More Village

   Checkmate, Two expresses his feelings for more Village. And to say "More Village" is said as though it were something ordinary, newcomers arriving in The Village. But if there is no other place, that all there is The Village, where do these newcomers to The Village come from? Well The Village!
    Two being photographed by the local press on a building site of more Village houses will go down in generations of Two's family. Two presumes there will be future generations of Two's family, at least that's what he asks his son 11-12. The only problem being, 11-12 is a homosexual, and that's a bitter disappointment to Two as he tries to persuade 11-12 to unbutton himself, to enjoy life, to dance the night away with some darling girl!
   Six has a choice to make, this life {Village life} or no life. In other words assimilate or die. That is the great gift of Village death, the clarity of choice. Village people choose life, but Six, well he'll find a way out before he dies {he had better hurry up, as this episode is only forty-five minutes in duration} while Two teaches Six the very secret of life "Breathe in....breathe out.....more Village" {in other words just keep breathing!} Six is dying and Two will watch him die one breath at a time, one tick of the clock at a time!
    Meanwhile Sarah, 313's other self is breaking through into The Village more and more, and 313 is finding it harder to keep her out. While 11-12 still grieves for 909, his lover whom he stabbed in the neck and murdered to stop Two from finding out about his homosexual relationship with 909. But the trouble was, Two knew all the time!
    Meanwhile in New York Michael's other self is taken to see Curtis of Summakor. Curtis is attempting to lure Michael back to Summakor, in fact to hand the company over to him. On the way to the Summakor building Curtis points out some of the people who have been taken to The Village and made better. People with psychological, mental, and physical problems. Made better in The Village and then returned to their other lives, and they don't even know what's been done to them, they have no memory of The Village.
   11-12 suffocates his mother to death, Two prepares for Six's funeral, and 11-12 hangs himself in the 'Go-Inside' bar. A state funeral is held for 11-12 and the whole Village turns out after 11-12 has been lying in state within a venetian style coffin. Now there is only one person to whom Two can pass on The Village, and that person is Six. But he also needs a dreamer, someone who will volunteer to take the pills and remain in a heavily sedated state of mind so as to be able to dream The Village, and that person is 313.
   313 allows herself to be persuaded by Two to accept his offer for the sake of Six, as she is the only person who can save Six. But also for herself, as 313 does not wish to leave The Village and return to her former life as the psychologically disturbed Sarah. As for Six, well we each have our own fears to face up to, Six's come to him in the form of the Village Guardian!
   Holes are appearing in The Village, and there is only one way to try and stop them, and it's nothing to do with pigs, all we can do is breathe in breathe out more Village. Breathe in with Two, breathe out come on MORE VILLAGE!
    But there's only one person who can save The Village, and that's Six, he's the one, Six is the one....we want Six, Six is the one, we want Six, Six is the one the good citizens chant following 147's lead.

                       Everyone loves Two, who signs his number on a newcomers dungarees.
    313 agrees to take the powerful sedative and hallucinatory drugs for her own sake, for Sarah's sake, until Six can find a better way! And all the time the people chant "We want Six, Six is the one. We want Six, Six is the one. We want Six, Six is the one. We want Six, Six is the one."
   Two gives Six The Village in dramatic fashion, Six suffers flashbacks of Village life since his arrival, and Curtis returns to Helen, Helen who was released from The Village through Village death. Helen who is now awake and has stopped dreaming The Village. So presumably The Village as we know it has gone into the holes that are oblivion. While in the Control Room of the Summakor building in New York, Michael takes up his seat as Supervisor. While Six, now the new Two sits with 313 somewhere in the desert {The Village may have gone, but the desert is still there, how does that work then?} thinking "There are people here. Good people. Whatever they've lost. Funny isn't it. It took me all this time to see how beautiful it is. What if...oh it has to be possible to do this the right way. Yeah. Make a good Village. I think I could do it. I think we have to try. Whatever the cost."

  Breathe in....breathe out.....Village life goes on.
More Village when I next watch the series!

Be seeing you

Observers Report

THE CHIMES OF BIG BEN

http://youtu.be/LiKOhOzQyZg

   Today in 1859 the chimes of Big Ben rang out across London for the first time, together with four quarter bells which accompany Big Ben in the Westminster chimes.

http://youtu.be/sywcsQVSE00

BCNU

Just For The Record!

    He didn't did he? No.2 spending the better part of the morning listening to those six records, in the attempt to discover what No.6 was listening to. Certainly by the time of No.2's watch it was eleven forty-five. I've never understood why No.2 didn't simply send those six records to the laboratory in the same way he did with those blank sheets of paper No.6 went and hid in the Stoneboat. In the end the records couldn't have been deemed important enough, seeing as the Shopkeeper was allowed to take the six records back to his shop. And that's another thing.

   Who was minding the shop all the while No.112 was listening to those records with No.2? And where was No.14? I should have thought that once No.112 had made his report to No.2 about No.6's antics in his shop, that he would have been told to get back to his shop, leaving No.2 to either listen to the records alone, or with his assistant No.14. No.2 is a strange fellow, he doesn't trust his assistant No.14 enough to work close with him when it comes to secret sensitive work. Yet he does so with the Shopkeeper, however No.112 isn't just any Shopkeeper, he's also a Guardian, quick to report any out of the way activity, which No.6 counted on No.112 doing, otherwise No.6's act of jamming would never have worked!

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Village Life!

     Villager "What's he going on about?"

    Villager "Something about being entitled to more spare time, that leisure is our right, meaning less work and more play!"

    Villager "It's alright for him. I'm already on a zero hour contract!"

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Thought For The Day

    In a way ‘Checkmate is very much like ’The Chimes of Big Ben,’ in that No.2 is quite happy to allow what is taking place, No.6 getting friendly with the Rook. The fact that No.6 stole a taxi, and that N.8 did likewise, and when reported No.2 was concerned that the doctors latest gadget should get a proper test. Thereby No.6 was allowed to get away with almost anything but to escape The Village.

   Perhaps No.2 had an inkling as to what was taking place in ‘Checkmate,’ as he seemed very calm and unperturbed when No.6 and his confederates came calling that evening, confident even. Perhaps because he knew that he had the M.S Polotska in his back pocket!

    I have wondered why that the theft of the surveillance camera from it’s plinth, the telephone from the kiosk, along with the screwdriver and electrical equipment were not reported and acted upon. But perhaps they were, and once again because No.2 wanted the reaction transmitter hidden in No.8’s locket to have a proper test so no action against No.6 and the Rook was taken. Well it wasn't anyway!

Be seeing you

Prismatic Reflection

     It is, isn’t it, isn’t different? If the Prisoner-No.6 had to ask the Colonel that, even though the office was the same, Fotheringay was there on hand as always, even the Colonel was still something of a very objectionable man, whose scepticism stands out a mile. He does not suffer fools gladly, but this only makes him more obnoxious then ever, for he sees everything in black and white, a very cynical man, or at least as far as the Prisoner {his ex- colleague} is concerned. He has a very sarcastic nature, with a very jaundiced view of things, no it was just the same, but now it was the Colonel asking the questions instead of No.2. 
   Since the episode of ‘The Chimes of Big Ben’ was such a defeat, I wonder if the Colonel would be asked any embarrassing questions when he returned to London? Or perhaps Nadia out-ranked the Colonel, seeing as how she was going to be making the report. You recall that it was No.2 who told Fotheringay to get back to London before any embarrassing questions were asked. Perhaps in Fotheirngay’s case he wasn’t meant to be in The Village in the first place. After all he was only there to “egg the pudding” so to speak, to make the situation as normal as possible. Having supposedly returned to London they thought the Prisoner would expect to see Fotheringay.
    Luckily for Fotheringay that he was there only for window dressing. The Colonel, he was playing for much higher stakes, I mean the defeat was his and not No.2’s, or was it Nadia‘s failure? As for No.2 he did try and tell them that they were using the wrong approach. And yet who was it who briefed Post 5, Nadia’s supposed contact man? Surely whoever that was, should have made sure that Post 5’s wrist watch was set at the appropriate time, set at Polish time and not English time. And yet whoever thought No.6 would ask for Post five’s wrist watch in the first place? But even then, when No.6 discovered that the wrist watch given to him, when he thought he was Poland, was the same time as English time when there’s one hours difference, should have at least given No.6 a possible clue as to the location of The Village. That its in the same time zone as Britain.
   And that’s the point of the matter, even if No.6 had managed to escape The Village and return to London, it would have still been the same. Because they still would have wanted to know why the Prisoner resigned. And yet they should have known already if they had him under close surveillance, and if that didn’t disclose to them the reason, then how about that bloke sat behind the desk to whom the Prisoner handed in his letter. He paced up and down ranting and raving, he must have said something that gave away at least something?
    But not everyone seemed to be interested in the reason behind the Prisoner’s resignation, I wonder how long it took them to process that roll of film the Prisoner had containing the pictures of The Village? I suppose during that time the Colonel and Thorpe could have interrogated their ex-colleague. However judging by what we see of the Prisoner in the company of the Colonel, the atmosphere between them is pretty convivial, unlike that of the Colonel’s predecessor. Mind you, Thorpe could be a bit spiky, such was the sceptical nature of the man. But once the dice were heavily loaded in the Prisoner’s favour, all that they seemed to be concerned with was calculating the search area of The Village. It might have been that the Colonel and Thorpe had been in on it all along, agents working for The Village. Well why not? I did used to have doubts about the Colonel and Thorpe. But when one thinks about both their predecessors who worked as agents for The Village, then why not? Anyway I have a feeling that the second time the Prisoner went running back to old colleagues the question of his resignation was never on the agenda. Simply to make sure our old friend No.6 was returned to The Village.
   If that episode of ‘Many Happy Returns’ was simply a demonstration, showing that no matter what happened, if the Prisoner escaped The Village, there is nowhere he can go, where agents working for The Village cannot find him. That eventually they would catch up with him. Well as a demonstration it was fine. If they also attempted to break his spirit, then they were disappointed. As it was an awful lot of trouble to go to, for what they actually achieved! Really I suspect that they could have spent their time more productively.

Be seeing you

60 Second Interview With Mrs. Butterworth

    No.113: “What's the number of that car?”

    Mrs. Butterworth: “Terribly interesting.”

    “Kar one hundred and twenty C!... What's the engine number?”

    “Do tell.”

    “Four six one o three four tee zed.”

    “Marvellous!

    “But it's not your car is it?”

    “Well it's not yours either if it comes to that!”

    “Eh? Well yes, but that's not the point.”

    “What is the point, do tell me.”

    “The point is, that car is not yours, and neither do you live here.”

    “Of course I live here, and what's more I have the signed lease to prove it.”

    “And the log book of the car?”

    “Yes!”

    “What of the previous owner, and occupant of this house?”

    “I don't know. I have the house fully furnished, and the car came with the house..... And I've always had a taste for a little speed.”

    “So since when did cars come with houses? And for that matter since when did estate agents become car salesmen?”

    “You'll have to take that up with them.”

    “And they are?”

    “Stumbell and Croydon. Mr.Croydon, a charming man who dealt with me personally.”

    “Stumbell and Croydon you say........” {makes a notation in note book}

    “Look I’m Mrs Butterworth, but you haven't said who you are.”

    “I'm Number one one three, and this is my photographic colleague Number one one three b.”

    No.113b: “Smile” {Click goes the camera}

    “Well what do you want?”

    No.13 b “Tea would be nice, with some of those nice cucumber sandwiches cut into tiny triangles, with their crusts cut off. Oh and some of that delicious fruit cake of yours!”

    “You’ve got a nerve! Get off my door step before I call the police!”

    “We're going Mrs. Butterworth, but don't be at all surprised if we meet again.... in The Village. Perhaps there you'll be a little more amenable, and give The Tally Ho another 60 second interview. Be seeing you.”

Reporter No.113

Photographer No.113b

Teabreak Teaser

   In ‘The Girl Who Was Death,’ why does Mr X have to go to the Magnum Record shop in order to receive his instructions from the Chief, and not go to see him personally? And just who is “the chief,” would that be the Colonel, or Sir Charles Portland?

BCNU

Exhibition Of Arts And Crafts

From My Watercolour Period
                                            "Reunited!"

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It’s Prisoneresque!

   If there's one place I can draw a parallel to with The Village in the 2009 series of THEPRIS6NER, it would be "Meadowlands" of the 2007 television series ‘Cape Wrath.’ Like The Village, Meadowlands is situated in the middle of nowhere, with nothing in all directions but desert and mountains for mile upon mile.

    ‘Meadowlands’ enjoys a rather less subtle "Prisoneresque" influence, in the fact that instead of the village, there is Meadowlands, where the Brogan family are taken blindfold under the "Witness protection Program." Meadowlands, a curious community where everyone has a secret. People having been given new names, fresh identities, but still remain the people they were. Because you can change your names, change your identity, but you still carry who you are inside your head!
Meadowlands is a cross between "the prisoner" and "Twin peaks." Meadowlands looks a typical New England town, but there is no leaving, no way out, you are there for life! Once Mrs. Brogan and her daughter decided to go shopping in the next town. I watched and wondered just what was going to stop Mrs. Brogan and her daughter from leaving Meadowlands? The white membranic Village Guardian Rover was obviously out of the question. Then something else from "the Prisoner popped into my mind, the words of the Supervisor "Attention post 14, attention post14. Now approaching Outer Zone in out vehicle. Number 6, I repeat Number 6." And that is just what happened to Mrs Brogan and her daughter, well of a kind. At a petrol station, as Mrs. Brogan was paying for her petrol, a young girl approached her daughter pretending to be a friend of hers. She upset Mrs. Brogan's daughter so much, that Mrs. Brogan turned the car around and drove her home! Later I observed the very same young girl leaving what I think as being the Supervisors office in an administration building of the Motel. A female Supervisor with a large wall screen in her office, as the Supervisor and wall screen in the control room of The Village in "the Prisoner!" There was also what I can only described as an in-joke during the "midnight football match" of the first episode, when Mr. Brogan was given the yellow tabbard of No.6!
Just as the citizens of the village have been abducted to The Village for the information inside their heads, being of value to one side or the other. Those taken to Meadowlands having been taken there for their own protection, don't know where they are, just as those citizens in the village don't know where they are, and there is no escape for any of them. And each have secrets of their own. Secrets that they would prefer no one else to know.

Be seeing you

Quote For The Day

"You have to be hammer or anvil, remember?"

                         {Number 6 – Hammer Into Anvil}

   Well I'd much prefer to be the anvil, as hammers wear out more than anvils. Hammers break you know, and that is just what No.2 did in the end! What's more No.6 changed places with No.2, having started out as the anvil, he quickly became the hammer. Hammering No.2 into submission!

   And that wasn't the only time No.6 changed places with No.2. There was another time during 'Once Upon A Time,' when No.6 as the patient, changed places with his doctor - No.2!

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Village Life!

    1st guard “Okay. Now we’ve caught him, what are we suppose to do with him?”
    2nd guard “Why don’t you shoot him?”
    3rd guard “What, you mean put him up against a wall and shoot him?”
    1st guard “Oh I don’t think we need go that far.”
   Voice from the back “What you mean, shoot him where he sits?”
    3rd guard “That doesn’t seem very sporting to me. It was better when he was a moving target!”
    2nd guard “What about a blindfold?”
    Voice from the back “Whoever heard of a firing squad wearing blindfolds?”
    2nd guard “It would give him a sporting chance!”
    4th guard “We should make the Prisoner wear the blindfold!”
    1st guard” Oh, we couldn’t shoot him, he’s far too valuable.”
    Voice from the back “Well shoot Number forty-eight then.”
    3rd guard “He’s right. I mean, what have we got to lose?”
    1st guard “Any last requests Number forty-eight?”
    No.48 “Yeah Dad. Hey Patrick, get me out of this!”

BCNU

Thought For The Day

      What does the Prisoner mean to me? A life-time sentence that’s what! There’s no parole. No time off for good behavior. And definitely no escaping it! Ever since that first crack of thunder, as dark clouds gather over a deserted airfield in Norfolk, I was hooked, captivated by what I was watching, and held Prisoner throughout the week until the next episode in which I hoped to learn more about both the Prisoner and The Village.
    For me ‘Arrival’ is the best episode, and sets the whole series up a treat. And it’s not just the Prisoner who is treated to an aerial tour of The Village, we as the viewer, also go along for the ride and enjoy the tour. Especially if the television viewer has not been to the Italianate village of Portmeirion. No.6 tired to escape by helicopter, and failed. But would he escape next time during ‘The Chimes of Big Ben?’ The first time round, I thought he had managed to escape. You see, it was not only No.6 who was taken in by Naidia Rakovski, if that is indeed her real name.
   ‘The Prisoner’ is action and adventure. The action takes place during fight scenes. Escape attempts by helicopter, at the ‘Dance of the Dead, or whilst pitting oneself against the Village Guardian. Or putting stress on a weak link in the chain of command, just waiting to be broken. Saving No.2 from assassination/execution during the Appreciation Day ceremony. While the adventure often takes place at sea all alone aboard a raft, or while the mind is in someone else’s body!
   The series is also enigmatic, puzzling, with a dose of the allegorical, which I personally take with a pinch of salt! ‘The Prisoner’ makes you think, to ask questions, like who is Number Two? Why did No.2 and No.112 waste all morning listening to those six records, when No.2 could have merely have them sent to the laboratory? And who was looking after the shop is all that time. Where is The Village? Who runs the Village? Whose side are they on? Why did the Prisoner resign. Oh it was a matter of principle, of conscience. For peace of mind, because too many people know too much! So like No.2, we were told. But perhaps , like No.2 we were not listening, because he asked to be told again. The administration behind The Village, are keen on accumulating information. It makes one wonder what it is they do with all this information should they get it. Perhaps they simply file it all away in those grey filing cabinets we see during the opening sequence., where the Prisoners card was filed away under ‘RESIGNED.’   Personally for me, ‘the Prisoner’ will always be the former ‘Danger Man’ John Drake {no matter what Patrick McGoohan had to say on the subject, so I’m with George Markstein on this one] formerly of NATO Security, and M9. It should have been MI9, but I think they dropped the ‘I’ perhaps for lack of intelligence! Then Drake went and resigned his job, and found himself abducted to The Village. A man like him would be worth a great deal on the open market. But I don’t think that if he’d been a Butcher, Baker, or Candlestick Maker, he would have been so important. People like those were recruited through the Labour Exchange, and Employment Bureaux.
   Over the years, I have written letters and articles. Debated about what ‘the Prisoner’ means, and is saying to us. I have searched for so called “hidden meanings” within the series, and have found it wanting. Because as far as I am concerned, there are no “hidden meanings!” I should think that the production team working on ‘the Prisoner’ were far too busy to be bothering themselves incorporating hidden meanings in the series. In-jokes, now that’s a whole different matter. Patrick McGoohan is on record as being against the addition of in-jokes within ‘the Prisoner.’ But I suspect that was only if he himself wasn’t behind any such in-jokes!
   A last meaning  ‘the Prisoner,’ is not to think about the series, but simply view it as pure escapism. Immersing oneself in the Prisoners situation, as he is pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, de-briefed, and numbered, in the safe knowledge that it’s being done to someone other than you!

Be seeing you

Janet Portland-Lewis Found Dead! by own reporter

    A one time debutante of the 1950’s, and daughter of Sir Charles Portland of British Military Intelligence, was found dead today at a flat in London. Apparently she had been shot, by a French television producer, Joinville.
   Lady Janet Portland-Lewis, 37, will probably be best remembered by readers, for having lost her fiancé, who disappeared back in the late 1960’s, after attending her birthday party in 1967. Her fiancé, whom I can only refer by name as John, worked for both Military Intelligence, and so for her father Sir Charles Portland’s department, within that service.
    Janet Portland, as she was known then, asked her father Sir Charles Portland if he knew where her fiancé was? Or if he had sent him on a mission somewhere? But both questions were treated in the negative. Not knowing whether or not she could believe her father, Janet Portland went on to the police to have her fiancé declared as a missing person. But the police took a dim view of her story. That her fiancé did once come back to her, with his mind housed in another man’s body. The fact of the matter is, Janet Portland had not lost her fiancé once, but twice! Then Janet Portland tried to get a question asked in the Houses of Parliament. But for some, that was one step too far. And any further questions were smothered by official powers
     It is believed that Janet Portland waited for the return of her fiancé for a second time. But a woman and her father, could wait for only so long. And so it was, that Janet Portland eventually did marry, Sir Colin Lewis, a prominent public figure, the governments Foreign Secretary, and became Lady Janet Portland-Lewis.

This is a more recent photograph, taken after she had been made a widow. Her husband who died from over work, was the youngest Foreign Secretary for almost one hundred years. Sir Colin knew every dirty political secret, and had told his wife, who had travelled the world with Sir Colin.
   It was at this time that Lady Janet was approached by a French Television Producer by the name of Rene Joinville, who told her that he was going to make a television documentary about her husband and his life., and that for Lady Janet’s involvement in the documentary, telling the world about her husbands work, he would pay her

£10,000. The trouble was, that the British Government was getting in a twist about Lady Janet Portland-Lewis telling all that her husband had confided in her, to not only the would, but especially to the Russians! It was at this point that the ‘Section’ of British Military Intelligence became involved. Hunter, head of the ‘Section,’ assigned two agents Cross and Callan.

It was Callan, pictured here with Lady Janet Portland, who was given the assignment to try and persuade Lady Janet to change her mind about her involvement with the documentary. 
 Eventually Callan succeeded in changing Lady Janet’s mind, which in turn put her life in grave danger from Rene Joinville, who was also a Russian agent, and later assigned to kill Lady Janet using a Magnum 38 revolver, used by British Intelligence. This to make it look as though it was the British who had assassinated Lady Janet Portland-Lewis, and not the Russians. Cross, who had been keeping the apartment block, where Lady Janet Portland-Lewis lived, under surveillance, failed to prevent her death at the gun of Rene Joinville.

Be seeing you

The Old School Tie!

    

    Sir Charles and Sir Michael—Both Late of the Foreign Office!   We are all familiar with Sir Charles Portland in the picture on the left, as seen in the episode ‘Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling.’ And it is for Sir Charles that the Prisoner worked. We know that, because when The Colonel was talking to Janet in her fiancées house, he suggested that she must be aware of what kind of work her fiancée did. To which Janet replied ‘Obviously, working for my farther.’
   So seeing as Sir Charles Portland worked for the Foreign Office, so to did the Prisoner once upon a time. Sir Charles must also be in the position to send such men, like his daughters fiancée on missions. Because he told Janet, when she pressed the point, that he had not sent the Prisoner on a mission! So having established Sir Charles in this matter, allow me to introduce you to Sir Michael Harvey, also of the Foreign Office, pictured lower left. It is Sir Michael who sends both Callan and Meres on a mission to West Germany, to bring out a British agent from East Germany, who is to be made up to the next ‘Hunter.’ This in the 1969 series 2, episode ‘Heir Apparent,’ of the television series ‘Callan.’ Now there are a couple of coincidences here. First both characters are played by actor John Wentworth. The second is that both characters hold high positions in the Foreign Office. Also, both characters have a Knighthood, hence their title ‘Sir.’ More than that, both characters are wearing the same old Etonian tie. Which means both Sir Charles and Sir Michael went to Eton, they being two OE’s {Old Etonians}. I’m not so sure that these two characters are really so very much different. Because although the names are not the same, it is the same actor playing the same style of role, but in two very different series, ‘the Prisoner’ and ‘Callan.’ It is quite feasible, that that John Wentworth could have played both characters in ‘the Prisoner’ and ‘Callan,’ and the result would have been just the same! As for the Eton tie worn by both Sir Charles and Sir Michael, it is quite on the cards that actor John Wentworth was himself an Old Etonian.

Be seeing you

Lead Us Or Go!

         Could they really have trusted No.6 to lead The Village, surely they made a mistake? I mean look what happened when No.6 was elected as the new No.2 in ‘Free For All.’ He hadn't been in office for five minutes before he was trying to organise a mass breakout! He had control, he was immobilising all electronic controls, and told the citizens of The Village that they were "Free, free to go." Of course No.6 was never actually in control, of either The Village, or himself. But it showed just what No.6 would do if given half a chance.

          ‘Fall Out’ has a number of inconsistencies and logicalities, just like the other 16 episodes which make up the series. So what do they do? They bring back yet another former No.2 who has had direct dealings with No.6, promote him to the Judge, rather theatrical I thought, who would have been well aware of what No.6 is capable of, and after praising him as a man who having revolted. Fought, resisted, held fast, maintained. Destroyed resistance. Overcome coercion. The right of the individual to be individual or person. They applauded his private war, and they conceded that despite material efforts No.6 has survived intact and secure. And after all that remained was recognition of a man, a man of steel. A man who is magnificently equipped to lead them. Well everything the Judge said was correct, but really the President could not have been serious about the offer of ultimate power? I mean when it came to No.6 making a speech to the delegates of the Assembly, a speech by No.6, but for them, the delegates shouted No.6 down at every attempt he made to make his speech! No.48 was allowed to make his point, No.2 was allowed to address the delegates of the Assembly direct, and they listened in absolute quiet. But not so No.6. The delegates were not prepared to sit and listen to the ravings of an egomaniac!

         So why should they elect such a man as No.6 to lead them, when they were not even prepared to listen to what the man has to say for himself? They knew what No.6 was like. They knew what No.6 would do if given half a chance, and so given half a chance, No.6 took it!

         They faced No.6 with himself, this possibly the final manipulation of No.6, the last throw of the dice to try and break him. If it was, then they failed. No.1, whoever he was, either No.6's alter ego, Curtis of ‘The Schizoid Man,’ or whoever No.1 was, he turned out to be unstable. A laughing maniac, who as soon as he was discovered made for the nearest exit out of the rockets control room, in trying to avoid capture at the hands of No.6. Have you noticed how villains, no matter who they are, that when being pursued have an uncontrollable urge to climb upwards in order to try and avoid capture. Then they made the greatest mistake of all - after the confrontation with No.1, they left No.6 to his own devices in the Control Room, of the rocket, as he set the countdown in motion. Surely security should have been sent to the rockets control room the moment the Judge thought that something was wrong, when he could not make contact with control. Security would then have overpowered No.6, and what then follows would have been avoided. The launching of the rocket with No.1 still aboard.

         It is believed by many that the village was destroyed in ‘Fall Out,’ hence the title of the episode and the use of the rocket, which many see as being a nuclear missile. But the title of the episode is ‘Fall Out,’ not ‘Fallout’ as in nuclear fallout. I don't think the rocket destroyed the village, and there is no evidence to suggest as much, and certainly not by the rocket which was launched away from the village. In fact I don't think the village was destroyed at all, evacuated yes, but not destroyed. All No.6 did was rid The Village of No.1, Curtis, his alter ego, or whoever, but at the expense of a rocket. Because after all the rocket was not a missile, but a rocket which would have carried three individuals. There were three 'Orbit Tubes,' one for 48, one for 2, and one which remained unmarked, but which I believe was meant for No.6. Which leaves one unnoticed and un-asked question, if things had not gone the way they did, and that 'Orbit Tube' was meant for No.6, what might their destination have been aboard that rocket? What destiny might have awaited them?

Be seeing you

Observers Report

     The interim No.2 in 'It's Your Funeral' has a small transistor radio transmitter in an arm of his spectacles, which he uses to communicate with No.100 at the time of the Appreciation Day ceremony.

   It's a good prop and very professional looking. But then look what I found one day when I was trawling the Web. This vintage Anscott portable 3 AM radio transmitter of the 1950's, made in Japan.

  And via the link http://www.jackbergsales.com/electronics/anscott3specs.htm   scroll down a few pictures to see the same item.
   So perhaps the glasses containing the radio transmitter as worn by Derren Nesbitt as the interim No.2 was based on these glasses.

Be seeing you

Harmony Times

Harmony Times

    It's a tough life living in an American frontier town like Harmony in the 1800's. Me? I'm a newspaper man working for The Tally Ho, but when the shooting starts I try to keep me' head down, as do most of the folks around here.

  The Judge runs the town, and as long as you toe the line, then the Judge will look after you. He runs Harmony with a rod of iron, and there's his "boys" who enforce the Judges rules. In fact when it comes the Judges ruling in Court, he puts me in mind of that other self appointed Judge, Judge Roy Bean who had a thing for that actress Lilly Langtry. Because there are pictures of Miss Langtry on the walls of the Silver Dollar saloon here in Harmony, along with numerous "Wanted Posters" for Belle & Sam Starr, and Bill Nixon for example. Together with photographs of William "Buffalo Bill" Cody, and Annie Oakley which also adorn the walls of the saloon.

    Another of the Judges men is the Kid, fastest on the draw the Judge has ever seen. The Kid has a thing for Cathy, one of the Saloon girls, and doesn't like anyone to get close to her. Will, a local Rancher found that out quick enough. He was having a good time with Cathy in the Saloon, buying her drinks and fooling around. It was all innocent fun, but the Kid didn't see the innocent side, and gunned Will down in the Saloon. Of course the Sheriff couldn't do anything, as Will had drawn first, and witnesses said as much.

   No-one knows who this man with no name is, a drifter on the Plain, a high Plains drifter you could say! He was brought off the Plain and into town on the back of a horse by the "Judges Boys." He took some persuasion on the Judge's part, to make the stranger see that the wisest thing to do was to stay in town. But he couldn't leave town even if he wanted too. The Judges Boys would see to that! And the Sheriff also took some persuading to "Get some guns on!" But even without guns, this man with no name can sure handle himself, Zeke who also doesn't carry a gun, but then he doesn't need to, came off the worst in a fist fight with the new Sheriff, as did others of the Judge's boys.

   And then when the Sheriff did put his gun on, well the body count soon rose. The Kid was first in a gunfight, right out there in the street. The Kid was fast on the draw, but the Sheriff was quicker. And then in the Silver Dollar Saloon there was the Sheriff up against three of the Judges boys who were no match at all.

   Yep, Harmony is a quiet enough town where the most exciting thing the towns folk have to look forward to is a visit by the Bishop. No doubt you've seen the posters  proclaiming that The Bishop Is Coming. Mind you, there's also the exhibition as well. That should be here any time soon, the exhibition of the Real Joaquin. Folks should pay top dollar to go and see that exhibition!

    Well really all folks around these parts have gotta do is let the Judge take care of them. Then they'll be alright. But  if you don't like our town, take against it and the Judge.... well there's always Boot Hill! That's where we buried Johnson, Cathy Johnson's brother. Then there was Will, Jim, the Kid and Cathy, although the Sheriff buried her himself, together with three of the Judge's "boys." Quiet town did I say? Well it was till the man with no name was brought into town. Then things really livened up around here!

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Page 6

   There I was having just graduated from school, and the headmaster asked me if I had anything to say. Well of course I hadn't, apart from "Thank you for everything." Then he asked me why did I resign, resign from what? I mean I was about to leave school and hadn't done anything, I'd lived no life at all..... But he went further demanding to know why I'd resigned, grabbing me by the lapels of my blazer and shouting. We ended up struggling on the floor. Then suddenly it all went black! Yes and No.2 had jumped the gun by about twenty years!

BCNU

Thought For The Day

    A well met, not to mention well suited pair The Man with No Name and Cathy, you could not wish to meet, otherwise known as No.6 and No.22. No.22 has something in common with No.9 of ‘Arrival,’ who like No.22 was going to help No.6 escape The Village, although escape for her was now out of the question since Cobb's supposed death. Cathy, during the episode of ‘Living In Harmony,’ helps The Man With No Name leave the town of Harmony, the attempt fails and he is brought back to Harmony, much like in ‘Arrival.’ Both 9 and 22 work for No.2, the difference between them being, 22 allows her feelings to get the better of her!

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A Favourite Scene In THEPRIS6NER

                                    

     When Two and his son visit a building site, more Village as newcomers are arriving in The Village, and Two explains to 11-12 about The Village.

    "More Village means that our way of life is becoming the very conscience of the universe. I exaggerate of course, but only slightly.

     One should never mix the two series, but when I hear Two's explanation, I cannot but help think of the ending to 'The Alternative Chimes of Big Ben,' and this.

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Caught On Camera!

   The Prisoner-No.6 once told No.2 that good old fashioned brute force can be very effective. Well it wasn't very effective when he trampled that black loudspeaker to pieces under foot, after all the music continued to play. And pictured above the Prisoner having encountered the white membranic mass of the Village Guardian, used some more good old fashioned brute force, by laying into it with his fists. And yet once more that good old fashioned brute force which the Prisoner is so keen on, proved to be ineffective against the Village Guardian simply because it offered no resistance whatsoever! Oh look, you can see the Prisoner's vest!

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Exhibition Of Arts And Crafts

    From My Watercolour Period Entitled

                                      "Suffocation of Resistance!"

BcNu

What Was It? What Was The Message?

   Like the Prisoner, I wanted to know who was behind that screen in that ornately decorated room in the Town Hall. When I originally watched that scene in 1967, I thought when No.6 removed that screen he was going to reveal that it was No.1 who was sat there in a chair, but it wasn’t! There was only a teleprinter which was busy typing a message, I have always been curious as to what that message was, but sadly there is simply was no way of knowing, and that has held true today. But the teleprinter wasn’t merely a prop, it was actually working, and went on working despite No.6’s feeble attempt at sabotage!

   I have often wondered who it was No.2 reported to and received her instructions from via that teleprinter, seeing as presumably she had been speaking to No.1 on the telephone on the outset of the episode ‘Dance Of The Dead.’

   It is just a pity that No.6 didn’t show the desire to read that incoming message being printed out by the teleprinter, then the camera lens might have picked up on it, and perhaps then my curiosity might have been satisfied! But he didn’t!

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Web Of Intrigue!

    If anyone knows why the Prisoner resigned, besides the Prisoner that is, it's probably that bespectacled, bald-headed bureaucrat who sits behind a desk while the Prisoner paces up and down ranting and raving about something. I wonder what it was that had made the Prisoner so angry? Whatever it was it had an adverse effect upon him. But it seems to me that the Prisoner was letting off steam, as he was angry about something, he was enraged, and in those few minutes must have said something, or given some clue about why he was resigning his job.

   It has been said that the bureaucrat sat behind that desk is at the centre of the web of intrigue that is being spun, and that's correct, and that it was he who put the wheels in motion that saw the Prisoner abducted from his home. I'm not so sure about that. I see the bureaucrat to whom the Prisoner handed in his letter of resignation, as nothing more than a first point of contact. After all Danvers, who later replaced him, didn't seem very important. But in that case why did the Prisoner hand his letter of resignation to him, and not to the Colonel? Unless that bureaucrat is No.1....no he couldn't be, could he? He might have telephoned the Colonel the moment the Prisoner had left that office informing him of what had just taken place. And then it would have been the Colonel who would have put those wheels in motion which caused the Prisoner's abduction. But he would have to have been quick about it, as there was probably only a few minutes between the Prisoner having handed in his letter of resignation and driving his Lotus Seven out of that car park, seeing as how the hearse was already waiting for him, to follow him through the streets of London, back to his home!

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No.1 Buckingham Place

   I cannot imagine what it must have been like for the Prisoner to be rattling around a great big house like No.1 Buckingham Place. I don't even understand why a single man like him would want with such a large house, when I should have thought a smaller house in a Chelsea mews would have been more suited to him, as it was for John Drake in 'Danger Man.' It's not as though the Prisoner had any servants, not even a personal valet, well not that we see. At least when Mrs Butterworth lived there she at least had a house maid. I couldn't see the Prisoner spending his day off cleaning the house.
   I have often wondered why No.1 Buckingham Place was chosen for the Prisoner's residence, I suppose that that is one question which for me, will have to remain unanswered!

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Pictorial PRIS6NER

    The chessboard! In the original series of 'the Prisoner,' there is a great play on the game of chess. So what The Village needs is a chessboard, and chess has a great formality, it has a sense of organisation and logic, and you think someone is pulling the strings somewhere when you see the size of the chessboard that people can stand on. And it is as though, with the chessboard in the above picture, that it is another working of the same dream, but many years on, somehow forgotten in the mists of time. Such is the idea of the production designer for THEPRIS6NER Michael Pickwoad.

BCNU

I Wish You Could Come Too!

   When No.2 is on the telephone speaking, presumably to No.1, it is not difficult to assume that No.1 has expressed the wish that he could be there at the Ball in the evening judging by No.2's response "Yes, I wish you could come too."

   If No.1 had turned up at the Ball in the evening, that would have livened things up a bit. But then how would we know? How would No.6 know that the man behind the big door is there? Everyone will be in fancy dress and some wearing masks!

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Thought For The Day

   Sir Charles Portland "You claim to be ZM73." And what follows is ZM73 trying to prove to Sir Charles Portland that he is who he claims to be. But I wonder why it didn't occur to Sir Charles to say "If you are who you claim to be, ZM73, where have you been for the past year?"

BCNU

Anyone At Home?

    This time when the Prisoner returns to that office in which he handed in his letter of resignation, he doesn't seem quite so keen to storm in the way he did the first time. Perhaps after last time he wasn't sure of what kind of reception he would get! But the man sat behind the desk is of a subservient nature, he certainly wasn't affected by the Prisoner's ranting the last time. And by the by, hasn't that man something better to do with his time than the crossword in the newspaper? But perhaps it's time for his elevenses seeing the cup and saucer on the desk, but no biscuits this time as there's no tea plate under the cup and saucer.

    And that's the mistake fans have made during the opening sequence of 'the Prisoner,' that when the Prisoner bangs his fist down on the desk, upsetting the cup and saucer on a tea plate, enthusiasts have asked the question, why are there two saucers under the cup?!

BCNU

The Ultimate Test!

    For those of you who read yesterdays Prismatic Reflection - Fall Out, it might have been strange that I did not include the flashback to 'Once Upon A Time' at the beginning. Well I found that a difficult thing to do when the previous episode had been 'The Girl Who Was Death.'

   It is accepted that the ultimate test is what took place, and which No.6 survived takes place in 'Once Upon A Time' because that is as it stands in 'the Prisoner' series. But 'Once Upon A Time' originally was to have taken place long before the advent of 'Fall Out.' So seeing as I was following the film library order of 'the Prisoner' as laid down by Tony Sloman, I saw no reason why 'The Girl Who Was Death' could not precede 'Fall Out,' and thereby No.6 has still survived the ultimate and final test, which made him the greatest! Besides when No.2 makes the comment that the Prisoner wouldn't drop his guard with his own grandmother, and No.10 tells him that it was worth a try, No.2 does sound resigned in some way. As though trying to get No.6 to open up to children to gain the reason behind the Prisoner's resignation. It also makes sense that there is already a No.2 in The Village in order to hold court over three instances of revolt, that of No.48, the "late" No.2, and of course the former No.6, instead of having another No.2 brought in specially. And there we come to another problem I had, the "late" No.2, he still had to be in my written description of 'Fall Out.' How he came to be there when 'Once Upon A Time' actually took place several months before 'Fall Out I chose to ignore, as there was no way to omit the "late" No.2 as I had with the reprisal of 'Once Upon A Time' at the outset of 'Fall Out.' Nor did I choose to account for the comatose No.2 who had remained with that sealed cage for a number of months, whose body was finally removed from the cage, and brought out of his coma.

   I suppose it's possible for any of the previous sixteen episodes to precede 'Fall out, 'Arrival' being the exception, because no matter what the episode No.6 would still have survived the ultimate test no matter what that test might be, because the ultimate test is the last test, but not quite the last throw of the dice on the part of No.2, the last throw of the dice was 'Fall Out!'

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Exhibition Of Arts And Crafts

A Group Portrait In Watercolour

                                                            "Standing In Judgement!"

BcNu

Village Life!

    "What's he come as?"
    "As himself I should say!"
    "I take it you're being careful with him."
    "I can't make omelettes without breaking eggs!"
    "Break him and it will be all the worse for you!"
    "Who are you?"
   "The ghost in the machine...Number One. But whichever I always feel happier as myself! Now lets get on with it shall we? Time's money, and you don't have either!"

BCNU

Pictorial Prisoner

    I expect the Prisoner was happy to be behind the wheel of his beloved Lotus Seven once again, enjoying the freedom of the open road even if it is the Colonel we see! But did he drive all the way from London to Austria with the top down, and with no overcoat? Mind you we do see only a fraction of the journey to Kandersfeld. There's snow on those mountains in the background, must be a bit chilly I'd have thought! Mind you with the top up, it does make the Lotus Seven looks to be a different beast altogether.

BCNU

More Village!

   “He’s the one, Six is the one!”               

   Tonight is the final episode of THEPRIS6NER, The Village is expanding "More Village" is Two's new motto. But he's still having problems with Six, who seems to choose death, when everyone else in The Village chooses life. Everyone is going happily about their daily business in The Village, while Six is dying, and the only way to save himself is to accept The Village when Two hands it over to him. 313 is also in trouble as Sarah impinges on 313's life in The Village. 313 doesn’t want to leave the Village, and accepts Two's offer, as does Six, but for 313's sake. This leaves Two free to escape The Village, in a very dramatic fashion......by exploding hand grenade!

   But before that can happen the Village has to be handed over to Two's successor, and not only the Village, but also Summakor. And it appears that Six is the one, and taking Two's lead 147 leads the people in choosing Six as the One! "We want Six, Six is the One. We want Six, Six is the One. We want Six, Six is the One.' So seening that there has never been a Number One, perhaps this Six is the first Number One!
    Checkmate – The Village is expanding as newcomers arrive. Six asks a woman where they've come from? "We just got off the bus." Six asks where she got on the bus? "The Village" the young woman replies. Six informers her that this is The Village, they've arrived. "Isn't that just the wildest thing?" The young woman might be excited by the prospect, but her son's expression tells a different story!

 On the purpose Floor of Summakor, a woman {whom Michael recognises as the winking woman} tells Michael a car is waiting for him to take him for his appointment with Mr. Curtis.

    Six is doubled over in pain. He receives a summon to the Clinic, where 313 diagnoses him. “What is it?” six asks a shocked 313.

    Surveying The Village expansion, Two tells 11-12 he will one day inherit The Village, and that it will stay in the family for generations.

    Six confronts two with his certificate for dying. Two tells Six that Village Death offers clarity of choice: This is life, or no life.

    313 continues to be haunted with visions of herself from another life. She wants to find a way to help Six. Two Tells her there is something she can do, but that she must not let the girl from the Other Place control her.

    At the cemetery, 11-12 places 909’s grave. Six challengers 11-12 to give him the information he needs to get out of The Village. 11-12 asserts that his mother cares for him. “Only a mother can destroy every ounce of hope in you,” Six says.

    Six collapses in front of 147, who offers to take Six to someone who may be able to cure him.

    Michael is escorted to Mr. Curtis’s car, where he recognises the driver as The Village’s 147. En route, the driver explains how he used to be a very angry person, but Mr. Curtis helped him turn his life around.

    147 takes Six toy a Village prophet, and tells Six that deliverance is coming – they just need to wait. Waiting is giving up, says six.

    Six approaches 11-12, who is drinking alone. Six asks him about his mother and the pills. He asks 11-12 to leave The Village with him. “The Village is best for me,” 11-12 whispers.

    In New York, Michael meets Mr. Curtis and Helen – Two and M2 in The Village. Helen is in a dreamlike state. Mr. Curtis explains that The Village is an experiment happening in Helen’s mind. She sacrificed herself so that “broken” people could have better lives.

    In Palais two, 11-12 enters his parent’ bedroom and smothers M2 to death.

    In the Clinic, Two taunts a dying Six with the details of his upcoming funeral. 313 listens from afar.

    Two returns home to discover M2 dead and 11-12 nowhere to be found. Two and the dogs search the Go Inside Bar, and find 11-12 has hanged himself. Two carries his son out, and places his body in state.

    Holes begin to open in The Village.

    Two visits 147, who he knows can empathise with the pain of losing a child. Two tells 147 there is something he can do to end the pain, but 147 must help. When the moment arrives he must call out “Six is the one.”

    Mr. Curtis takes Michael into the city and shows him the positive effects The Village has had on suffering people. Michael claims Mr. Curtis doesn’t have the right to help people without their consent. Mr. Curtis offers Michael an opportunity to help him with The Village experiment, and gives him a pass to the Purpose Floor of  Summakor. Before Michael can respond, they arrive at a church.

    The effects of Village Death begin to overtake Six. Two concedes the plan was not enough to crack him. But he says, “Village death was not my last throw,”

    Two has decided Six’s desire to do the “right thing” will force him to assimilate to The Village. He makes a deal with 313: She will give herself to Six to save him.

    In the Clinic, two confronts Six with Rover. Unable to face his deepest fear, six runs away.

    Villagers gather for 11-12’s funeral. Six attends, his fever from Death miraculously gone. Two confesses to the crowd that 11-12’s death was a suicide and that they are all Prisoners. A child throws a stone that hits two in the face. Two tells the crowd to look to Six for answers.147 steps forward and proclaims “Six is the one,” inciting the crowd to join him.

    Two tells Six the only way to shut the holes is for a dreamer to take M2’s place. 313 steps forward and takes one of M2’s pills.

    At the church in New York, Mr. Curtis introduces Michael to Sarah – 313 in The Village. She is nearly delusional, suffering from the affliction of childhood abuse. Mr. Curtis tells Michael he can save her. Michael takes Sarah’s hand, catching her as she collapses.

    In The Village, Two places a grenade in his mouth: “Six, I give you The Village,” he says, pulling the pin. Two explodes!

    Mr. Curtis returns home to Helen, and finds her well. “Don’t look back,” he tells his wife.
    On the Purpose Floor, Michael takes a seat as the new head of Summakor.

    In The Village, Six and a sedated 313 look out on The Village. “It took me all this time to see how beautiful it is,” Six says. “It has to be possible to do this the right way-make a good Village.” 313 sheds a single tear.

   And so it is that this final episode of THEPRIS6NER, it and the series as a whole, has gone by all too quickly for my own personal liking. In the final scene, the new Two sits with 313/Sarah on a sand dune in the desert. He says that is has to be possible to do it the right way, to make a good Village. He thinks he could do it, He thinks he has to try, whatever the cost. But I don't think 313 shares that thought, as she sheds a tear, but for who, herself, or for Six who dreams of making a good Village? Seeing as its Sarah, 313's abused counterpart in New York who will have to dream The Village, I don't give much for Six's chances!

    With Checkmate Two's own story is building to a climax...............through the sense of guilt of what he has done, within his family, within the regime of The Village, and the sense of his own failing. Two set out to create a certain kind of thing, and he looks at what he's got, and he doubts himself. You see Michael is the one - he can make it work........but as so often proved in history, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I mean it's perhaps not a bad idea to rule the world, just as long as you are a good King. In The Village, there is a man who fought the very idea of The Village, and hated the nature of being a prisoner, who eventually becomes the King of the Prison!

    It is said that you cannot die in a dream, that at the moment of death you wake up just in time. Not so for M2 who is suffocated to death by her son 11-12. What it must have been like for Helen dreaming The Village in New York, who experienced her own death in her subconscious. The thing about Helen is, that she couldn’t wake up, seeing as she was heavily sedated at the time. But then why couldn’t Helen manipulate the dream, so that 11-12 doesn’t suffocate M2 to death? Well according to Bill Gallagher, Helen dreams The Village, but has no control over the actions of it’s citizens!

   As for 147, well he finally becomes a pawn in Two's game............and the time does finally arrive when 147 has to anoint Six, and for the populous to follow 147's lead, for Six is the One!

   As for 313.......she accepts the situation of her circumstances, and takes the pills from Six on the understanding that it will be only until Six, who has become the new Two, can find a better way, or to find a new Two for............The Village.

   As I understand it, script writer Bill Gallagher said that there are clues one can follow through the series, which will all come together, to be resolved in the final episode, and all the questions will be answered, I’m not at all sure they were.

    I think the series as a whole has some of the disturbing qualities of the original series which ended or began with ‘Fall Out,’ depending on how you look at it. However with THEPRIS6NER there is no hint of a “vicious circle.”

The moment Helen in New York woke and stopped dreaming, The Village, its entire community disappeared into oblivion! Leaving the new Two {the former Six} and 313 to begin again from scratch, to build a new and better Village together.

Breathe in.....Breathe Out.....Village life goes on!