The Therapy Zone

Is The Village Real, Or Just A Dream?

   The Village, as indeed is the entire series of ‘the Prisoner,’ wide open for interpretation on many levels. On the surface it is an exciting, and visually stimulating thriller, that can be watched for pure entertainment. Yet on this level, the series does not bear close examination, and on the whole is illogical and not at all credible. Patrick McGoohan describes the series as "An allegory, an allegory being a story in which people, places, happenings, conceal a message, and there is symbolism. And therefore there is an enormous latitude in what you can do with it." An allegory does not therefore have to be a natural progression of events. There is no need for a credible solution, and what's more, you can get away with anything, and without having to explain any of it!

    If anything, the Prisoner has something to offer everyone - it depends entirely on what the series means to you. ‘The Prisoner’ is like Beauty - it's all in the eye of the beholder!

It's Inexplicable

  The way that the central plot of the episode of ‘The Girl Who Was Death,’ in that Professor Schnipps is about to destroy London, by launching a rocket at the Capital. This in the same way that Drax in the Ian Fleming novel Moonraker was also going to destroy London by missile. What's more Drax is a German who fought in WWII, as originally Schnipps was going to either a German scientist from WWII, or indeed Hitler himself. I mean Schnipps isn't a French name is it?

Point Of Observation

  No.2 of ‘The Girl Who Was Death,’ isn't the only one to see himself as Napoleon Bonaparte! Oh alright, it was No.6 who put No.2 in the role of Napoleon, but originally No.6 saw No.2 of ‘The Girl Who Was Death’ as being a "right little Hitler!"

Return Of the Native

    The final exterior shoot for ‘Many Happy Returns’ took place on Sunday, 21st of April 1967 and took the film crew back to the first location site of the series, Buckingham Place. In the original script Number Six arrives at his house to discover the main front door is open and he enters to find the interior door is locked. He looks for his emergency latch-key hidden on top of the door frame, but it has gone, so he uses the left luggage key's plastic fob to force entry{the left luggage key he acquired at left luggage at the Piccadilly Circus Station}. Once inside he quickly makes his way to the lounge, where he finds everything as it was, with the addition of chrysanthemums in a vase. He then goes to the Kitchen and helps himself to the remains of a chicken in the refrigerator. Mrs. Butterworth enters, thinking he is a burglar. A heated exchange ensues, during which she calls for the police. He eventually convinces her of his sincerity and she offers to help, giving him the keys to a garage {which she says came with the house} where he discovers his lotus.

   {I was always convinced that the Lotus 7 had to have been garaged for the Prisoner somewhere all the while he was in the Village. In fact the prisoner had to have had a garage somewhere, somewhere he could build his own Lotus 7 kit car. he built it with his own hands you'll remember}.

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