Was There Always Only One Steed?
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Purdey And "The New Avengers" Steed (1976-1977)

Considering that Steed had gone through substantial changes during the 1960s seasons of the series—depending highly on his partner—it wasn't hard to accept that his new image for the '70s would again greatly differ when compared to past Steeds.

But, be careful! This doesn't mean that "The New Avengers" Steed underwent such a metamorphosis that he became suddenly unrecognizable. Of course he didn't, though Patrick Macnee did encounter difficulties in returning to a role that he hadn't played for seven years. He admits that "donning the bowler hat again wasn't as simple as I'd hoped." Steed's soul, though, was undeniably still deep inside him.

The passing years, however, now painted a Steed who had to evolve in time, not only in his appearance, but also in his outlook. And that's exactly what we perceived in this mature gentleman in his mid-fifties who showed up on the screen in "The New Avengers." A gentleman who still wore his impeccable three-piece suits but now revealed some gray strands in his hair, strode a little more slowly and fought much less, and sometimes limped slightly (a result of the arthritis that was, by now, affecting Patrick's knees). In contrast to past times, he called his female partner by her first name (as Purdey who only had the one name), drove sumptuous cars of the latest models, lived in a magnificent Georgian country mansion, and was seen riding his beloved horses remarkably often. Rather than that of an English dandy, his image now tended more towards the archetypal country squire.

None of the episodes of the new series explained what had happened in Steed's life since his association with Tara. We only knew that by now Steed, in addition to his regular female partner, Purdey, also had a male one, Mike Gambit. The conversion of the classic duo into a novel trio of secret agents obviously meant Gambit causing changes as he found his place. But "unity makes the force," as the old saying states, and that was very true for the new team: a concurrence of aptitudes enabled them to work smoothly, within a frame where the fantasy and surrealism of the '60s cult-classic had now disappeared, replaced by the spy realism of the 1970s.

A long way on from his days of sporadic appointments with One-Ten and colleagues, or visits to the eccentric places where Mother set up his headquarters, the "The New Avengers" Steed held a high rank in the Ministry, and his superiors and their head offices were often shown to us. Not only that, but perhaps as never before, the victims who fell into the hands of the new villains (oddly enough, very few masterminds among them) were Ministry agents mostly. Consequently, a strange trait in Steed's character comes into view, that is fairly typical of a person getting older and who no longer coolly watches how the years go by. Maybe with the possible exception of the Tara season, this characteristic hadn't been perceived in Steed before. Steed mourns deeply a colleague's death in "The New Avengers," making reference frequently to the loss of a "good friend," instead of the loss of "one of our better agents," as he stated in previous series. The English phlegm that flowed so freely over his persona in the '60s, especially with Cathy Gale and Emma Peel, this time seems to have been treated with an effective expectorant that made him cough up his feelings much more noticeably.

This more human side of the Steed in the 70s shows—and which was already evident in Tara's time—was slightly detrimental to his ironic and witty humor, but this had already begun to dilute with Tara. Steed's humor falls off progressively in the new series, to the extent where in some episodes it is virtually non-existent. There is little humor on show in numerous "New Avengers" episodes, even in such pearls as "Dead Men are Dangerous," "Hostage," "Obsession," or "Sleeper," or even in the pitiful "Gnaws." However, we still see the witty Steed of old here and there, most notably in the final episodes that were filmed in Canada (especially "Forward Base") when the end of the series was just around the corner.

An established sense of altruism and decency is apparent in this Steed. He did not think twice before getting himself into trouble in "Hostage," even when his loyalty to his country came into question, in order to rescue the kidnapped Purdey. This Steed would also look after his colleagues on a personal level, and supported Purdey emotionally when an old love came unexpectedly back into her life in "Obsession"—although whether he succeeded or not was unclear. And what to say about the Steed who put his hand in his pocket and left payment under the bottle of beer he drank in "Sleeper" (just a sip—don't worry for the avid champagne drinker!) after Gambit "borrowed" it from a bar in the middle of a London absolutely paralyzed, all its inhabitants asleep. Or the Steed who took a couple of eggs from chickens in "Emily," leaving money in the hen-house while apologizing to the birds: "I'm terribly sorry," he said so endearingly.

We've spoken of the Purdey Steed's image without having made too much mention of this new partner. In fact, Joanna Lumley could have been the most perfect Diana Rigg successor, since she was voted the second most popular Avenger girl after Diana. But... was there a romantic interest between Purdey and Steed? We don't know, although if there was, the intent seems to lean towards Purdey's side rather than Steed's. "If we were in another car, I'd put my head on your shoulder. Would you mind?... It's a very comfortable shoulder," she said to him in "Dead Men are Dangerous." But we were kept guessing when both arrived at Steed's mansion late at night only to discover that it had been vandalized. In "The Eagle's Nest," Steed rebuked Purdey for showing up late at night at the window of his hotel room, a "gentleman's room." "But you're no gentleman," declared Purdey, to which Steed retorted, "That's where the danger lies." And what could have clarified everything, also persisted as a doubt in "Angels of Death," when both were trapped in a diabolical maze, its walls moving inwards, squeezing them together so closely that their breaths seemed to merge. "Steed, I want to tell you something...", whispered Purdey, knowing they would soon be crushed by the walls. And once again, as in "Man With Two Shadows" and "The Forget-Me-Knot," we're left not knowing what it was, as here, Gambit rescues them in the proverbial nick of time.

In addition, the Purdey Steed, maybe for the first time, exhibited a generous collection of lady "friends" (all visibly younger than he) whom frequently he would invite home to dinner. One of those ladies played an amusing scene which brought out not only Steed's picaresque humor, but also made us to return to other times. When the lady asked about the portraits of Cathy, Emma and Tara that Steed had on a table, he, his mind elsewhere, assumed she was talking about the pictures of his horses laying on the opposite table. "Beautiful. Went through some tricky situations together. Faithful. Reliable," he said about Cathy. "Very spirited, very special. Fantastic creature. Had to take a whip to her, though, sometimes," said about Emma. "Excellent. Great action. But liked her oats too much. I sold her to an Arab prince. I think he eventually had to shoot her," said about Tara.

In one of the most remarkable moments of the whole "New Avengers" series, Steed has a very brief telephone conversation with Mrs. Peel in part one of "K is for Kill" (courtesy of an unused 1967 clip of Emma on the telephone). Steed's reason for making the call was to inquire after some details of an old assignment they had worked on together. After a brief discussion, Emma informs him that although he still addresses her as such, she is no longer "Mrs. Peel." "To me, you always will be Mrs. Peel," Steed replies, as Purdey and Gambit look on.

Beyond his logical changes, "The New Avengers" Steed always kept his tastes for champagne, women, elegance and sophistication. And perhaps the most allegorical point of this era is given in the last minute of the last episode, "Emily," in which Steed is presented with a red carnation which he puts in his buttonhole. The camera holds on it for a second, before the final credits appear. A symbol that summarized the absolute, irresistible charm of a character who maintained audience interest for a full ten years.