Tunnel of Fear

20th episode of the 1st season of The Avengers

"Tunnel of Fear"

The Avengers episode
Episode no.| Season 1
Episode 20
Directed by| Guy Verney
Written by| John Kruse
Featured music| John Dankworth (theme)
Production code| 3417[1]
Original air date| 5 August 1961 (1961-08-05)
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List of episodes

"Tunnel of Fear" is the 20th episode of the first series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Ian Hendry, Patrick Macnee and Ingrid Hafner, and guest starring John Salew, Anthony Bate and Miranda Connell. It was recorded on 405-line monochrome videotape on 3 August 1961 and was first broadcast by ABC on 5 August 1961. It is one of the three known complete series 1 episodes to have survived being purged from the ABC archives and was rediscovered in 2016 when it was found in a private collection.[citation needed] The episode was directed by Guy Verney and written by John Kruse.[2]

## Plot

[edit]

Top secret information is leaking into Europe from a funfair somewhere in Southend, and Harry Black, a recent escapee from prison, is rumoured to have worked there. Closer examination reveals that the ghost train is more scary than it looks and the owner of the funfair, Jack Wickram, is arranging the kidnappings. Trick cigarettes allow Steed to bluff the enemy into submission and Harry Black is proved innocent as he was hypnotised and framed.

## Cast

[edit]

* Ian Hendry as Dr. David Keel
* Patrick Macnee as John Steed
* Ingrid Hafner as Carol Wilson
* Anthony Bate as Harry Black
* Miranda Connell as Claire
* Doris Rogers as Mrs. Mary Black
* John Salew as Jack Wickram
* Douglas Muir as One-Ten
* Douglas Rye as Billy Flowers
* Stanley Platts as Maxie Lardner
* Bill Maxam as George Milner
* Nancy Roberts as Madame Zenobia
* Morris Perry as Police Sergeant
* Julie Samuel as Rosie
* Juno as Puppy

## Recovery

[edit]

On 3 October 2016, it was announced that a pristine condition 16mm film telerecording of the episode had been recovered from a private collector and was later screened in London on 12 November.[3] As of 2025 it is the latest known surviving episode to feature the character of David Keel.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Johnson, Piers. "Tunnel of Fear". The Avengers. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
2. ^ "The Avengers : Series 1 : The Tunnel of Fear". dissolute.com.au.
3. ^ "The Avengers (1961) – Lost Episode 'Tunnel Of Fear' From The Very First Series Rediscovered After 55 Years!". ianhendry.com.

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The Avengers

Characters|

* John Steed
* Cathy Gale
* Emma Peel
* Tara King
* Mike Gambit
* Purdey
* Mother

Episodes|

| Series 1|

* "Hot Snow"
* "Crescent Moon"
* "Girl on the Trapeze"
* "Dance with Death"
* "The Frighteners"
* "Tunnel of Fear"

|

Series 2|

* "Mr. Teddy Bear"
* "Propellant 23"
* "The Decapod"
* "Bullseye"
* "Mission to Montreal"
* "The Removal Men"
* "The Mauritius Penny"
* "Death of a Great Dane"
* "The Sell Out"
* "Death on the Rocks"
* "Traitor in Zebra"
* "The Big Thinker"
* "Death Dispatch"
* "Dead on Course"
* "Intercrime"
* "Immortal Clay"
* "Box of Tricks"
* "Warlock"
* "The Golden Eggs"
* "School for Traitors"
* "The White Dwarf"
* "Man in the Mirror"
* "Conspiracy of Silence"
* "A Chorus of Frogs"
* "Six Hands Across a Table"
* "Killer Whale"

Series 3|

* "Brief for Murder"
* "The Undertakers"
* "Man with Two Shadows"
* "The Nutshell"
* "Death of a Batman"
* "November Five"
* "The Gilded Cage"
* "Second Sight"
* "The Medicine Men"
* "The Grandeur That Was Rome"
* "The Golden Fleece"
* "Don't Look Behind You"
* "Death a la Carte"
* "Dressed to Kill"
* "The White Elephant"
* "The Little Wonders"
* "The Wringer"
* "Mandrake"
* "The Secrets Broker"
* "Trojan Horse"
* "Build a Better Mousetrap"
* "The Outside-In Man"
* "The Charmers"
* "Concerto"
* "Esprit de Corps"
* "Lobster Quadrille"

Series 4|

* "The Town of No Return"
* "The Gravediggers"
* "The Cybernauts"
* "A Surfeit of H2O"
* "The Hour That Never Was"
* "A Touch of Brimstone"
* "What the Butler Saw"

Series 5|

* "From Venus with Love"
* "The Fear Merchants"
* "Escape in Time"
* "The See-Through Man"
* "The Bird Who Knew Too Much"
* "The Winged Avenger"
* "The Living Dead"
* "The Hidden Tiger"
* "The Correct Way to Kill"
* "The Superlative Seven"
* "Death's Door"

Series 6|

* "The Forget-Me-Knot"
* "Have Guns — Will Haggle"
* "The Morning After"

Related|

* Cast
* Radio episodes
* The New Avengers
* Film
* Minikillers
* "Kinky Boots"

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