THE PRISONER 1.4 – "Free For All"

Writer: Paddy Fitz
Director: Patrick McGoohan

Cast: Patrick McGoohan (Number Six), Eric Portman (Number Two), Rachel Herbert (Number Fifty Eight), Peter Swanwick (Supervisor), George Benson (Labour Exchange Manager), Harold Berens (Reporter), John Cazabon (Man In Cave), Dene Cooper (Photographer), Kenneth Benda (Supervisor), Holly Doone (Waitress), Angelo Muscat (The Butler), Peter Brace (First Mechanic) & Alf Joint (Second Mechanic)

Number Six decides to participate in a Village election to find a new Number Two...

"Unlike me, many of you have accepted the situation of your
imprisonment, and will die here like rotten cabbages."

-- Number Six (Patrick McGoohan)

It's a classic episode of The Prisoner this week, as Patrick McGoohan directs and writes (under a pseudonym) a politically-themed story about mishandled democratic processes. In Free For All, Number Six (McGoohan) learns that elections are being held in the Village to choose a new Number Two (here played by Eric Portman) – who encourages Six to run for office against him. After some consideration, Six agrees; hoping to win, take control of the Village, and orchestrate a breakout...

Of course, as Six has already seen numerous changes to Number Two (all made without any "elections"), Free For All doesn't work as the fourth episode. Prisoner fans agree it should actually be viewed second, but these ITV4 repeats are following the original ITC transmission schedule. This must have added another, avoidable, layer of oddness when audiences first watched the show in '67!

I really like the sense of alienation in the Village, as everyone around Six walks around like actors in non-speaking roles, wearing bright clothes, carrying vibrant umbrellas, and (in this episode) providing a soundtrack of brass band music wherever Six goes. Those that do talk engage in quick mind-games -- such as the reporters who clamber aboard Six's mini-moke taxi, and brazenly misquote him for local newspaper the Tally Ho, signifying the media's all-important role in modern democracy.

It's frustrating to be the only sane man in a village of fools, and Free For All certainly delivers that feeling beautifully. For the first time, I could well imagine someone "cracking" under the pressure of such resolute insanity. It's a vibe The Wicker Man would use 6 years later – albeit with a quieter, sinister application. And more animal face-masks.

McGoohan's script is full to bursting and the scope is wider than we've seen; taking in more of the Village's surroundings, utilizing the Rover to great effect (just love that roar it makes when it appears), and there are plenty of throwaway sights to fire the imagination (like a creepy moment when Six spots a group of men, sat in a circle underground, watching a stationery glowing Rover). Were they technicians? Worshippers?

I particularly liked the use of Number Fifty Eight (Rachel Herbert), a foreign woman who becomes Six's campaign assistant but proves near-impossible to communicate with. She's another obstacle for Six to deal with in pursuit of success at the Village election, and his campaigning is hardly a success – as the brainwashed villagers don't even react to Six's rallying call for freedom over a loudhailer.

It shouldn't be a surprise that Free For All is one of the best Prisoner episodes; it's one of the seven stories originally conceived by McGoohan to tell the whole story of Number Six's incarceration. But in 1967, ITV chairman Lew Grade couldn't sell a seven-episode run to the North American syndication market, so McGoohan and the writers hammered out another 10 stories. Grade wanted a total of 26, but he had to settle for 17.

Of all the subjects The Prisoner tackles in its 17 episodes, I think democratic elections is the one that reverberates most strongly today: in a world where many suspect George W. Bush cheated his way to the presidency in 2000, before embarking on a quest to bring that same flawed democracy to Iraq's dictatorship. Interesting to note that American-style democracy is the form most critized for being misleading – as a winner of a popular vote might not win the election, as it really comes down to who delegates vote for. And a sham election is what Free For All deals with.

I didn't like the later development of Six being drugged to believe he's part of the Village system, although the episode's twist – with Number Fifty Eight viciously slapping Six into submission inside the Green Dome, before revealing herself as an undercover Number Two – is one of the show's best climaxes and genuinely unsettling and unexpected.

Overall, Free For All is a neat allegory that remains as prescient in '08 as it did in '67, and McGoohan's writing, directing and acting work together in sharp harmony. It's clear from this episode that McGoohan is the true architect of The Prisoner, and while there are 10 episodes of varying quality, the seven he intended are remarkable achievements for the time, and hold up well today.

Trivia

-- This is the first episode to feature Robert Rietty's voice in the introductory Number Two dialogue, instead of the actor playing him. This version of the introduction is also heard in The Schizoid Man, Many Happy Returns, A Change Of Mind, Hammer Into Anvil, It's Your Funeral and The Girl Who Was Death.

-- This is the only appearance of Village pub The Cat And Mouse.

-- At 64, Eric Portman was the oldest Number Two seen on the show.

-- Patrick McGoohan wrote this episode under the pseudonym "Paddy Fitz", taken from his mother's maiden name, Fitzgerald.

-- This is the first of 4 episodes to feature a female Number Two (Rachel Herbert). The other three are Many Happy Returns, Dance Of The Dead and It's Your Funeral.

-- The photograph of Number Six, used for his election campaign and seen during the opening titles of every episode, is a publicity shot of Patrick McGoohan from Danger Man. Some claim this is evidence that Six is John Drake, McGoohan's secret agent character in Danger Man.


First Aired: 22 October 1967