July 7, 2015
He played a number of minor
roles on the big and small screen in the 1940s and 1950s, before rising to fame
in the original Avengers series between 1961 and 1969.
Sanjeev Bhaskar, a star of
Goodness Gracious Me and The Kumars At No 42, wrote: “RIP Patrick Macnee”.
His character was known for his
signature style of a bowler hat and umbrella, which was used as a secret
weapon.
“The Avengers television series
was probably Britain’s greatest television export and is still broadcast around
the world”.
Evelyn paid his way to Eton,
one of the U.K.’s most prestigious boarding schools, where he developed his
acting skills before being expelled for bookmaking and selling erotic pictures
to his schoolmates. After that, Macnee returned to acting and hopped around
Canada, The USA, and England, appearing in films like Les Girls (with Gene
Kelly) and A Christmas Carol.
It quickly drew attention for,
among other things, the jumpsuits worn by his female colleague Emma Peel,
played by Diana Rigg.
The legendary actor was also
known for his theatre roles, having appeared on Broadway during his lengthy
career.
While he made his name
internationally playing a smart, debonair British secret agent, Macnee was
never a fan of the James Bond movies. (Both Blackman and Rigg also starred in
James Bond films.).
He also played a record company
boss in the film This Is Spinal Tap.
“I said, ‘No, I dont. His final
marriage was to Baba Majos de Nagyzsenye in 1988. In 1998, when “The Avengers”
was remade as a feature film starring Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman, Mr. Macnee
had an offscreen part as a narrator.
He is survived by a son,
daughter and grandson.
In a 2014 interview with The
Lady magazine, Macnee said he believed The Avengers was a success because it
“did something different and did it better”.
The reason was simple, he once
said.
“It made them delight in the
awareness that they could get out there and do it all, fight men, take on
villains, all the kinds of stuff we showed in The Avengers“.
