Please note that some of the additional information provided here by the journalist named below may not be accurate, so it should be treated with caution.
March 2018
Interview with ‘Number 2’
Throughout The Prisoner, ‘Number Two’ was the visible face of authority – and one of the stellar guests at last year’s 50th Anniversary event was the late Peter Wyngarde, who took the role and so memorably goaded ‘Number Six’ in the episode Checkmate
Wyngarde’s extensive career ranged from Noël Coward and Shakespeare plays to starring in The Innocence, one of the finest horror films, underachieving television iconography as Jason King. He was also a motoring enthusiast, and one of his biggest roles came about largely due to a car.
“In the early 60s I received a script that was totally rubbish,” he told C&SP in his final interview before he passed away on 18th January (2018), “not a decent line in it!” Shortly afterwards however, Wyngarde was walking by Tony Cooks Bristol showroom on Kensington High Street and he fell for a new model retailing at £5,750 1s 2d. “Upon contacting my bank I discovered that the balance was 12s and 7d!” This vision of automotive splendour prompted a quick change of heart regarding the screenplay and the resulting Night of the Eagle turned out to be a splendid supernatural thriller in which Wyngarde drove a Triumph TR3A.
Off screen, he also experienced a TR2 – “pretty, but not very practical” – which was one of many vehicles that joined the Wyngarde fleet over the years. These included the Bentley S2 Continental with James Young coachwork that appeared extensively throughout Department S; a Studebaker Dictator that suffered a mishap – “I was speeding down the road to Southampton and the engine blew up”; and three TVR’s, the 3.5-litre V8 models receiving particular approval. Latterly, his marque of choice was Porsche; “They are incredible and feel hand crafted.”
Wyngarde also used to race at Brands Hatch: “I would love to have done more of it, but there were insurance problems due to my screen work.”
The Hellfire Club: The OFFICIAL PETER WYNGARDE Appreciation Society: https://www.facebook.com/groups/813997125389790/
PETER WYNGARDE: The Official Website 
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