The Therapy Zone

Facts Behind the Prisoner

   The first person to call the Village guardian "Rover" by name is No.6 himself in the episode of ‘The Schizoid Man’ when he calls No.2 to report that No.6 {the other one whose name is Curtis} is dead "Rover got him." No.2 immediately gives orders to deactivate Rover. The Village Guardian's name is never heard mentioned again in the remaining episodes of the series.

    The Lotus Seven being driven down the ramp into the underground car park in Many Happy Returns is an out-take, filmed at the same time as the Arrival or normal opening sequence shot. A usually visible pedestrian is absent in the Many Happy Returns carbon copy.

    Towards the end of ‘Many Happy Returns,’ when No.6 is in the jet aircraft looking for the Village, there is a shot of an island before the actual Portmeirion peninsula comes into view. The very same stock footage also appears in an episode of ‘The Avengers’ called The Superlative Seven, as well as an episode of ‘Danger Man.’

   In one of the shots of the Village from the episode of ‘Checkmate,’ the human chess board is not in place on the lawn. A few moments later the whole thing has been laid out and a game of chess begins.

   In the opening sequence of ‘Arrival’ the Prisoner walks across the chess lawn and the distinct patterns of a chessboard can be seen in the lawn itself, different shaded areas. This is because the filming of that part of the opening sequence was filmed after the human chess match of the episode of ‘Checkmate.’

    The shots of No.6 pacing back and forth in the study of his cottage while eating a sandwich and drinking a cup of coffee, seen viewed in ‘Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling’ while No.2, Clifford Evans, is talking to the Colonel, Nigel Stock, was lifted from the episode ‘Once Upon A time’ which was made about six months before ‘Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling,’ but screened a few weeks after it.

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