This 1967 British TV show is revered as a cult classic that was radical and countercultural, while symbolizing philosophical arguments about individualism vs. collectivism. We take a deeper look at star Patrick McGoohan and the commercial interests behind the show to ask if it's ultimately more conservative than pop culture likes to remember.

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• The Prisoner

Additional Resources:

• A Spy Trapped in a Nightmare of Psychedelia
• GEORGE MARKSTEIN interviewed by Chris Rodley
• Number Six At 50: The 50th Anniversary Of 'The Prisoner'
• How did The Prisoner ever get made?
• Patrick McGoohan Explains The Meaning Of The Prisoner, A TV Cult Classic
• Alan Moore Remembers Patrick McGoohan’s “The Prisoner”: Part 1
• What on earth was The Prisoner all about?
• McGuire, J. T. (2014). A Mentor-Protégé Relationship?: Orson Welles, Patrick McGoohan, and The Prisoner Television Series. Quarterly Review of Film & Video, 31(7), 647.
• Hanna, E. (2014). Be Selling You: The Prisoner As Cult and Commodity. Television & New Media, 15(5), 433.
• Woodman BJ. Escaping Genre’s Village: Fluidity and Genre Mixing in Television’s The Prisoner. Journal of Popular Culture. 2005;38(5):939