Original artwork, not a still
I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own.
— The Prisoner ‧ 1967
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is the series' creed in one breath: a man refusing to be reduced to a record. Written in the 1960s, it reads like a protest against forms, files and data, which is why it has outlived its decade; the follow-up 'I am not a number' belongs to the title sequence, but this is the full statement. Fans quote it against bureaucracy, tracking and ID schemes.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for The PrisonerShow the scene
In 'Arrival', the first episode of The Prisoner (broadcast in the UK on 29 September 1967), a British intelligence agent who has just resigned is abducted and wakes in a seaside Village where everyone has a number and he is Number Six. The first Number Two receives him in a domed office and tells him that he can have a very nice life here if he tells them what they want to know. Six turns the deal down with this declaration. The series was created by Patrick McGoohan, who plays Six, and filmed largely at Portmeirion in Wales.
Sources (3)
- Arrival (The Prisoner), WikipediaLeadReference checked
- The Prisoner, WikipediaLead; PremiseReference checked
- The Prisoner, WikiquoteArrival [1.01]Reference checked
Context reviewed
