Number Six Has Died

Number Six (US born but British raised actor Patrick McGoohan) has died at the age of eighty. He starred in a cult British TV series “The Prisoner” which also aired in the US in 1967 I believe. The show was an original concept back then and remains so to this day. I can’t think of anything offhand even remotely similar.

The Prisoner revolves around the life of a former British spy (McGoohan had played the role of a spy in Danger Man – screened as Secret Agent in the US – prior to this series) who wakes up one morning to find himself in a futuristic (and highly psychadelic) prison known as “The Village.” His character was stripped of any personal identity and was known only as “Number Six.”

At first glance you might think the concept somewhat limiting but it was anything but. McGoohan carried the show and made it believable. You really felt for him.

“I am not a number, I am a free man!” quickly became a counterculture catchphrase.

I doubt anyone under the age of fifty will remember the series or McGoohan unless it’s been shown somewhere as a re-run but for my generation he and the show became a “must see” every week. The series was an intrinsic part of my childhood and was something we watched as a family.

Rest in peace Patrick you brought pleasure to many.

Leave a Reply