| Mike Gambit | |
|---|---|
| The New Avengers character | |
 Gareth Hunt as Mike Gambit | |
| First appearance | "The Eagle's Nest" |
| Last appearance | "Emily" |
| Portrayed by | Gareth Hunt |
| In-universe information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | British |
Mike Gambit (or Michael Gambit) is a fictional character in the British TV series The New Avengers , played by actor Gareth Hunt. [1]
Gambit was John Steed's first male partner since Drs. David Keel and Martin King in the original The Avengers nearly 15 years earlier. Gareth Hunt was picked for the role at auditions held in late January 1976. [2] His role in the New Avengers team alongside John Steed and Purdey was to be the action man, charming female witnesses, chasing and fighting villains, and protecting his colleagues.
Gambit was a secret agent and former Major in the Parachute Regiment and had a short-lived career as a race car driver.
Gambit was something of a mystery, his past never being addressed within the series other than him running away to sea as a teenager (as Hunt himself did) and that he once took three bullets coming over the Berlin Wall (something he shares with Steed). [3] [4] He lived in an apartment with a Modern architecture design style which is still full of boxes as he'd never bothered to unpack. He was romantically interested in Purdey, often flirting with her during their work together.
In the British Film Institute's 1996 tribute book, The Avengers, Toby Miller writes: "What of The New Avengers' unwieldy third object, Gambit? Hunt summed up his character's relationship with Purdey as 'based on a promise: one day it will happen.' Some might seem him as the necessary triangulation of mimetic desire: the relationship between the men attains its shape via interaction with her... In effect, Gambit was the viewer brought into the action: the younger man in thrall to Steed and taken with Purdey, he is that most mundane of viewers, the straight white male, finding himself part of the diegesis without any element of fantasy in his character (the Evening News called him 'bovine'). If Tara is the everyday female spectator who is given a part, Gambit is her male equivalent." [5]
In Avenger World: The Avengers in Our Lives, Alan Hayes comments: "I loved Gambit, the perpetual underdog, fiercely loyal, always hopeful that Purdey would return his affection without ever crossing the line, a genuinely good man who quickly became a favourite -- and not bad on the eyes, either! Plus, his suits benefitted from Seventies tailoring, the last decade to remember that men have a waist and to cinch jackets in accordingly." [6]
Daniel Patrick Macnee was a British-American actor, best known for his breakthrough role as secret agent John Steed in the television series The Avengers (1961–1969). Starting out as the assistant to David Keel, he became the lead when Hendry left after the first series, and was subsequently partnered with a succession of female assistants. He later reprised the role in The New Avengers (1976–1977).
The Avengers is a British espionage television series, created in 1961, that ran for 161 episodes until 1969. It initially focused on David Keel, aided by John Steed. Ian Hendry left after the first series; Steed then became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. His most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish, and assertive women: Cathy Gale, Emma Peel, and Tara King. Dresses and suits for the series were made by Pierre Cardin.
Alan Leonard Hunt, known as Gareth Hunt, was a British television actor best remembered for playing footman Frederick Norton in Upstairs, Downstairs and Mike Gambit in The New Avengers.
Purdey is a fictional character in the British TV series The New Avengers played by Joanna Lumley from 1976 to 1977. She was a spy working for British intelligence, partnered with John Steed and Mike Gambit.
"A Touch of Brimstone" is the twenty-first episode of the fourth series of the 1960s British spy television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee as John Steed and Diana Rigg as Emma Peel. It was filmed c. December 1965, and was first broadcast on British television on 15 February 1966. The episode was directed by James Hill and written by Brian Clemens. The plot involves Steed and Peel infiltrating the Hellfire Club whilst investigating harmful pranks on high profile political and business figures.
Dr. Catherine "Cathy" Gale is a fictional character played by Honor Blackman, on the 1960s British series The Avengers. She was the first regular female partner of John Steed, following the departure of Steed's original male co-star, Dr David Keel. She made her first appearance at the start of the series' second season in 1962.
Major The Hon. John Wickham Gascoyne Beresford Steed usually known as John Steed, is a fictional character and the central protagonist on the 1960s British spy series The Avengers and its 1970s sequel The New Avengers, played by Patrick Macnee in both; by Donald Monat in the South-African radio series adaptation of The Avengers; by Ralph Fiennes in the 1998 film of the same name and by Julian Wadham in various audio adventures from Big Finish Productions.
Tara King is a fictional character of British 1960s adventure television series The Avengers, played by Canadian actress Linda Thorson. The sixth partner of agent John Steed, she appeared in series six of the series (1968–1969), playing in 33 episodes. She is Emma Peel's successor. She is also the first of John Steed's partners to be a real spy. Viewers are not given any indication whether or not she is related to Dr. Martin King — played by Jon Rollason — one of Steed's partners from series 2.
Constrictor is the name of two fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first version seen is Frank Payne. The second version is his unnamed son.
The New Avengers is a secret agent action television series produced during 1976 and 1977. It is a sequel to the 1960s series The Avengers and was developed by original series producers Albert Fennell and Brian Clemens.
"Mother" is a fictional character in British TV series The Avengers.
Brian Horace Clemens was an English screenwriter and television producer. He worked on the British TV series The Avengers and created The New Avengers and The Professionals.
"The Cybernauts" is the third episode of the fourth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg. It was first broadcast by Scottish Television on Tuesday 12 October 1965. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show, broadcast it in its own regions four days later on Saturday 16 October. The episode was directed by Sidney Hayers and written by Philip Levene.
"A Surfeit of H2O" is the eighth episode of the fourth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg. It was first broadcast by Scottish Television on Tuesday 16 November 1965. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show, broadcast it in its own regions four days later on Saturday 20 November 1965. The episode was directed by Sidney Hayers and written by Colin Finbow.
"The Town of No Return" is the first episode of the fourth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg in her Avengers debut, and guest starring Alan MacNaughton, Patrick Newell, Terence Alexander. It was first broadcast on ABC Weekend TV on 28 September 1965. The episode was written by Philip Levene, directed by Sidney Hayers, and produced by Brian Clemens.
"Age of X" is a comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics as part of its X-Men series. The storyline is set in an alternate reality known as Earth-11326. Running from January to April 2011, it is similar in name and tone to the 1995 "Age of Apocalypse" storyline.
Licensed to Love and Kill is a 1979 imitation James Bond film directed by Lindsay Shontef and starring Gareth Hunt. It was written by Shonteff and produced by his wife Elizabeth Gray.
"Hot Snow" is the debut episode of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Ian Hendry and Patrick Macnee. It originally aired on ABC on 7 January 1961. Only about 15 minutes, the first of three acts, remain. The episode was directed by Don Leaver and generally acknowledged to have been written by Ray Rigby, but Brian Clemens claimed to have written it.
"The Forget-Me-Knot" is the first episode of the sixth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and introducing Linda Thorson as Tara King. Its first broadcast was on the US ABC network on 20 March 1968. Its first UK broadcast was on 25 September 1968 by Thames Television, who commissioned this series of the show for the ITV network. The episode was directed by James Hill, and written by Brian Clemens.
John Bryce is a Scottish former television producer. He is best known for his work on the 1960s series The Avengers.
