The Colonel

    There are three faces of the Colonel, there might have been four, however there is no picture of the fourth Colonel in the series, as his rank is only mentioned by Dutton during the ‘Dance of the Dead,’ in conjunction with Arthur. Is that like Fotheringay and the Colonel, to make nothing of Thorpe and the Colonel I wonder?
    The Colonel has something in common with No.2 in this instance, that the rank remains the same, it is only the face that changes. I have often wondered if the Colonel in ‘Many Happy Returns’ was aware of The Village long before his ex-colleague briefed him on the installation. If he was, then the Colonel was a cold fish to allow No.6 to simply go off looking for The Village, knowing that his escape had been contrived by The Village administration, and controlled by the Prisoner's own predictability. But somehow I'm not sure if this particular Colonel was aware of The Village at the time, unlike his predecessor of ‘The Chimes of Big Ben.’ Now if he had been there that day with Thorpe to see his ex-colleague off, I could well believe that he would have calmly stood there watching his ex-colleague go on his way, back to The Village, without saying one word of warning!  
    Colonel Hawke-Englishe? Well whether or not he knew of the Village's existence is irrelevant, as his involvement in the series takes place well outside the Village. In any case he is murdered by the Girl who was Death with the aid of an exploding cricket ball. As a matter of interest, at a cricket match at the end of the film ‘Carry On Follow That Camel,’ filmed in Wales, an exploding cricket ball is used to try and kill Bo West whilst at the wicket.   As for the Colonel in ‘Do Not Forsake Me Oh my Darling,’ his experience of the Village is not as pleasant as that of one of his predecessors. Because his mind died in the body of Professor Seltzman, who is buried in The Village graveyard!

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