John Steed is a fictional character, played by Patrick Macnee, on the British series The Avengers and The New Avengers. Steed was a secret agent working for an unnamed branch of British 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, and Mike Gambit (1976–1977). Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg on the cover of a 1994 reprint of an Avengers novel co-written by Macnee. ... The Avengers is a British 1960s television series featuring secret agents in a fantasy 1960s Britain. ... A 1970s New Avengers paperback features Mike Gambit (Gareth Hunt), Purdey (Joanna Lumley) and the ubiquitous John Steed (Patrick Macnee). ... Secret Agent is a 1936 British film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on a novel by W. Somerset Maugham. ... The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), more commonly known as MI6 (originally Military Intelligence [section] 6), or Her Majestys Secret Service or just the Secret Service, is the British external security agency. ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1961 calendar). ... Fictional television spy played by Honor Blackman on the 1960s British series The Avengers. ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... The Avengers, John Steed (Patrick Macnee) and Emma Peel (Diana Rigg), appear on the cover of a 1994 reprint of an Avengers novel co-written by Macnee. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... Tara King is a model who worked with Playboy in the late 1990s. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... For the Stargate SG-1 episode, see 1969 (Stargate SG-1). ... Purdey was a character in the British TV series The New Avengers played by Joanna Lumley. ... Mike Gambit Mike Gambit (or Michael Gambit) was a character in the British TV series The New Avengers. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ...

Steed's trademark was his impeccable dress, including a bowler hat, suit with waistcoat, and everpresent umbrella with distinctive whangee handle. Steed's umbrella was known for containing a sword, though there were other versions, including one that featured a sound recorder. (The sword umbrella used in the title sequence was made by venerable English umbrella maker James Smith & Sons.) A trademark or trade mark[1] is a distinctive sign of some kind which is used by an individual, business organization or other legal entity to uniquely identify the source of its products and/or services to consumers, and to distinguish its products or services from those of other entities. ... The bowler hat is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown created for Thomas Coke, 2nd Earl of Leicester of Holkham, in 1850. ... A traditional waistcoat, to be worn with a two-piece suit or separate jacket and trousers A waistcoat (sometimes called a vest in Canada and the US) is a sleeveless upper-body garment worn over a dress shirt and necktie (if applicable) and below a coat as a part of... “Parasol” redirects here. ... Whangee refers to any of several Asian bamboos of the genus Phyllostachys. ... It has been suggested that War-sword be merged into this article or section. ...

Steed was born John Wickham Gascoyne Berresford Steed in the mid-1920s. A veteran of World War II, Steed achieved the rank of major before joining The Ministry. 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. The 1920s is a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Major is a military rank the use of which varies according to country. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... Rolls-Royce car may refer to vehicles produced by: Rolls-Royce Limited (1906-1973) Rolls-Royce Motors (1973-2003) Rolls-Royce Motor Cars (2003-present) // Rolls-Royce cars Rolls-Royce Limited vehicles 1904-1906 10 hp 1905-1905 15 hp 1905-1908 20 hp 1905-1906 30 hp 1905-1906... Bentleys winged B badge and hood ornament Bentley Motors Limited is a British based manufacturer of luxury automobiles and Grand Tourers. ...

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 man called "Mother" (and occasionally a 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. Look up Wit in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Steed Malbranque, of the English Premier League team Tottenham Hotspur, was named after John Steed as his parents saw their child as the epitome of Britishness. Steed Malbranque, (born January 6, 1980 in Mouscron, Belgium), is a footballer currently playing for Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League. ... Tottenham Hotspur F.C. is a North London association football team, also known by the nickname Spurs. ...

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 the South African radio version of The Avengers which ran from 1971 to 1973, Steed was played by Donald Monat.
• In the 1998 film, Steed was played by Ralph Fiennes.
• Australian journalist John Steed worked on the Daily Mirror in Sydney, The Australian, The Age in Melbourne, New Idea in Melbourne, The Dominion in Wellington, New Zealand, The Dominion Sunday Times, Wellington, New Zealand. He also interviewed Patrick McNee in Sydney and Wellington.

1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ... Simon Oates is a British actor best known for his roles on television. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean [1]. // Coated in ice, power and telephone lines sag and often break, resulting in power outages. ... The Avengers is a 1998 film based on the British cult television series of the same name from the 1960s. ... Ralph Fiennes, (IPA: ), born 22 December 1962 in Ipswich, Suffolk, England), is a Tony Award-winning, Academy Award-nominated and Genie Award-nominated English actor. ...

External links

• Steedophilia John Steed tribute site