There's only one Avengers! Moving into color for season five, the production team brought in documentary and TV commercial director John Krish to set the style of the show through new opening and closing title sequences. He was offered a chance to direct every other episode, but found the production pace too fast- only 10 days to edit and cast each next episode. Agreeing to do the titles, which were apparently planned by Brian Clemens, Krish was forced to rush through the filming on a Sunday afternoon at Elstree and wrap by 5:30. Talking in a 2014 interview (below), he said, "All I had was the chair, the cyclorama, a bottle of champaign, the gun. Diana Rigg had flu. Neither of them wanted to be there on a Sunday. It was hard, but it's not revealed, which is the point." Kris went on to direct three episodes of The Avengers in 1967: "Escape in Time", "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Station", and one of my all-time favorite Diana Rigg episodes, "The Living Dead". Past studies of Avengers production have also suggested possible involvement by directors Robert Day and Robert Asher at the time, so Krish's interview may finally clear up details regarding the filming of the title sequences. Stay tuned for upcoming Avengers interviews! Below: production stills of Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel taken during the Season 5 closing titles, excerpt from the 2014 interview with director John Krish, and the original Season 5 opening and closing titles. Enjoy! Related posts: Avengers Interview: Michael Richardson, Avengers Interview: Rodney Marshall I, Avengers Interview: Rodney Marshall II, Rare Avengers Scripts, Lost Avengers Released, Season 5 Blu-ray speed comparison,Shakespeare Spies: Diana Rigg, Diana Rigg at 76, Jean Varon Fashion, Mini-Killers, Mrs. Peel Audio Dramas. Learn More: Bowler Hats and Kinky Boots by Michael Richardson.
