• title card: white all caps text reading ‘HOSTAGE BY BRIAN CLEMENS’ superimposed on Purdey kicking her assailant backwards over her sofa
  • Steed cracking the lock of a large red safe
  • Top-down view of the interior of a telephone box in which Steed is on the phone
  • Marvin, disguised as Steed, plants Steed’s stolen gun at the scene of the murder
  • Purdey kneels on the floor with her hands tied behind her back, an apple in her mouth
  • Purdey hugs Steed, relieved to have been rescued

The New Avengers, Series 2 — Episode 7
Hostage

by Brian Clemens
Directed by Sidney Hayers

Production details

Produced:February, 1977

Regional broadcasts

BroadcasterDateTime
Thames Television17/11/19778:00pm
ATV Midlands21/10/19778:00pm
Granada Television17/11/19778:00pm
Anglia Television17/11/19778:00pm
Border Television21/10/19778:00pm
Channel Television17/11/19778:00pm
Grampian Television21/10/19778:00pm
Southern Television17/11/19778:00pm
Scottish Television17/11/19778:00pm
Tyne Tees Television21/10/19778:00pm
Ulster Television17/11/19778:00pm
Westward Television17/11/19778:00pm
Harlech Television21/10/19778:00pm
Yorkshire Television21/10/19778:00pm

This episode was shown in the Netherlands before it was broadcast on any ITV region in the UK, see below.

TV Times listing

I do not have a TV Times / TV Weekly or other contemporary British listing for this episode, if you have one, please get in touch.

Sydney Morning Herald listing for March 6 1978, 8.30pm
The Age listing for March 6 1978, 8.30pm

International broadcasts

ABN2 Sydney, Australia6/03/19788:30pm
ABV2 Melbourne, Australia6/03/19788:30pm
ABC New York, USA8/12/197811:30pm
TF1 France16/06/19798:35pm
Suisse Romande, Switzerland
French titleOtage
ZDF Germany
German titlePoker um Purdey
KRO Netherlands3/10/19778:25pm
Dutch titleDe gijzeling
Italy14/04/8020:30
Italian titleL’ostaggio
Spain5/05/8111:05pm
Spanish titleRehén

This episode was shown in the Netherlands on October 3 1977, eighteen days before it was broadcast on any ITV region in the UK.

Netherlands: Limburgsch Dagblad listing for October 3 1977, 8.25pm
Netherlands: Provinciale Zeeuwse Courant episode summary, October 3 1977
USA: Chicago Tribune listing for December 8 1978, 10.30pm
France: L’Impartial listing for June 16 1979, 8.35pm
France: L’Impartial episode summary & photo (from The Midas Touch), June 16 1979
Spain: ABC Madrid listing for May 5 1981, 11.05pm

Continuity and trivia

Here’s where the transmission order no longer makes sense - back in Medium Rare Purdey redecorated her flat. banishing the “tart’s boudoir” to history, but here it is again in all its lurid lavender glory; on the plus side, production values are the earlier, higher, standard and we see none of the shambles that was Trap.

You’d think they’d be sick of the “could Steed actually be a traitor?” storyline by now, wouldn’t you? Still, at least this time the audience knows for sure he isn’t.

The Transport

Marque Colour Number Plate
Purdey’s Triumph TR7 yellow DOM 721R
Triumph Dolomite pale blue, black vinyl roof DCX 821M
Steed’s Rover 3500 SD1 Automatic lemon MOC 229P
Steed’s “big cat” Jaguar XJ12 5.3 Litre Coupe Automatic british racing green NWK 60P
BMW 3.0 S steel blue KPH 244K
postman’s bicycle black -
Ford Cortina yellow OYA 650P
Ford compact red SLB 816R
Ford Cortina estate blue GTF 239N
Gambit’s Jaguar XJS red NRW 875P

Who’s Killing Whom?

Victim Killer Method
Walters Marvin Steed’s revolver
Click a name to see the face

The Fashions

Gambit’s fashions
  1. white tie & tails
  2. tan cords with light khaki shirt & khaki tie
  3. karate pyjamas with black belt
  4. brown cord jacket, yellow & white shirt, pale grey cravat
  5. navy pinstriped suit, purple tie, blue pinstriped shirt with white collar and cuffs
Purdey’s fashions
  1. brown and white patterned outfit
Steed’s fashions
  1. white tie & tails, with military decoration
  2. black suit & bowler, umbrella
  3. bottle green tuxedo
  4. grey/brown suit with brown velvet collar, copper tie, blue sh
  5. grey suit velvet collar, purple tie with white spot, pale blue shirt, grey bowler

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