First let me say Hello to everyone. So my folks used to watch the prisoner when it was first on ITV in the 60's. So growing up in England I saw a few of the episodes and I have been the village in North Wales. Few months back I got the complete box set on DVD because it was cheap!!! and I watch the whole show form start to end and I feel in love with it. So I started to watch Danger Man and I've started to notice some intersing things between the 2 shows.

In danger man one of the first thing that made me think was in the US openning songs it has the words "they took his name, and now his just a number"
2nd in series 2 episode "That's Two of Us Sorry" when John Drake gets of the ferry boat he says "Be seeing you" which as we know is the good bye everybody say to the prisoner.

As I keep watching danger man is notice any more intersting things I will post.

Welcome Danger Mouse! As you keep watching Danger Man, you'll see many little ties to the Prisoner, and probably also spot some bigger thematic links as well.

The Drake 7


Hello Folks

I have long been fascinated by the material from Danger man/Secret Agent that seem to foreshadow the coming of The Prisoner so I have created an interesting little experience for folks to try and or let me know their opinion on the matter.

In The Prisoner there are the famous McGoohan 7 episodes that PMcG says best summarizes the meaning of The Prisoner. I have created a list of what I call the John Drake 7 that I think best summarizes The Prisoner like elements found in D/SA series. Here they are with a suggested viewing order:

A.) Watch the opening of The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove as you might watch the opening of The Prisoner but stop at the point where Drake gets in his sports car to go to work, then: Colony 3: John Drake visits ‘the other sides” version of The Village with very interesting “exports” just remember the “Englishmen never talk to strangers” and you will get along fine in this Village.

B.) To Our Best Friend: This is an important episode as it was written by Ralph Smart and directed by PMcG himself and there is a direct reference to Colony 3 on Drake’s part pretty much setting up that he would be battling future agents of the precursor to The Village.

C.) The Mirror Is New; Drake must decide if a fellow agent is suffering from amnesia and gets a true look at the nature of evil.

D.) The Hunting Party: Drake takes on the role of a servant to invade a Village like spy operation using drugs and hypnosis to gain information.

E.) The Paper Chase: Drake goes thru a maze of folks and again ends up in Village like enviroment that Mrs. Butterworth or Mary Morris would have found worthy of conducting The Dance Of The Dead. Drakes makes an escape in miniature that will remind you of The Lotus 7.

F). Koroshi: The Movie: Drake jumps to true James Bond like super spy status as he encounters a deadly secret cult that hides behind ancient death rituals and plans to use assassination as a tool for world domination. Drake leads an entire Village to an explsoive machine gun climax. (I am cheating a little bit here because this is actually 2 Danger Man episodes edited into a film format that works rather well. Hint: Turn off the color and watch in B&W.

G.) The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove: Watch Drake battle a blackmailing Leo McKern like No.2.. The Schizoid Drake.... and find out who is No.1....but was it all a dream or a clever trap to take Drake to The Village to gain INFORMATION on the part of The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove??

Comment Information??

BCNU
Tommcfearsom

[Edited on 10-23-2007 by John Ryerson]
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John Ryerson


Mood: Willing to do some wood work.


At The Movies


Hello Fellow Villagers

To get you started on The Drake 7 here is a mini version. A.) is the opening of The Prisoner. B.) is a fan trailer of Colony 3 courtesy of Colony 3.


A,)The Prisoner




B.)Colony 3



BCNU
TomMGM (Roar)

This is a truly useful post, Tomm! I have noted the titles and will begin to go through them in this order. This is what I was referring to when I mentioned 'thematic' links in my post above.

Other things Danger Mouse can look for would be Portmeirion in View from the Villa, and (more interesting) Drake's attitude toward his superiors as the series continues. Danger Man flows very smoothly into The Prisoner.

Be prepared for me to continue this discussion, Tomm!

Hello jan

Glad you enjoyed the Drake 7 .... here is another look at other material from some of the early Danger Man episodes such as The Trap and even Ralph Smart's production of The Invisible Man. It is all embedded in an imagined conversation between McG and David Tomblin in a story called The War Room......

David Tomblin:
When we wrote the first episode, Patrick got very excited about it and
then began to add touches ? he began to stylise it ? and it took on
quite a different look. He was going sort of "over there" and I was
trying to keep it "over here" because my sort of experience was
heavily actionised, so between the two forces plus Jack's visuals the
thing ended up the way it ended up. (Concerning the creation of The
Prisoner)

The War Room

The scene is a huge War Room dominated by two figures known simply as
McG and DT. Surrounding them are 21st century security screens with
various images spanning almost 2 decades of film and TV experience
between them. Before these two figures ( one a towering 6'2" shaft of
a man with smoldering blue eyes and movement like a panther) is a full
scale replica of the village of Portmeirion on a monsterous scale.

DT: Okey McG, the sports car zooms in, then there is to be a
kidnapping at home, good, we did that in The Lonely Chair. But first a
walk down a lonley tunnel like man walking the last mile in pools of
light, that we have seen in films, yep, check. Then the resignation of
the man with the high level security position, like in Dangerous
Secret. Okey, so far so good. Then a gas or drugged kidnapping by
hearse and undertakers like in The Trap with a helicopter transport to
Portmeirion, where you were in Danger Man and held captive and
referred to the place as a prison camp in Under the Lake. Got it.

Portmeirion functions like a combination of Colony 3 and the safe
house for spies and crooks run by Joan Greenwood with cameras and
every room is bugged. Not to mention the tall elegant butler from The
Hunting Party's isolated location with cameras, bugs, drugs, hypnosis,
to extract state secrets.

McG: Very good but the butler will be of small stature, sinister,
silent very, very quiet.

DT: The hospital is a lot like the one used in Say It with Flowers
complete with the death of an agent so they can retire.

I like the action and your plan for this to have been 7 episodes would
have been nice but making it a limited series of no less than 13
should keep Lew Grade and Michale Dan over at CBS happy. Although a
Summer run is best at 17 episodes max.

These various No.2 coming and going are a hoot, kinda like a lazy-
susan of villians , all coming to you your stage experience along with
JS sets will work great here.

I like the name The Prisoner and your idea of a battle of wills just
like your 1962 through 1963 work on the B.B.C. teleplay by the same
name. Your idea of the continuing story line with two men in a battle
of wills is a lot like the plot from that teleplay.

This is all fantastic stuff you have come up with Boss and I even like
the action. But why do you insist this be an allegory. How do you know
that will work.

McG; The tall man just smiles and pats a theater program from 1955
with the words: ORSON WELLS Presents: 'Moby Dick Rehearsed' ; based
on the American Allegorical Novel. This is hidden is his coat pocket.

DT: That Rover machine of yours is pretty fantastic but I like the
action it will cause in the chase scenes. But what is this stuff about
bubbles and balloons you're working up ?

Mcg: Again he just smiles.

DT: Well there is an awful lot of good stuff here. In fact I would say
as far as needing to create anything else there is just about ..well
ZERO further to create.

About this time a small figure wearing glasses pushing a tea cart
(with one squeaky wheel) enters the War Room and we hear:
"Refreshments gentlemen ?"

DT: No thanx.... You know McG this 'safe house' business is a bit old
hat. I mean this stuff is a dime a dozen in the open press in
SCREAMING headlines complete with the details of what goes on in
there, even if it is current and topical. Then there is that speech of
yours you want, it is a lot like the one from Ralph Smart's The
Invisible Man about being "filed" "top secret" and your a "person".
But I have to admit the whole 1984 slant is just fantastic and there
is a lot of opportunity for ACTION.

McG A small smile. And he pours himself a whiskey.

The small figure with glasses , pushing his tea cart, retreats from
the direction he came from (with the wheel still squeaking) muttering
" I once knew something about a 'safe house'... somewhere.... a
looonnnnngg time ago."

DT: Who the HELL was that???!

McG: Oh, just someone who's been referred as a personal story editor.

DT Well, he looks like a bureaucrat....... but a sweet man.

The War Room


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Here is even one moor resource for:

http://numbersixwasinnocent.blogspot.com/2009/07/mcgoohan-on-my-mind-villas-vacations.html

BCNU

Tommcfearsom

P.S. Hello Danger Mouse .... thanx for the new thread .... enjoy the links below .... ROCK ON .... :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K90joT4RSnA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iaR3WO71j4&feature=related

The "John Drake 7"

A). The Opening of "The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove" Nice aerial shot of Drake driving to work. Similar to shots of No. 6 driving to resign. Both end up unconscious.

"Colony 3". This is the most obvious link between the two series. Wish I could remember all the details (also wish there were Danger Man script books like the one I have for The Prisoner!).

-Citizens Advice Bureau appears in both series
-Janet did not exist, for either 'side'...similar to Dance of the Dead
-The Village, obviously, in both
-Randall tries to escape from the Village, and Drake goes after him, playing the part of Rover.
-surveillance everywhere in both
-doors that don't lock in both
-nasty techniques to get Information in both
-neat shot of McGoohan up on the ridge when he is going after the escaping Randall; filmed very similarly to a scene in Many Happy Returns
-The actor who played Drake's boss also appeared in The Prisoner
-Randall accuses Drake/Fuller of being a plant and that put me in mind of XO4 in Hammer into Anvil.

What other details did I miss?