The Avenger Girls

[stuart.uk]

Here's a tribute a group of girls from the hit series The Avengers

Ingrid Hafner, who played Carol Wilson. Back in the first series Carol was Dr. David Keel's (Ian Hendry) secretary, as he joined forces with mysterious sinister secret agent John Steed, as they battled against evil

Blonde Julie Stevens played Venus Smith in the early part of season 2 assisted Steed in on and off in a handfull of episodes, as did Honor Blackman as the groundbraking action leather clad action heroine Cathy Gale. Such was the impact Honor made, Cathy became Steed's regular partner taking the show on to a new level of popularity.

The Blackman shows like the earlier ones were shot in a televison and may have even gone out live. I think she'd have liked to have done the later film ones, but James Bond came calling with Goldfinger. Honor told the writers 'Write for a man and I'll do the rest.'

Then came Diana Rigg, who was the favourite Avenger girl among most of the shows fans. Her early ones, made in black and white were in my opinion her best. What impressed me that the 20-something Diana was able to make the widowed Emma Peel appear older, nearer Honor Blackman's age. I found out recently in order to please the American network, that the writers had to soften both her character, wardrobe and fighting abilities, which I think was a pity. A reluctant star, who hated the fame that went with a hit tv show, Diana went on to play James Bond's wife in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

Linda Thorson, who played Tara King, appeared to inexperienced an actress in her early episodes, but to her credit she greatly improved. Of all The Avenger girls, she seems to be the only one romantically involved with Steed. Diana, as a whole maybe the most popular of TAG, but if you ask anyone in France, chances are they'll say Linda Thorson. Recently starred in soap Emerdale, before geting killed off.

The best thing in The New Avengers was Joanna Lumley, who played Purdy alongside Steed and Gareth Hunt's Mike Gambit. One of the things that hurt the series IMHO was the fact some were filmed in Canada. Of all the girls I think Joanna is currently the most successful, not just as an actress, but as an outstanding documentary presenter. Recently she did a doc about Ian Fleming the writer of the Bond Novels, where her performance made it all the more watchable. Like Honor and Diana, Joanna was a Bond girl, though not on the same scale. She was one of Blofled's girls in OYMSS.

[stuart.uk]

I've been recently watching reruns of The New Avengers and have been greatly impressed by Joanna Lumley, who had clearly got herself into the best possible shape before filming began.

All the other Avenger Girls (Honor Blackman, Diana Rigg and Linda Thorson) were great in their own special way with like most others Imo Diana Rigg as Emma Peel, far and away the best. However, I don't think any of them came close to matching the level of fitness Joanna showed in TNA. That's perhaps not surprising as Joanna was told to get her heartrate down to 30, before they started filming, so clearly they were going to put her through her paces.

It was great to watch Joanna running flat out in 70s fashions. She almost looked like an International class athlete