The Avengers (TV series)

The Avengers is a British 1960s television series featuring secret agents in a fantasy 1960s Britain. The programmes were made by TV company Associated British Corporation, and the series was created by their then Head of Drama Sydney Newman.

Spin-offs

Books and comics

A number of original novels were based upon the series in the 1960s, including two that were co-written by Patrick Macnee himself, and one 1990 release, Too Many Targets by John Peel that featured appearances by all of Steed's partners. The first three novels were only published in the UK, while the 1968-69 novels were only released in the US. Several of the 1968-69 novels feature Tara King, but the covers often featured Emma Peel instead.

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Novels

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• The Avengers, Douglas Enefer, 1963 (only 1960s original novel to feature Cathy Gale)
• Deadline, Patrick Macnee and Peter Leslie, 1965
• Dead Duck, Macnee and Leslie, 1966
• The Floating Game, John Garforth, 1967
• The Laugh Was on Lazarus, Garforth, 1967
• The Passing of Gloria Munday, Garforth, 1967
• Heil Harris!, Garforth, 1967
• The Afrit Affair, Keith Laumer, 1968
• The Drowned Queen, Laumer, 1968
• The Gold Bomb, Laumer, 1968
• The Magentic Man, Norman Daniels, 1968
• Moon Express, Daniels, 1969
• John Steed - An Authorized Biography Vol. 1: Jealous in Honour, Tim Heald, 1977 (UK release only)
• The Saga of Happy Valley, Geoff Barlow, 1980 (An unauthorized novel, with character names changed to John Steade and Emma Peale, and sold only in Australia)
• Too Many Targets, John Peel, 1990
• The Avengers, Julie Kaewert, 1998 (film novelization)

In addition, a short story by Peter Leslie entitled "What's a Ghoul Like You Doing in a Place Like This?" appeared in The Television Crimebusters Omnibus, edited by Peter Haining, 1994.

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The New Avengers spawned a series of novels mostly based upon episode teleplays (sometimes more than one per novel). Only a few were published in the US:

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• House of Cards, Peter Cave, 1976
• The Eagle's Nest, John Carter, 1976
• To Catch a Rat, Walter Harris, 1977
• Fighting Men, Justin Cartwright, 1977
• The Cybernauts, Cave, 1977
• Hostage, Cave, 1977

Very few Avengers-related comic books have been published in North America, due in part to the fact that the rights to the name "Avengers" are held by Marvel Comics for use with their long-running superhero team. Nonetheless, Gold Key Comics published one issue of John Steed and Emma Peel in 1968, and a several-issue miniseries entitled Steed and Mrs. Peel appeared in the early 1990s under the Eclipse Comics imprint.

Related Topics:
Marvel Comics - Gold Key Comics - Eclipse Comics

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Film

Primary article: The Avengers (film)

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Plans for a motion picture based upon the series circulated during the 1980s and 1990s, with Mel Gibson at one point being considered a front-runner for the role of Steed. Ultimately, a 1990s movie based on Rigg and Macnee's characters from the TV series, starring Uma Thurman and Ralph Fiennes respectively, received poor reviews from critics and fans alike.

Related Topics:
Mel Gibson - 1990s - Uma Thurman - Ralph Fiennes

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Radio series

Between 1971 and 1973 the TV series scripts were adapted (in English) for South African Radio SABC, the Tara King episodes had the character effectively renamed Emma Peel. Donald Monat played Steed, and Diane Appleby, Mrs Peel. The stories were adapted into between 5 and 7 episodes of approximately 15 minutes each (including adverts) and stripped across the week.

Related Topics:
SABC - Donald Monat - Diane Appleby

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Currently 19 complete serials survive, all from original reel-to-reel off-air recordings, as well as three episodes of "Escape In Time", from a mixture of sources.

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Stage play

There was also a stage version of The Avengers at one point.

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