The Avengers Forever: Website News Archive

	Website News Archive July 2002

Get well, Gareth! 28 July. I'd always felt Gareth Hunt's bio was a bit thin, so in tribute I did some research. Amazing what you can turn up after hitting Google for three or four hours—his bio has nearly doubled in size. Also, fans of that movie will appreciate Ian Beazley's new website, The Prospero Files (saving the movie in style).

Gareth Hunt collapses on stage. 26 July. Read the details in AvengerNews. In happier news, I am pleased to report that The Avengers Classified is seeing increasing use. Be sure to check it out regularly to see what's cooking.

The return of visitor reviews. 21 July. Seems like it's been a while since we've had an influx of them... and just when I was about to think everyone had lost interest, a whole bunch came pouring in, nearly all from newcomers:

Conspiracy of Silence by Nick Griffiths
They Keep Killing Steed by Douglas Ellerbusch
False Witness by Mikie5o
Legacy of Death by Mikie5o
Noon Doomsday by Mikie5o
They Keep Killing Steed by Mikie5o
Wish You Were Here by Mikie5o

Never drink and edit. 20 July. Whatever were they drinking/sniffing/shooting in the editing department of The Avengers (Film & TV) Enterprises Ltd back in May of 1977? Their judgment was certainly impaired as they assembled "Obsession," for they neglected to omit the tail end of the title sequence from the fighter jet stock footage they obtained from the RAF. The gaffe was recently pointed out at TheAvengers.TV International Forum, and while I had no cause for skepticism, it is quite another thing to see it in the flesh, so to speak. Amazing, really, what makes it onto the air sometimes. With thanks to Steve Roberts of the Doctor Who Technical Forum for the grab, and to Alan Hayes for the heads-up. Also... Sci-Fi Lovers recently polled some sci-fi "experts" on the all-time top 100 sci-fi TV shows, and The Avengers with Emma Peel came in at number 17. With thanks to Peter Sykes of Hervey Bay, Australia.

Six more David Keel episodes "recovered." 19 July. I'll bet that got your attention! Sorry, but while no one has found any more episodes, I have begun something I had promised way back in April. When The Avengers Image Archive closed down, I came into "ownership" of its content. Although I'm not going to be recreating that site in its entirety, I will from time to time be adding a few of the more unique images—in particular, I believe items from the David Keel era are of greatest interest, given that virtually everything of that season has been lost. I have also done something that might be considered silly or perhaps even stupid: the images have been processed to look like screen grabs from period video (blurry, low resolution, high contrast). Why "ruin" otherwise excellent images? Because it was fun, and it allows one to pretend just a little—to cast one's mind back to 1961 and imagine seeing the show as it ran. Besides, most of the source images are also available in large, pristine, high-resolution form (hover over the faux grabs to see which ones); some of them are incredibly detailed and fascinating to study. So, enjoy a glimpse into a time long gone with the following episodes:

Hot Snow (two "grabs," two enlargements)
Hunt the Man Down (five "grabs," three enlargements)
Dance with Death (three "grabs," three enlargements)
The Springers (three "grabs," one enlargement)
Double Danger (one "grab," one enlargement)
Dead of Winter (one "grab," one enlargement)

In addition to the episodes, Quiet On The Set features some behind the scenes shots. With many thanks, of course, to Alan and Alys Hayes.

Avenge your screen. 16 July. Our resident visual artiste extraordinaire, Carlos Pagés, has gifted us with another marvelous screensaver! It might be worth noting that the card images used in the screensaver were sourced from a deck nearly identical to that used in Tara's "card tricks" closing credits.

Who Shot Poor George / XR40? 15 July. The sharp eye will notice the "incorrect" title. Actually, this is the radio version of the TV episode, which also features Emma in lieu of Tara! Things are quite, quite busy at Alan and Alys's AOR site, and the latest addition details this episode. There was also a tiny upate at Police Surgeon. Locally, Mike Kunkel correctly identified a missing headstone for "How To Succeed....At Murder." Poor Henry... so abused, he wasn't even acknowledged for his own death!

The Avengers Classified! 9 July. Got some Avengers paraphernalia to sell? Looking for that rare Avengers wall clock? Post your wants and your wares on the new Avengers online classified ad system! To learn all of the details, click the logo and hit the "New Listing" button!

More Police Surgeon. 8 July. See the new Police Surgeon Site Log for details. The update has impacted quite a number of TAF pages, as several newly added guest actors from Police Surgeon appeared in The Avengers.

On a roll! 7 July. This is fun! I only wish I were in the UK so I could be a little more active in the research itself, instead of just being the collector of everyone else's work... Anyway, Chris (Cult TV Memorabilia) Johnson came up with some documents that ABC provided to publishers containing Police Surgeon episode synopses. Thanks, Chris! But don't think with all this attention being paid to Police Surgeon that I have forsaken TAF; I have at last completed the oft-requested, long-overdue biography of Avengers creator Sydney Newman. And finally, here is an IMHO that you shouldn't be afraid to read.

Police Surgeon Update. 6 July. The launch of that silly little site had exactly the effect I had hoped: to stir interest in this forgotten moment in television history and generate some new details. Sure enough, a few new nuggets have been added, and thanks go to Alan Hayes for some TV Times items, and to Chris Johnson for transmission dates.

Police Surgeon Madness! 5 July. Amend my previous announcement: I haven't just added a new page on this obscure little show... I've added a whole new website! Yeah, call me terminally silly, but I thought it might be fun to have a "world exclusive" site, even if it is pathetically small and will never get much bigger. Be that as it may, welcome to:

Happy Independence Day to the Yanks! 4 July is the day we Yanks (are supposed to) reflect on our country's origins. In a similar vein, this site has seen an update that reflects on the roots of The Avengers. After discovering one small page on the show (which, ironically, has since been removed), I have acquired enough information to build a complete Police Surgeon episode guide. Since quite a few Avengers guesters appeared in this series, many pages at TAF have been revised. I also unearthed an interview with Avengers creator Sydney Newman.

More stuff: Not long ago I was asked by a couple of fans if I knew who the "cute egghead" was in "The Master Minds." Honestly, I wouldn't have known where to begin to find out—except that, a couple of days later, I noticed Piers (Mrs. Peel... We're Needed!) Johnson had himself recently learned of her identity from one Yves Lambert: she is Elizabeth Reber, a woman of many varied talents. Piers has even transcribed her lines in the script. Then, a recent search on Linda Thorson has turned up a number of new items—see the links section in her bio. (Of curiosity to me was the image on the BBC page: shouldn't the BBC have a stockpile of file photos to use? Appears they found it easier to swipe mine. Ah, well, I suppose I should be flattered that it seems my pages may actually be useful...)

Even more stuff: William Nedblake has contributed what he refers to as "senseless coincidence made into trivia" for "Mission... Highly Improbable," and Ms. Lee Bridges offers "official" observations on the fencing featured in "The Correct Way to Kill." And finally, here's a whole lot of Honor Blackman! BTW, I am, at long last, all caught up on visitor feedback... for now.