avengers''-related comic books have been published in the USA. They are not named ''The Avengers'' because the rights to the names "Avengers" and "New Avengers" are held by Marvel Comics for use with their Avengers (comics), Avengers comics depicting a team of superheroes called ''The Avengers''. Gold Key Comics published one issue of ''John Steed Emma Peel'' in 1968 (subtitled ''The Avengers'' on the Indicia (publishing), Indicia page), which included two newly coloured and reformatted ''The Avengers'' strips from ''TV Comic''. A 3-issue limited entitled ''Steed and Mrs. Peel'' appeared in 1990–1992 under the Acme Press/Eclipse Comics imprint; it featured a three-part story, "The Golden Game" in issues #1–3, by Grant Morrison and a two-part story, in issues #2 & #3, "A Deadly Rainbow" by Anne Caulfield; both strips had art by Ian Gibson (artist), Ian Gibson. Boom! Studios reprinted this series in six issues in early 2012, and later published a new ongoing series written by Mark Waid and Caleb Monroe which lasted 12 issues. Boom! subsequently announced a six-issue follow-up series, ''Steed and Mrs. Peel: We're Needed'', which was launched in the summer of 2014. Despite issue #1 showing "1 of 6", only 3 issues were produced ("2 of 3" and "3 of 3" showing on the other issues, with the cover for issue #3 being the one originally planned for issue #4 which was planned to be the start of another 3-issue story). In the UK, where hardback annuals are traditionally produced for sale at Christmas, The Avengers first appeared in ''TV Crimebusters Annual'' (1962) and featured a 7-page comic strip with Dr David Keel titled ''The Drug Pedlar''. Atlas Publications produced three ''The Avengers'' hardback Annuals for 1967, 1968 and 1969, which also featured original Avengers comic strips featuring Steed, Emma Peel, and Tara King, as well as text stories. The ''TV Comic'' Avengers strips and the 1966 Avengers comic and a few comic strips from the Annuals have been translated and published in Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Chile. The Avengers also have made a number of cameo appearances in comics over the years: * In 1991's ''Doctor Who Magazine'' #173, Gary Russell and artists Mike Collins (comics), Mike Collins and Steve Pini show Captain Britain about to hit John Steed when Emma Peel shows up behind him. * Emma Peel and John Steed were seen among the crowd in a bar scene in ''Kingdom Come (comics), Kingdom Come'' #2 (1996) by Mark Waid and Alex Ross. * Emma Peel and John Steed appeared unnamed in ''Superman (comic book), Superman'' #13 (1988) by John Byrne (comics), John Byrne and Karl Kesel. * A crossover series, ''Batman '66 Meets Steed and Mrs. Peel'', was launched in June 2016 as a joint effort between DC Comics and Boom! Studios. * Alan Moore's ''League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'' is littered with oblique references to events and characters in ''The Avengers'', with three unnamed characters that are clearly Purdey, Tara and Emma appearing at the end of the book "Century: 2009".


Stage play

A stage adaptation was produced in Britain in 1971, written by TV series veterans Brian Clemens and Terence Feely, and directed by Leslie Phillips. It starred Simon Oates as Steed, Sue Lloyd as new partner Hannah Wild, and Kate O'Mara as villainess Madame Gerda. All three had guest roles in the original series. A character named Hana Wilde (played by Charlotte Rampling) had essentially acted as Steed's partner in series five's "The Superlative Seven", an episode in which Emma Peel appears only briefly. According to John Peel in his overview of "The Superlative Seven", Charlotte Rampling was rumoured to be grooming up to replace Diana Rigg in this story, but nothing ever came of that".Peel, John. "Season Five Episode Guide". ''The Avengers Files: Emma's Last Year''. Psi Fi Movie Press, Inc. Canoga Park, CA, 1985, p 29.


Radio series

A radio series was transmitted between 6 December 1971 and 28 December 1973 on Springbok Radio, the English-language service of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC); it was recorded at Sonovision Studios in Johannesburg, produced by Dave Gooden, the original TV scripts were adapted and directed by Tony Jay, for the first six months and Dennis Folbigge for the remainder. South Africa did not have national television until 1976. The episodes were adapted from both Emma Peel and Tara King episodes (with Tara changed to Emma Peel throughout). The Avengers were played by two British expatriate actors, Donald Monat as Steed and Diane Appleby as Mrs Peel, with Hugh Rouse as the tongue-in-cheek narrator. The stories were adapted into five-episode serials under Tony Jay and six- and seven-episode serials under Dennis Folbigge, of approximately 15 minutes each (including adverts) and stripped across the week, Monday-Friday, on Springbok Radio. Currently only 19 complete serials survive, all from reel-to-reel off-air recordings made by John Wright in 1972. Also, the first three episodes of a remake of ''Escape in Time'' currently exist. Episodes 1 and 2 are copies from the original Sonovision tapes, and episode 3 is from an off-air recording, on audio cassette, made by Barbara Peterson; the rest of this serial is still missing. These episodes are also known to have been transmitted in New York on station WBAI on 99.5 FM, from 1977 to the early 1990s, and are currently being transmitted on Miami station WRGP on early Monday mornings. Copies from the original off-air recordings have been restored by Alan and Alys Hayes, and can be heard at their "The Avengers Declassified" website and its sister website "Avengers on the Radio". Many more serials were broadcast during its two-year run on South African radio; it is thought 83 serials were made and transmitted, but no other episodes are known to exist at present.


Film

Plans for a film adaptation, feature-length adaptation based upon the series circulated during the 1960s, 1980s and 1990s, with Mel Gibson at one point being considered a front-runner for the role of Steed. Ultimately, the 1998 film, starring Uma Thurman as Emma Peel and Ralph Fiennes as John Steed, with
Sean Connery Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...
as the villain, received List of films considered the worst#The Avengers (1998), extremely negative reviews from critics and fans, and is a box office bomb, notorious commercial failure.


Audio

In June 2013,
Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on cult science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'', the ...
signed a license with StudioCanal to produce full-cast audio productions of 12 lost first season episodes. The main cast includes
Julian Wadham Julian Neil Rohan Wadham (born 7 August 1958) is an English actor of stage, film and television. He was educated at Ampleforth College and the Central School of Speech and Drama, third son of Rohan Nicholas Wadham DFC and Juliana Wadham, née ...
as Steed, Anthony Howell as Dr David Keel, and Lucy Briggs-Owen as Carol Wilson. The stories are adapted for audio by John Dorney. In January 2014, Volume One, containing the first four stories, ("Hot Snow", "Brought to Book", "Square Root of Evil" and "One for the Mortuary") was released. Volume Two, containing the next four stories, ("Ashes of Roses", "Please Don't Feed the Animals", "The Radioactive Man" and "Dance with Death") was released in July 2014. Volume Three, containing the next four stories, was released in January 2015. In March 2014, Big Finish extended the audio recreation programme to include all 26 season one episodes, including the then-two extant stories. A total of seven boxed sets were released.


See also

* List of The Avengers and The New Avengers cast members, List of ''The Avengers'' and ''The New Avengers'' cast members * Avengerland, a variant of Metro-land * ''Honey West (TV series), Honey West'' * ''The Saint (TV series), The Saint''


References


Bibliography

* ''The Avengers'' by Dave Rogers (ITV Books in association with Michael Joseph Ltd., 1983) * ''The Avengers Anew'' by Dave Rogers (Michael Joseph Ltd., 1985) * ''The Complete Avengers'' by Dave Rogers (Boxtree Ltd., in Great Britain, 1989; St. Martin's Press, in America, 1989) * ''The Ultimate Avengers'' by Dave Rogers (Boxtree Ltd., in Great Britain, 1995) * ''The Avengers and Me'' by Patrick Macnee and Dave Rogers (New York: TV Books, 1997). * ''The Avengers Companion'' by Alain Carrazé and Jean-Luc Putheaud, with Alex J. Gearns (Bay Books, 1998) * ''The Avengers Dossier: The Definitive Unauthorised Guide'' by Paul Cornell, Martin Day and Keith Topping (London: Virgin Books, 1998) * ''The Avengers: A Celebration: 50 Years of a Television Classic'' by Marcus Hearn (London: Titan Books, 2010) * ''Bowler Hats and Kinky Boots: The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to the Avengers'' by Michael Richardson (London: Telos Publishing Ltd, 2014) * ''Two Against the Underworld: The Collected Unauthorised Guide to The Avengers Series 1'' by Alan Hayes, Richard McGinlay, Alys Hayes (London: Hidden Tiger, 2017) * ''Quite, Quite Fantastic! The Avengers for Modern Viewers'' by Michael Scott Phillips (Atlanta: GR, OWL Books, 2018).


External links

*
The Avengers Episode Guide
(all series)



* *
TheAvengers.TV
– An International Family of Websites Devoted to The Avengers


Avengers the Journey Back Special

Stapleford Miniature Railway Leics, location of the "Grave diggers" episode

The Avengers Blog, Department of Media, University of Chichester

Official Web site of Ian Hendry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avengers, The The Avengers (TV series), 1961 British television series debuts 1969 British television series endings 1960s British comedy television series 1960s British crime television series 1960s British mystery television series Black-and-white British television shows Television shows shot at Associated British Studios English-language television shows Espionage television series Gold Key Comics titles ITV mystery shows British action television series Television shows produced by ABC Weekend TV Television shows produced by Thames Television Television shows adapted into radio programs Television shows adapted into films Television shows adapted into novels Television shows adapted into comics Television shows adapted into plays Television series created by Sydney Newman Television shows shot at Teddington Studios