Number 6 “it’s not the same!”
Number 2 “Same?”
Number 6 “You’ve changed things, little things. This rubbish is not mine, this should be guilt not silver.”
Number 2 “I shouldn’t try that line with him if I were you, Number 6 has a very strong sense of territory, you won’t shake him on his possessions.”
And so what of the prisoner’s personal possessions, the furniture, pictures, prints, paintings, ornaments, fixture and fittings of ‘6 private’ and No 1 Buckingham place?
It could have been the case that once the abduction of the prisoner the removal men moved in, stripped out the entire contents of the lounge of the prisoner’s home, packed everything up and transported it to the village just in time to fit out the lounge of ‘6 private’ just in time for the prisoner’s arrival.
Well it could have happened like that, but it would have been a bit of a tight schedule with all that packing and unpacking, not to mention the transportation all the way to the village from London
And then of course there is ‘Many Happy Returns’ and the prisoner escape’s from the village, and as soon as Number 6 sets sail aboard his raft the entire contents of the lounge of ‘6 private’ has to be packed up and shipped back to London and fitted out in No 1 Buckingham Place ready for Mrs Butterworth to take up residence in time for the return of the previous tenant.
But of course if that isn’t enough, after the Prisoner has been fed, washed, shaved and attired out properly he leaves Mrs Butterworth and drives off in her lotus seven, leant to him on condition that he fixes that nasty overheating, and he must forget to come back, she might even bake him a birthday cake.
Of course the prisoner doesn’t come back and Mrs Butterworth knows that he will not becoming back as she stands there on the pavement waving the prisoner off on his way. Mrs Butterworth then vacates No 1 Buckingham Place as soon as the prisoner has left, the removal men move in yet again, strip everything out of the lounge, pack it all up and transport it all back to the village in readiness for the prisoner’s happy return.
Then again this whole procedure has to be repeated in ‘Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling’, well of course that’s quite ridiculous to try and carry out that kind of operation, it would be a complete waste of time and man hours, not to mention a great deal of work all for nothing.
Much better to have a huge, vast warehouse somewhere close to the village, stocked with every conceivable item one might wish for, and for items that could not be found and purchased, then craftsmen of every kind would be on hand to replicate any individual piece of pottery, furniture, metal work, figurines, statuettes, pictures painting, prints, carpets, rugs anything and everything. There would also be countless fixtures and fitting from every country and every style ready to fit out any cottage ready for a new arrival.
Any work need to be carried out on any particular cottage in readiness for any particular new arrival is carried out at night when the entire residents of the village were asleep, and well in advance of any such new arrival. This would entail interior structural alterations inside a cottage, painting and decorating and totally fitting out to make it a real ‘home from home’ cottage for any new arrival, an exact replica of their own home of course.
But then only one room of any cottage can be fitted out as an exact replica of a room found in a resident’s former home, from which they have been abducted and in which they will wake up in here in the village.
Well we can hardly replicate full sized houses now can we, think of the time and man power it would take, say to replicate the entire house of No 1 Buckingham Place, it just couldn’t be done, certainly not in the confines of the village, that is why only the lounge of No 1 Buckingham Place was ever replicated in ‘6 private’ anything more would be clearly impossible.
Concerning the matter of replicated items, in ‘Hammer into Anvil’ there is a fight scene between Number 6 and Number 14 which takes in ‘6 private’, and during the fight many items are bashed into and over turned, items which after wards will need replacing, or replicated. Not forgetting of course the structural damage to both the railings and French window through which number 6 throws number 14, taking the railings of the balcony with him!
As regarding the lounge of No 1 Buckingham Place replicated in ‘6 private’, it is not an exact replication of the original, there are certain subtle differences. Like the small window above the couch upon which the prisoner first awakens in his new ‘home from home’, the French window leading out onto a small balcony and the door of the lounge which in No 1 Buckingham Place opens into the hallway, but in the Village is actually the door to the cottage ‘6 private.’
Also whilst Mrs Butterworth is in residence at No 1 Buckingham Place she has made on or two subtle changes, her deceased husband photograph upon the mantle piece for one.
And quite obviously she didn’t like the gold coloured screen to the left of the door as you look at it, because it isn’t there, however when number 6 in the guise or body of the Colonel returns to his London home in ‘Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling’ the gold coloured screen has been replaced, yet the heavy wood carving above the couch where upon the prisoner awoke, has been replaced with a framed oriental, possibly Japanese, piece of work, the edge of which can be seen in the picture above. But it seems that someone has slipped up and has replaced the oils painting and two prints not with the three caricatures, but by three water colour paintings!
Also on the back wall of the lounge there are three colour prints of caricatures of past notable figures of their time, removed by Mrs Butterworth and replace with an elaborately framed oil painting of a dancer and two indistinguishable prints to give the lounge that feminine touch, rather than the masculine one of its former resident. Yet she kept the heavy wood carving, which she must obviously have liked.
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Assuming that No. 6 wasn't immediately taken to the Village after knocking him out there would have been time enough to set up and dress the "Buckingham part" of his new home-from-home exactly like the London original. Perhaps they would also get some of the furniture but not everything. His arrival at 1 Buckingham Place in "Returns" was surely being planned ahead by the Village. So the missing item could have been taken back again now serving Ms. Butterworth. I can't see why the Village shouldn't have done so too when No. 6's mind in the body of the Colonel got back to his home in "Forsake". Of course, we aren't - or shouldn't - be talking in terms of efficiency, waste of man power and money. No. 6 was too valuable. - BCNU!
ReplyDeleteHello Arno,
DeleteI quite agree, there would have been time enough to dress the study area of Number 6's cottage, as it is back in his London house. And yes, they could have taken all the contents back to the Prisoner's house in time for his return there in 'Many happy Returns,' and then back again for his unhappy return to the Village. And yet again in time for the Prisoner to wake up in his London home again in 'Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling.' But think of the logistical problems, if something had gone wrong during transit of the contents of the study backwards and fowards so many times, the game would have been up.
We know that during 'Fall Out' the Prisoner's house in London was being made ready for him. But does that mean that the furnishing of his cottage in the Village have been taken back to London just in case he was going to decide to leave the Village. But what if Number 6 had decided to accept the offer of ultimate power? They would have to bring it all back again!
There is another aspect of this. Mrs Butterworth told the Prisoner in 'Many Happy Returns,' that she had taken on the lease of the house for ten years, the house fully furnished. It's the 'fully furnished' bit that interests me. Such a a large house, are we really expected to believe that the Prisoner owned all the contents of that house, not just those in the study? It is my opinion that the Prisoner did not own the fixtures, fittings, and furniture in the house, but that they came with the house, making them someone elses property. Apart from a few personal possessions belonging to the Prisoner.
Morag and I have had a fine Great Debate about this. Morag believes that the Prisoner did own everything in the house. While I believe he took on the lease of the house fully furnished, as said by Mrs Butterworth. After all he did mention there being a inventory of the contents of the house.
I would be interested in your thoughts further to this topic.
Kind regards
David
BCNU
As for preparing his home for his return in "Fall Out": What tells us that the moving images we see are live images? They could as well be pre-recorded ones. Because they did know what they were going to do with No. 6, what they were going to ask him. Accept the position as a leader although unlikely - alright, go ahead! Take the money and leave - well let him go. No. 6 had been filed, profiled, indexed. The Village being able to do alomst anything with almost inexhaustible resources would have been prepared for any of No. 6's responses.
ReplyDeleteAs for his home 1 Buckingham Place: It must be a genuine German perspective because not many people here would rent a large flat or even a house completely furnished let alone buy one. Except perhaps from people who would have to live there for a specific period of time because of their profession. Well, No. 6's home could have been rented fully furnished for such a reason, admittedly. But even so, given the Village powers and Ms Butterworth being No. 2 they should have been capable of moving parts of the interior to and from the Village. - BCNU!
Hello Arno,
DeleteThat's a good point you have made. I'd always assumed that the pictures were live pictures, and not pre-recorded ones, I don't know why. The film on the wall screen could have been filmed after 'Many Happy returns,' after Mrs Butterowrth had vacated No.1 Buckingham Place. Ah, no, the house had not been put up for sale then. Besides which the Prisoner returns to his London home in the guise of the Colonel in 'Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling.' So the house must have been put up for sale sometime after that. We see the for sale sign being removed, which would suggest that the Prisoner's former house, has now been purchased, and made ready for him. The only question being when? Pre-recorded film, yes, as you suggest there is nothing to tell us it is a live feed of film. I can see that now.
And in having made the Prisoner's house ready for him, with the addition of the automatic door, they were hedging their bets. Stay in the Village or go, they still control him, able to lay their hands upon him whenever they want. The trouble is the Prisoner didn't go home. The moment he arrived home he jumped in his car and drove off. It was the Butler who entered No.1 Buckingham Place, and it's that action which has led some aficianados of the series to the conclusion that the Butler is Number 1. This while the Prisoner went off to hand in his letter of resignation!
Here in Great Britain, it has always been the case that you could, and still can today, rent, or lease furnished flats, and whole houses.
Kind Regards
David
BCNU
Another idea how the rebuildng of the new prisoners homes might be managed: I assume that the candidates for the village, who, if resigning, must be captured instantly, are watched constantly. So why not build and store the furniture while watching them? I guess there might be enough space beyond the village to do so..
ReplyDeleteBCNU
Jana
Hi Jana,
DeleteYou mean that somewhere nearby the Village there is a huge wharehouse, where items of furniture etcetera are stored, and made ready for use at a moments notice. I like your thinking, in fact we share this, as I've made mention of this in my manuscript about 'the Prisoner' when I wrote it.
Have you observed how when Mrs Butterworth has possession of No.1 Buckingham Place, apart from the change in a few pictures, most of the original furnishings of the study have remained. That's why I'm of the opinion that the Prisoner took the house fully furnished.
Kind regards
David
BCNU
I know this is getting too silly now but what if they took the Harmony-Saloon or the livery stable for a storage? The "second village" must be devoid of people for most of the time. Unless it is utilised e.g. as a training facility. Or should we assume that all 2nd village buildings except from the Saloon and perhaps the Sheriff's office were a mere backdrop and props? - BCNU!
ReplyDeleteHello Arno,
DeleteI see the town of Harmony as being not a second Village, but part of The Village, seeing as it is used far more than one might think. Parts of Harmony can be seen during 'The Chimes of Big Ben' when Number 6 having discovered that it's all been an elaborate trick, and walks out into the Village. And even more in the final scene of 'The Schizoid Man {in the backgound Village citizens are passing by, as well as a taxi, which has part of it's canopy blown off by the wind}. I think that area of the Village was temporarily de-populated while the mind/role playing game of 'Living In Harmony' was being played out.
However that does not stop places like the stables and the Sliver Dollar Saloon etcetera from being storage areas.
If nothing else, these comments and many like them, are certainly creating some new and different thinking.
Kind regards
David
Be seeing you
Hi David, hi Arno,
ReplyDeletefirst I had in mind that all those caves beyond the village would be an appropriate storage. A huge warehouse nearby would be another possibility. But of course, using props to store other props - I like that idea ;). It's an invitation to further mind games, isn't it?
BCNU
Kind regards
Jana
Hi Jana,
DeleteYes I thought of a huge warehouse somewhere near the Village, but I had not considered the caves. And of course the props Number 2 used in the game against Number 6! And yes, I agree, it is an invitation for further mind games.
Kind regards
David
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