Prismatic Reflection

     An old, old friend of mine, who never gives up, once asked the question why doesn’t someone write an ‘Idiots Guide To The Prisoner?’ And even went so far as to suggest that I myself write such a guide. Well what would I want to go and do that for, what idiot, I mean person, is going to read something like that?
     Who is the Prisoner? Patrick McGoohan.
     Who is Number 1? Patrick McGoohan.
     Why did the Prisoner resign? For peace of mind, because too many people know too much.
     Where is the Village? Its Portmeirion in North Wales.
    What is the Village Guardian? A meteorological weather balloon.
     Who is Number 2? The Chairman of the Village, and Chief Administrator.
     Is Potter of ’The Girl Who Was Death’ the Labour Exchange Manager in ‘Arrival,’ and Number 14 assistant to Number 2 during ‘The Chimes of Big Ben?’ No, it’s simply a question of three parts being played by the same actor.
    Is Thorpe Number 2 in ‘Hammer Into Anvil?’ No, just two parts being played by the same actor.
    Why the need for the change of Number 2’s in ‘Arrival?’ Because Guy Doleman was dismissed from the production, for misbehaving!!!!
    Why do the taxi driver, the Prisoner’s personal maid, and the ex-Admiral wear the same numbered 66 badge in ‘Arrival?’ Because continuity lady Doris Martin wasn’t paying proper attention!
    Which side runs the Village? The British.
    How long has the Village been going? A long time.
    What is the Village? A small unit of our own society. A blueprint for world order. A prediction for the future.
    Is there any escape from the Village? No, except through death!
    Of course the questions and answers listed here, are but the tip of the iceberg, and many more questions would have to be asked and answered in the same way. And any such explanations, and interpretations would also be required to be stated in a simplistic manner. And then the question might be raised, would the author of such a work be strong willed enough to keep to this most strict discipline? And not be tempted to go along varying avenues in order to supply answers, as is the normal case where ‘the Prisoner’ is concerned. Because as we all know, just as one is proving one answer, you can so easily be led along a very different avenue of thought in regard to the question asked. It would take considerable super human will power to keep to a simplified explanation of ‘the Prisoner.’ And once completed, would anyone really bother to read it? Would aficionados of ’the Prisoner’ take to such a simplification of the series? I have always subscribed to the idea that more often than not, the simple answer is better than the more complicated and elaborate explanation. Although as I’m sure some would agree with me, there are others who might not.
    Only recently I was commenting with a Mister Anonymous about a topic regarding ‘the Prisoner’ which had come about from a piece of blog I had posted, you may have read the comments yourself. Anyway, there I was, thinking about how ‘the Prisoner’ might have been projected if McGoohan had finished the series with only 13 episodes. Mister Anonymous said that it would be the first 13 original episodes plus ‘Fall Out.’ But there was no conception of ‘Fall Out’ at the time of the production of the first thirteen episodes. If one is to make up the series by using the original 13 episodes as they were at the time, one cannot use ‘Fall Out,’ as the script for that episode was not written at that time. This is by no means disrespectful to Mister Anonymous, the trouble being, the more I thought about it, the deeper I delved into the subject in hand, the more lost I became in the whole thing. In fact so lost did I become in thinking about it, that I had to give up and go and lie down in a darkened room for half an hour. Well, to stop and go and do something else for half an hour, which amounted to much the same thing. But that is what has made ‘the Prisoner’ so enduring over the past 45 years, why it has endured, and will hopefully continue to do so while there are such aficionado’s as yourself and myself to keep finding things to write, and discuss about the series. And when I think about it, it’s quite remarkable that we still do!
    Over the years many books and publications have been published about ‘the Prisoner’ series, some good, some indifferent, and others which are just downright awful. So does that leave room for a quick and simple ‘Idiots Guide To The Prisoner,’ and is it possible to write such a book?

I’ll be seeing you