The Story of a Discharged Prisoner

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The Prisoner is a British television series created by Patrick McGoohan, who stars as Number Six, a nameless British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village after resigning from his position. The allegorical plotlines of the series contain elements of science fiction, psychological drama, and spy fiction. It was produced by Everyman Films for distribution by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment. A single series of 17 episodes was filmed between September 1966 and January 1968, with exterior location filming primarily taking place in the Welsh seaside village of Portmeirion. Interiors were filmed at MGM-British Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire. The series was first broadcast in Canada beginning on 5 September 1967, in the UK on 29 September 1967, and in the United States on 1 June 1968. Although the show was sold as a thriller in the mould of Danger Man, McGoohan's previous series, its surreal and Kafkaesque setting and reflection of concerns of the 1960s counterculture have had a far-reaching influence on popular culture and the series ultimately developed a cult following. The series follows Number Six (Patrick McGoohan), an unnamed British intelligence agent who, after abruptly and angrily resigning from his highly sensitive government job, prepares to go on a trip. While packing his luggage, he is rendered unconscious by knockout gas piped into his home in Westminster. Upon waking, he finds himself in a recreation of the interior of his home, located in a mysterious coastal settlement known to its residents as "the Village". The Village is surrounded by mountains on three sides and the sea on the other. In subsequent episodes, Number Six becomes acquainted with the residents, hundreds of people from all walks of life and cultures, all seeming to be peacefully and mostly enjoyably living out their lives.[7] They do not use names, but have been assigned numbers, which, aside from designations such as Two, Three, and Six, give no clue as to their status within the Village. Most are captives, but some are guards. Prisoners, therefore, have no idea whom they can and cannot trust. The protagonist is assigned Number Six but refuses to accept the designation: "I am not a number! I am a free man!" Although the residents can freely move about the Village, they are constantly under the surveillance of numerous high-tech monitoring systems and cannot leave. Security forces, including a balloon-shaped automaton called Rover, recapture or kill those who attempt to escape.