I am hiding from the world, using Patrick McGoohan as a human shield. Irony, considering he played nonviolent moralists in Danger Man and The Prisoner, two of TV’s greatest series ever. But in our volatile, uncertain times, McGoohan’s explorations of surveillance, geopolitics and killer acting reminds me what thought-provoking narrative was like at its best, before the internet went viral and reality disappeared into the hyperreal. I’ll be writing about McGoohan and his fine television shows from now until 2009, when the new iteration of The Prisoner airs, with Jesus and Gandalf in tow. I explain the rest of that bizarre yarn in this Wired shorty on The Prisoner‘s musical reach, which is long indeed.

The Prisoner’s Sonic Shadow Looms Large
Four decades after its short run concluded in controversy, Patrick McGoohan’s brilliant sci-fi miniseries The Prisoner remains one of television’s most influential shows. But its speculative tentacles reach deeper, inspiring user-generated music videos as well as songs from superstars.

My favorite clip so far comes from DRFaustusAU, who has recombined Patrick McGoohan’s mad intensity with The Rolling Stones’ mellow single “2000 Light Years From Home,” from the band’s 1967 psychedelic smash Their Satanic Majesties Request. It’s a fitting match: According to legend, Jagger wrote the tune while in a Brixton prison on drug charges.

Of course, The Prisoner‘s musical shadow stretches further into pop culture. MORE @ WIRED

Watch: The Prisoner vs. The Rolling Stones’
“2000 Light Years From Home”