- John Steed
John Steed is a fictional character, played by
Patrick Macnee , on the British series "The Avengers" and "The New Avengers".Description
Steed was a
secret agent working for an unnamed branch ofBritish intelligence . He was teamed with a variety of partners, including Dr. David Keel (1961),Cathy Gale (1962–1964),Emma Peel (1965–1967),Tara King (1968 - 1969),Purdey , andMike Gambit (both 1976–1977).One of Steed's
trademark s was his impeccable dress, often consisting of a stroller with Bowler (or Coke) and everpresentumbrella . Steed's umbrella, with its distinctivewhangee handle, was known for containing asword , though there were other versions, including one that featured a sound recorder. (Theswordstick featured in the title sequence was made by venerable English umbrella maker James Smith & Sons.)Biography
Pre-Avengers
Steed was born John Wickham Gascoyne Berresford Steed in the mid-1920s. A distinguished veteran of
World War II , Steed served in theIntelligence Corps and received theMilitary Cross for single-handedly taking a German machine-gun post. Before leaving theBritish Army to join The Ministry Steed achieved the rank ofMajor .He maintained a modest flat in
London during the 1960s and drove a variety of elaborate, old-fashioned cars, including a Rolls Royce and several different models of Bentley, one of which he callsFido .The Avengers
During his early appearances, Steed's character was a more rough-and-tumble operative than the suave, sophisticated gentleman he became during the Gale and Peel eras. His most common style of dress in the first two seasons was a trenchcoat and suit; it wasn't until later that the bowler hat made its appearance. He was initially shown answering to several different superiors such as "One-Ten" and "Charles". During most of the Gale-Peel era the source of his orders were left a mystery. For the final season of the original series (the Tara King era) Steed was shown taking his orders from an obese wheelchair-bound man called "Mother" (and occasionally a blind woman named "Father"). In "The New Avengers", Steed was once again shown working on his own, and it was suggested that he had moved up into a "Mother"-like role in British intelligence, although that didn't stop him from directly participating in missions.
Out of all his partners, he was closest to Mrs Peel; while their interaction was often laced with dry, sarcastic
wit on both sides, he respected her as an equal, and owed her his life on more than a few occasions. There were some elements of repressed sexual attraction between Steed and the married Peel, but his professional respect for her (and perhaps a fear of spoiling their partnership) kept him from acting upon his attraction to her.Influence
Steed Malbranque , of the English Premier League teamTottenham Hotspur , was named after John Steed as his parents saw their child as the epitome of Britishness.Fans of John Steed sometimes call themselves "Steedophiles".
Other versions of Steed
*In the 1971 stage play of "The Avengers", Steed was played by
Simon Oates .
*In theSouth African radio version of "The Avengers" which ran from 1971 to 1973, Steed was played byDonald Monat .
*In the 1998 film, Steed was played byRalph Fiennes .External links
* [http://www.joodiff.com/articles.php?cat_id=1 Steedophilia] John Steed tribute site
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