The Therapy Zone

Village Observation: Incidentally, the passport seen to be collected by the Prisoner during the opening sequence to the series, was actually the passport belonging to John O’Conner, who was the floor man on “the Prisoner. Why John O’Conner’s passport? Well a passport was required for the scene and a passport had been forgotten, so John volunteered his own. Why John would have his passport with him at the time…. is err unknown.

Fall Out

   I read in an old magazine article that when he was finally confronted with the truth - that he was No.1, the Prisoner seemed to go berserk, bringing destruction to the village before escaping with Number two, the butler and the youth.

   Well in my opinion the Prisoner didn't go berserk. To me he appeared calm and calculating, in the way he set the countdown for the rocket, and the way in which he was instrumental in commencing a bloody and violent revolution.

  As I see it, it was No.1 who went berserk, charging about the control room, and screaming wildly, clambering up the ladder into the nose cone of the rocket, when having been confronted with the truth that he was No.6!

 

On The Village McGoohan said.......

..........."It was trying to destroy the individual by every means possible; trying to break his spirit so that he accepts that he is a number - No.6 - and will live there happily after. But he is the one rebel they can't break."

   Well that's as may be, but it wasn't long before this rebel can make a mistake. Indeed it was during the episode of The Chimes of Big Ben that the Prisoner actually admitted to Nadia-No.8 as to who he was.

    "No names. I am No.6, you are No.8."

   So the evidence is clear, that the Prisoner accepted his number so early in the game. But then perhaps that was better than to actually give his name away. One wonders why he did not, after all Nadia Rakovski, if that was in fact her real name, told No.6 who she was. Well, the Prisoner has, in the past, been used to using pseudonyms. He could have told her that his name was Peter Smith, possibly as false as Nadia's!

Be seeing you