# What was "The Prisoner" all about? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [September 29, 2010, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481 "2010-09-29T15:46:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/21 "2010-09-30T22:07:37Z")
Every single episode: > [@](#): > > Number 6: Who is Number 1? > Number 2: You are, Number 6. How’s that for consistency? ---
**Author:** ![BritinUS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@BritinUS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BritinUS)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/22 "2010-10-01T19:32:27Z")
One thing to add - Patrick McGoohan had just finished several seasons as the star of a British TV spy series called Danger Man before the start of the Prisoner. So, to us Brits it was as if Danger Man had transitioned to be captured by his enemies, or by the British authorities. It was as though the character had transitioned seamlessly from one to the next. So, if you want the full experience, watch a couple of series of Danger Man and then go straight into the Prisoner. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/23 "2010-10-01T20:01:35Z")
> [@BritinUS](#): > > One thing to add - Patrick McGoohan had just finished several seasons as the star of a British TV spy series called Danger Man before the start of the Prisoner. So, to us Brits it was as if Danger Man had transitioned to be captured by his enemies, or by the British authorities. It was as though the character had transitioned seamlessly from one to the next. > > So, if you want the full experience, watch a couple of series of Danger Man and then go straight into the Prisoner. See post 16. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/24 "2010-10-01T20:07:53Z")
> [@BritinUS](#): > > One thing to add - Patrick McGoohan had just finished several seasons as the star of a British TV spy series called Danger Man before the start of the Prisoner. So, to us Brits it was as if Danger Man had transitioned to be captured by his enemies, or by the British authorities. It was as though the character had transitioned seamlessly from one to the next. > > So, if you want the full experience, watch a couple of series of Danger Man and then go straight into the Prisoner. Not quite seamlessly. The last 2 or 3 episodes of Danger Man were done in color. Drake was given a nasty secret organization to fight, lots of gadgets, and apparent super powers to know that someone planted a bomb in his car with zero evidence. They were, to put it mildly, awful. McGoohan thought so too - in my book about the Prisoner, it says he basically walked, showing what a perceptive fellow he was. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/25 "2010-10-01T20:15:49Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > > [@BritinUS](#): > > > > One thing to add - Patrick McGoohan had just finished several seasons as the star of a British TV spy series called Danger Man before the start of the Prisoner. So, to us Brits it was as if Danger Man had transitioned to be captured by his enemies, or by the British authorities. It was as though the character had transitioned seamlessly from one to the next. > > > > So, if you want the full experience, watch a couple of series of Danger Man and then go straight into the Prisoner. > > Not quite seamlessly. The last 2 or 3 episodes of Danger Man were done in color. Drake was given a nasty secret organization to fight, lots of gadgets, and apparent super powers to know that someone planted a bomb in his car with zero evidence. They were, to put it mildly, awful. McGoohan thought so too - in my book about the Prisoner, it says he basically walked, showing what a perceptive fellow he was. So THAT’S why he resigned! Mate, you had to see that coming. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/26 "2010-10-01T21:54:07Z")
> [@Punoqllads](#): > > Every single episode: > > > [@](#): > > > > Number 6: Who is Number 1? > > Number 2: You are, Number 6. > > How’s that for consistency? Not every single episode, in fact. _Living in Harmony_ was an exception, and I’m not sure about _Arrival_ and _Fall Out_. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/27 "2010-10-01T22:03:19Z")
> [@BritinUS](#): > > One thing to add - Patrick McGoohan had just finished several seasons as the star of a British TV spy series called Danger Man before the start of the Prisoner. So, to us Brits it was as if Danger Man had transitioned to be captured by his enemies, or by the British authorities. It was as though the character had transitioned seamlessly from one to the next. > > So, if you want the full experience, watch a couple of series of Danger Man and then go straight into the Prisoner. The older, 30-minute _Danger Man_ was shown in the US from the beginning (that’s why, in that version, John Drake was a Canadian working for NATO), and the 60-minute version was finally picked up in the US, too, under the title _Secret Agent_ (sometimes incorrectly given as _Secret Agent Man_, which was the title of the theme song). Some people believe that Number 6 actually is John Drake, and that the only reason it isn’t made explicit is that the creator, or creators, of _Danger Man_ would then have been owed royalties. Perhaps that was true at one point in development, but I don’t think _The Prisoner_, as actually made, accommodates it. ---
**Author:** ![Bytegeist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@Bytegeist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bytegeist)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/28 "2010-10-01T23:58:26Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > Not every single episode, in fact. _Living in Harmony_ was an exception, and I’m not sure about _Arrival_ and _Fall Out_. Indeed, those two episodes also lack the usual opening dialog. As does _The Girl Who Was Death_, maybe, but I’d have to check. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2010, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/29 "2010-10-02T03:18:27Z")
> [@Bytegeist](#): > > > [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > > > Not every single episode, in fact. _Living in Harmony_ was an exception, and I’m not sure about _Arrival_ and _Fall Out_. > > Indeed, those two episodes also lack the usual opening dialog. > > As does _The Girl Who Was Death_, maybe, but I’d have to check. There were episodes where they couldn’t show who the new Number Two for the episode was, because that would be telling. ---
**Author:** ![Bytegeist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@Bytegeist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bytegeist)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2010, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/30 "2010-10-02T03:48:16Z")
[QUOTE=Lumpy] There were episodes where they couldn’t show who the new Number Two for the episode was, because that would be telling. [/QUOTE] Oh, wouldn’t it — although in at least a few of those episodes, the introductory dialog is there but with someone else speaking Number Two’s lines. It’s the same man’s voice each time, I think. Then, instead of showing a glimpse of Number Two (sitting in the spherical chair), they’d show a little more of Rover out at sea. I believe _Many Happy Returns_ does this, for example. ---
**Author:** ![qazwart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/5fc32e/32.png) [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/31 "2010-10-06T02:16:32Z")
> [@Punoqllads](#): > > Also, Cecil didn’t note the crucial final shot of the final episode: Number 6 gets to his pre-Island home, and the door opens automatically, _just like doors on The Island_ And, what was that number on that door? It was “1”. And, of course, when Number 6 pulled off the Gorilla mask from Number 1, it was Number 6 himself. My sister and I debated the series when it was rebroadcasted on PBS. In _Free for All_, Number 6 wasn’t too reluctant about running for Number 2 until he realized he was being setup. In _Checkmate_, he found a way to tell the guards from the prisoners and organized an escape. However, the escape failed because he failed his own guard/prisoner test. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/32 "2010-10-06T15:12:11Z")
In any event it made little difference in the Village who was “really” a prisoner and who wasn’t. Even the people running the Village were there on the orders of their unknown masters, and never unconditionally trusted; and none of the inmates could be trusted not to be subverted or collaborate. Number Six was the only “unbroken” prisoner at the time. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/33 "2010-10-06T15:56:10Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > In any event it made little difference in the Village who was “really” a prisoner and who wasn’t. Even the people running the Village were there on the orders of their unknown masters, and never unconditionally trusted; and none of the inmates could be trusted not to be subverted or collaborate. Number Six was the only “unbroken” prisoner at the time. Or was he? I don’t recall the episode, but there was a scene where he was talking to an older man who said something to the effect of “I wish I’d had you in my unit.” He clammed up when Number Six asked “What unit? In which war? In which army?” Number Six isn’t the only one refusing to provide “information”. It’s a tenable hypothesis that everyone in The Village thinks they’re the only ones really resisting. That’s the nature of being trapped in the discourse. ---
**Author:** ![Blakeyrat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blakeyrat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blakeyrat)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/34 "2010-10-06T18:30:12Z")
> [@StusBlues](#): > > > [@Lumpy](#): > > > > In any event it made little difference in the Village who was “really” a prisoner and who wasn’t. Even the people running the Village were there on the orders of their unknown masters, and never unconditionally trusted; and none of the inmates could be trusted not to be subverted or collaborate. Number Six was the only “unbroken” prisoner at the time. > > Or was he? I don’t recall the episode, but there was a scene where he was talking to an older man who said something to the effect of “I wish I’d had you in my unit.” He clammed up when Number Six asked “What unit? In which war? In which army?” Number Six isn’t the only one refusing to provide “information”. > > It’s a tenable hypothesis that everyone in The Village thinks they’re the only ones really resisting. That’s the nature of being trapped in the discourse. I recall an episode (although I can’t remember the title) where a fellow prisoner organized an escape separately from Number 6, IIRC by assembling a row boat to use at night. Unless that was all just a setup created specifically for Number 6 to find… ---
**Author:** ![Bytegeist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@Bytegeist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bytegeist)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481/35 "2010-10-06T20:21:12Z")
[QUOTE=Blakeyrat] I recall an episode (although I can’t remember the title) where a fellow prisoner organized an escape separately from Number 6, IIRC by assembling a row boat to use at night. Unless that was all just a setup created specifically for Number 6 to find… [/QUOTE] Might be _Checkmate_. However… In that episode, Number Six cooperates with some fellow prisoners to escape. Their plan is to build a radio, send out a distress call to any passing ship from the outside world, take a rubber (?) raft out to it, and be rescued. This conflicts a little with your description though, as Number Six is in on this particular escape from the start. Also, for what it’s worth, there are two episodes where Number Six makes a boat himself for escaping: _The Chimes of Big Ben_ (he carves a dinghy out of a tree, and uses a tapestry of Number Two for a sail), and _Many Happy Returns_ (he builds a raft from logs). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-prisoner-all-about/555481.md?page=1)