The Prisoner - 50 years

50 years ago a cult series was born, The Prisoner.

The programme starred actor Patrick McGoohan playing the part of Number Six who is held captive in a mysterious village where the residents are known only by a number.

The opening sequence

Each week, he would attempt to escape, only to find himself unable to break free from those who held him. But who were they? Why was he imprisoned? Which side were his captors on? And who was Number One?

Number Six gazes out from his new "home" in The Village.
© ITV/REX/Shutterstock

The village itself is full of colourful residents, people whom Number Six views as having surrendered to conformity, who no longer resist their incarceration, or perhaps some are actually guards? Whom can he trust?

He tells Number Two, played by different actors each week: "I will not make any deals with you. I've resigned. I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own."

It was a call for individualism at a time when revolution was in the air. Number Six will not reveal why he resigned, despite repeated attempts to break him.

more at BBC