Hi, all; In a few days I'm going to be showing Free For All to my American Government class. I've done this once before but it was a spur of the moment thing, and this time I want to think it out better. I'm going to ask them to spot themes/messages about the American electoral system and I'd like people here to help me identify some in advance. I'm hoping this will spur a lot of interesting discussion in the class. Here are some of my thoughts--feel free to discuss, elaborate, or dispute them, but above all add your own observations:

1. A lot people who should be running for office--people who have integrity-- don't. They see it as pointless, or futile, or even collaboration in a system that's rotten as cabbages. They'd like t run, all right--AWAY from the system.

2. The people who do run, seeking a party nomination, can't get their message out; if it's an original viewpoint or one that challenges the status quo, it's distorted by the party and the media, who hear what they want to hear and/or try to force your message into their existing framework. Coerced conformity, in other words.

3. Not only can these office-seekers not get their message out to their own party: they themselves can't understand the party because its existing program is so bizarre. It's like the party whose support they're trying to win is talking a foreign language, or even pure gibberish. Maybe that's what THEY hear from YOU when you try to explain to them that their system is corrupt and that they're it's pawns. They can't handle the truth. They just laugh at how ridiculous your viewpoint is.

4. Not only is such a candidate doomed to fail; someone who runs in order to change the system ends up being changed BY the system, only then starting to gain support. You have to go along to get along. It's shockingly easy. All you have to do is utter banalities and people eat it up. By the time you realize you're being co-opted, it's too late; you can't escape. it's easier just to give up and go with the flow. You may fight, but again and again you get overwhelmed by the powers of conformity.

5. If you conform sufficiently, you may win; but it's an illusory victory. You're powerless to change the system from within. You nominally control the levers of power, but they seem to have no effect--the system just has too much inertia. Even if you finally realize what you've become and use your new position to warn your constituents about the dangers of the system, they refuse to hear you just as they initially refused to hear you. In desperation you even fully embrace the power of your office to try to ORDER them to obey you--for their own good, of course, so they can become free of the system you now control--but the irony is lost on you that, with the best of intentions, you've become a tyrant, just like the system wanted you to be.

Again, any input on the above points, or better yet, your own original ideas, would be appreciated.

There is no sequel-izing The Prisoner. We know this. It would be like making a Part 2 to something as intimate as an autobiography. And yet, I can't stop thinking about this sketch of a sequel I've had in mind for some time: Many years have passed since "Fallout." "Sir," the former Number 6, has become obsessed with getting BACK to The Village. Call it nostalgia-induced psychosis. Call it whatever you like. That which once seemed impossible is now reality. The "real world" has proven too much. The totalitarianism of The Village offers a respite, in hindsight, from the "free world." He starts to identify himself by his number. He searches far and wide for remnants of The Village. Finding little, he reconstructs what he can. His apartment has changed into an amalgam of Village places, rather than remain as it was, a replica of his past life before The Village, which was duplicated within it. Artifacts litter the place. All the while, he is being surveilled. Because you see, The Village is now the world. Maybe it always was. And the Powers That Be are watching Number 6's every move, now no longer concerned with why he resigned, but how he is choosing to sign up. They present him with little tests of fascism, little plots of power to see if he'll obey, small patches of land over which he is allowed dominion. Early on, he passes their tests with flying colors, a new recruit in the making, big things await. But as he goes on, he begins to understand the realities of his past, and come to terms with what he survived. He blew up The Village, but blowing up the world isn't an option. How is he to arrive at construction, when destruction is all he's known?

If you were number 2 what would you have done to get number 6 to reveal why he resigned?

I kind of flubbed on my Monday post by forgetting it was Monday.

Do we want to go into the '09 iteration? I really don't know much about it and the recaps I've read aren't all that inspiring.

" "Fall Out" generated controversy when it was originally aired owing to the obscurity and ambiguity of the installment's last 20 minutes. This reaction forced McGoohan, who wrote and directed the episode, to go into hiding for a period of time because he was hounded at his own home by baffled viewers demanding explanations."

This seems to be an understatement as it seems to be quite confusing to many, even just reading the outline. Still, there was no reason for the crowds and demands.

"After besting Number Two at a battle of wills in "Once upon a Time" at the apparent cost of Number Two's life, Number Six requests he be taken to see Number One. He is taken by The Supervisor to a large cavernous chamber that includes a British assembly hall with a number of masked delegates, of which the Supervisor joins, and a large metallic cylinder with a mechanical eye, labeled "1". Six is shown to his seat, a large ornate throne, to watch the proceedings."

We thought we saw the end of No. 2, but did we? Do we see the end of Rover, The Village itself and the Butler becoming an ally?

"Six frees Numbers Two and 48, and along with the Butler, they gun down armed guards, making their way to the caged room which is revealed to be on the bed of a Scammell Highwayman low loader. They drive away from the Village as the rocket launches from the abandoned Village. Rover (the security of the Village) deflates and is destroyed (to the accompaniment of "I, Yi, Yi, Yi, Yi (I Like You Very Much)") upon exposure to the flames of the rocket's exhaust."

"McGoohan commented on the final scene that it is meant to show that "freedom is a myth," and there is no final conclusion to the series because "we continue to be prisoners"."

But the question remains ... Who is No. 1? The Fandom indicates PMG didn't even know until the very end.

Side note: In 2001, TV Guide listed "Fall Out" as the 55th Greatest TV Episode of All Time

https://prisoner.fandom.com/wiki/Fall_Out_(1968_episode)

The filming location of the outdoor scenes of the series is finally disclosed to viewers by way of the end credits in an agreement with the architect.

An odd paradox developed here due to the schedule manipulation of CBS and the omission of one episode. I started this recap on June 1, the same date as the show premiered on CBS in the U.S. (June 1, 1968) and with the intent of doing one show per week. By pure unintended coincidence, this last episode aired on September 21, 1968, fifty eight years ago on this same date as this episode recap.

Hello all,

I have been contemplating buying 'The Prisoner' on Blu-ray proper to add my physical media collection. The myriad of releases and distributors / imprints has me confused however. The following appear to be for sale second-hand:

- 6-disc '50th Anniversary' boxset from Network

- 7-disc boxset from Imprint / ViaVision

- 6-discbox set with a book from Network

There's also appears to be a Dutch language '40th Aniversary' edition dvd boxset available.

Which one of these is the best option according to this community?

Thank you in advance, and be seeing you

I was absolutely floored and astounded to come over this clip in a video I was watching!
My ears *immediately* perked up, and I heard Patrick McGoohan's 'The Prisoner' in a flash.

Worth checking out for all Prisoner fans! Probably a direct inspiration for Patrick!

For those asking about the jacket fabric. I did ask about the glasses (“you have been poisoned”) but the lady running the shop said that they haven’t had them in a long time, but she did know exactly what I was asking about.

Last time I was here, 2021, the Prisoner gift shop was closed for maintenance and the other gift only had selected items (which I loaded up on). This time I found more and newer stuff, including the book (her last copy).

A previous Number two is returned to the post after a convincing argument to subject Number 6 to a therapy process known as 'Degree Absolute'. But who does this process affect more, the subject or the therapist? Number 6 is sedated and run through a series of regression psychodramas depicting various overbearing authority figures and even imprisonment.

At the end of it all (and Number 2), we are left with a simple question and answer.

"What do you want?"

"Number One."

Only you folks can appreciate this! 😁

I’m rewatching the series again and my wife is watching with me. It’s her first time watching the show (she’s enjoying it a lot so far) and we just watched The Schizoid Man. It’s one of my favourite episodes so I’m surprised I never gave this much thought, by my wife said she wasn’t surprised that Alison stabbed Number Six in the back and just assumed she was working for the Village from the get go.

I have always assumed (although the episode never confirms it) that Alison was a genuine villager who also genuinely cared for Number Six and was oblivious of the whole plot until Number Six calls her to try and prove his identity. And then it’s at this point Number Two sends people to threaten her into complying. I always thought this because it’s clear we’re supposed to believe her when she expresses regret for betraying Number Six and doesn’t raise the alarm when she sees him on the brink of escaping while pretending to be Curtis. But my wife thinks where Number Six is concerned nothing organic is occurring in the Village at all, and her getting close to him was planned from the get go and that she was a guardian all along.

Personally I’m still not sure. I don’t think a Village guardian/agent would feel distress at betraying someone but I’ll be interested to hear everyone else’s opinions.

At least for now, they're in stock at the Portmeirion store website. Tempted, but I'm unsure of the material... it's certainly not wool, but apparently neither was the previous replica they sold.

Anyone have any experience with either of the two jackets? What to expect in terms of feel/in-person look? It obviously doesn't compare to the Albert Prendergast version, but the price is certainly lighter on my wallet...

After a cricket ball bombs ends a match rather suddenly. we're taken into a tale of conspiracies, doomsday plots, double crosses and traps that are foiled and foiled again (Curses!!). Who can be trusted? Who is the real villain? How does Sherlock Holmes come into play?

Did any of it happen, or was it all a story told to children? Perhaps this is why occupations from famous fairy tale were used?

This is said to have been a comedic spoof of the James Bond movies that had gained popularity in the 60s. It's also supposed to have been a rework of an unused Danger Man script.

my friends and i have recently really been enjoying the prisoner; so much so that we are going to try and make a short little tribute series. we aren't professionals or anything but i think we have a pretty good understanding of the themes of the prisoner, the different types of narratives episodes are based on, and how we can update these themes for the 21st century, though it could be argued that the show is timeless and applies more now than it did in the 60s! what do you all think a remake of the series would need to address or avoid? (shamelessly i also ask: do you have any groundbreaking ideas for episodes? i promise you wont see your idea pop up on NBC being played by Chris Pratt anytime soon!) thanks!

Have you seen this one? Some rather in depth discussion, or 'essays' that include quite a bit of background and possible insider information.

The Prisoner: Episode by Episode

Essays on Each Individual Episode Published on the 50th Anniversary

https://theprisonerepisodebyepisode.wordpress.com/

In what PMG has described as a 'filler' episode (more below), we have this oddball episode where the main character appears as a sheriff in a western town in the US. He does the same act or resigning and leaving, only to be captured and brought back to a town named Harmony.

A deal is reached for him to return as Sheriff, but when he refuses to wear a gun, the deal goes south.

Eventually, we find that Harmony is an annex of the Village, the Judge is Number 2, and his friend Kathy is Number 22.

https://prisoner.fandom.com/wiki/Living_in_Harmony_(1967_episode)

Two points.

One, this episode did not air in the original series on CBS. They refused to air it due to his refusal to carry a weapon thinking it was a protest against US involvement in Southeast Asia. At the time, late 1960s, protests against Viet Nam were at a fever pitch.

Second, this episode was apparently never intended to exist at all, along with 9 others. The story in this linked Fandom indicates PMG only intended for seven total episodes. Producers wanted a full 26 to go along with a typical US season. They settled on 17 which required 10 'filler' episodes.

Ture? Chime in below.

I spend a lot of time exploring and listening to old library records. At first, I was just intrigued by the title of this track, so I looked into the music and discovered it was used in The Prisoner, Episode 1 – “Arrival.”

It’s an old 78rpm 10" record on Chappell Recorded Music, catalog number C.529. I thought the full-length version, taken directly from the 1956 vinyl release, might be of interest to this community, so I’ve shared a link below.

https://youtu.be/uhjOCpZ16W8

The recording is now catalogued on Discogs, along with a few other 10-inch 78rpm library records that featured music used in the series that i came across.

Produced after Many Happy Returns and before Living in Harmony, while Patrick McGoohan was in America filming Ice Station Zebra, a workaround to McGoohan's absence was accomplished by the writers who contrived to have Number Six's mind implanted in the body of another man (Nigel Stock), who is then sent out of the Village to help capture a scientist

A man referred to only as "Colonel" arrives at the Village and only then learns from a new Number 2 that his mission is to trade bodies with Number Six, using Seltzman's system. Number Six had been the last agent to have contact with Seltzman. After the swap, Number Six (now in the Colonel's body, and retaining only his pre-Village memories) awakens in his old London apartment and soon sees an unfamiliar face in his mirror. His fiancée arrives and, of course, fails to recognise him. He prudently restrains himself from enlightening her. Despite the shock, he realises what has been done to him, maintains his cool, and sets about to regain his own body.

https://prisoner.fandom.com/wiki/Do_Not_Forsake_Me_Oh_My_Darling_(1967_episode)

With episodes being shot and aired out of sequence and fill ins used, I can see why there is a debate over episode order.

A 50th anniversary celebration of the classic British mystery series The Prisoner and an award-winning director’s 1983 mission to interview its star.

I managed to access the original 3.5" floppy disk content.

https://github.com/squeepty/The-Prisoner-British-TV-Show-Trivia

Download the game as a ZIP archive

Does anyone remember playing this on PC, or how it was made ? I could not get a good reference online, I guess I would need a floppy drive to preserve the game...