Gareth Hunt Movies
Best known for sustaining the role of Mike Gambit in the hit television spy drama The New Avengers, British actor Gareth Hunt also attained popularity on his home side of the Atlantic as Frederick Norton on the popular weekly BBC drama Upstairs, Downstairs. Born on February 7, 1943, in London, Hunt joined the merchant navy at age 15 and, after a half-decade at sea, returned to England, where he trained with the infamous Royal Shakespeare Company. For at least ten years, Gareth's popularity remained confined to the U.K. theatrical circuit, but he started expanding his horizons in the early '70s with appearances on such British television programs as Bless This House and Doctor Who. Hunt's contributions to Upstairs -- a drama about the lives of servants and masters in a turn-of-the-century London home -- arrived fairly late in the series (he didn't join the cast until the program's final year of 1975) but helped it retain a sizeable audience through the very end of its run.In 1976, Britain's LWT (or "London Weekend Television," a weekend division of its ITV network) launched The New Avengers, a sequel to the popular '60s spy series The Avengers. Hunt and Joanna Lumley joined original series cast member Patrick Macnee (who reprised his role as John Steed) as a coterie of clandestine English spies who traveled the world outwitting insane, conquer-hungry villains. Hunt's turn as Norton on The New Avengers also represented his first transatlantic success; CBS acquired the rights to this 26-episode series and aired on its CBS Late Movie (as it would with Return of the Saint), alternating between this and reruns of Quincy, M.E. The program ran from November 1978 through the end of 1980.
In his later years, Hunt also appeared on such British series as Castle of Adventure (1990) and Harry and the Wrinklies (2001-2002). He died of pancreatic cancer, at age 65, on March 14, 2007. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 1974
In the fifth episode of the six-part story "Planet of the Spiders," the Doctor travels to the planet Metebelis 3, in hopes of rescuing his companion, Sarah (Katy Manning). There he is given an ultimatum: immediately return the precious blue crystal, which he stole from Metebelis during a previous visit, or all mankind will be destroyed. Grimly, the Doctor weighs the alternatives, which include his own likely death once the crystal is given back to its rightful owner, spider-empress the Great One. Written by Robert Sloman, "Planet of the Spiders, Episode 5" originally aired on June 1, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Pertwee, Elisabeth Sladen, (more)
- 1974
In the fourth episode of the six-part story "Planet of the Spiders," the crooked Lupton (John Dearth) has stolen the powerful blue crystal coveted by the spider empress of the planet Metebelis 3. The empress' minions take over Lupton's mind, enabling the Doctor (Jon Pertwee), who brought the crystal to Earth in the first place, to determine that mankind will be destroyed unless the precious item is returned to its rightful owner. Meanwhile, Sarah (Katy Manning) is captured and transported to Metebelis 3 as a means of drawing the Doctor out. Written by Robert Sloman, "Planet of the Spiders, Episode 4" originally aired on May 25, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Pertwee, Elisabeth Sladen, (more)
- 1974
In the third episode of the six-part story "Planet of the Spiders," three spider-like creatures from Metebelis 3 arrive on earth by way of an English monastery. There mission: To retrieve a powerful blue crystal, previously stolen from them by the Doctor (Jon Pertwee), which is highly coveted by the giant spider empress, the Great One. Unfortunately, the crystal is swiped from the Doctor's friend, Sarah (Elisabeth Sladen), by a crook named Lupton (John Dearth) -- who subsequently loses the valuable artifact to another crook named Tommy (John Kane). All of this has a profound effect on the Doctor, who knows that mankind will be destroyed unless the crystal is returned to its rightful owner. Written by Robert Sloman, "Planet of the Spiders, Episode 3" originally aired on May 18, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Pertwee, Elisabeth Sladen, (more)
- 1974
In the conclusion of the "transitional" six-part Doctor Who story "Planet of the Spiders," the Doctor returns the precious blue crystal to the Great One, the spider-empress of the planet Metebelis 3. As expected, the crystal endows the empress with incredible powers -- too incredible, in fact. The events of the past five episodes cause the Doctor to come face to face with his own fears, shortcomings, and inner demons -- leading, inevitably, to the fourth of his periodic "regenerations" (and a farewell to Jon Pertwee). Written by Robert Sloman, "Planet of the Spiders, Episode 6" originally aired on June 8, 1974, as the final episode of Doctor Who's 11th season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Pertwee, Elisabeth Sladen, (more)
- 1976
Steed (Patrick MacNee), Purdy (Joanna Lumley) and Gambit (Gareth Hunt) foil the latest mission of Soviet agent Perov (Peter Jeffrey). In retaliation, and in defiance of his superiors, Perov reactivates several "sleeper" agents who have been squirreled away throughout the U.K. for the past 20 years. At first, it would seem that Perov's sole motivation is to kill the Avengers--but there's far more to his sinister scheme. This is the episode in which Gambit poses as a pop star and Purdey impersonates a squealing teenage fan. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
Previously seen on two episodes of the original Avengers, those malevolent metallic menaces, the Cybernauts, are at large again. This time, the man behind the Cybernaut invasion is Kane (Robert Lang), a crippled and disfigured double agent who has a score to settle with John Steed (Patrick MacNee). Part of the scheme involves the "rebirth" of the supposedly dead Kane with a new Cybernautic body--and the superpowers that go with it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
The New Avengers begins its two-season run with "old" avenger John Steed (Patrick Macnee), as fastidious and gentlemanly as ever, teamed with two new, young, and attractive partners: Purdey (Joanna Lumley), a sexy, cool-headed martial arts expert (sound familiar?), and Mike Gambit (Gareth Hunt), a rough-hewn ex-mercenary. Their first assignment sends the trio to the remote island of St. Dorca, where another secret agent has already met his doom at the end of some poisoned fishing hooks. The new avengers must pick up where their dead comrade left off and seek out a kidnapped scientist. Their search takes them to a sinister monastery, populated by a very Teutonic-looking band of monks which is preparing to thaw out "Germany's Greatest Treasure," cryogenically frozen since 1945. Biggest surprise: guest star Peter Cushing is not the villain of the piece! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
Purdey (Joanna Lumley) heads to an obstacle-laden firing range in hopes of breaking Steed's (Patrick MacNee) perfect marksmanship record. Five of Steed's previous associates have attempted the same thing at the same range, have fallen short of a perfect score by a mere fraction--and have promptly died of poisoning. Unless Gambit (Gareth Hunt) can run the range and score 100%, Purdy will be Victim Number Six. Roy Boyd, the actor cast as Bradshaw, was a last-minute replacement for frequent Avengers guest star Frederick Jaeger), who caught a cold during filming and was "demoted" to a smaller part. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
Ian Hendry, who as Dr. David Keel had been one of the original stars of the original Avengers, is here cast as Gunner, an amnesiac secret agent. Having been missing for seventeen years, Gunner suddenly shows up, and just as suddenly recovers his memory, providing a strange coded message. This new information may or may not be able to lead Steed (Patrick MacNee), Purdey (Joanna Lumley) and Gambit (Gareth Hunt) to the whereabouts of a notorious double agent known only as the White Rat. As usual, however, the villain gets the upper hand along the way, forcing the New Avengers to gamble with their lives. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
The touch of Midas (Gilles Millinaire) is hardly golden in this episode. It seems that the young called Midas is a carrier of every known disease, and can kill with the slightest contact of his fingertips ("They died of everything!" is the diagnosis whenever one of his victims is found). Enticed with a huge prize of gold, Midas agrees to wreak havoc on England in general and the Avengers in particular on behalf of a sinister foreign diplomat. The pot is sweetened when Purdey (Joanne Lumley) is kidnapped and offered up as Mida's companion for the evening--an experience which of course will have fatal consequences for our heroine. Raiders of the Lost Ark bad guy Ronald Lacey guest stars as Hong Kong Harry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
Blackballed by his peers, crackpot conservationist Zacardi (Vladek Sheybal) intends to get even with his highly trained birds, which swoop down and kill on his orders. Steed (Patrick MacNee), Purdey (Joanna Lumley) and Gambit (Gareth Hunt) endeavor to stop Zacardi in his plan to take over the world with his feathered friends. The climax of this episode (the top-rated installment of The New Avengers' first season) finds Purdey in perilous predicament that would even make Alfred Hitchcock nervous. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
Government scientists develop a knockout gas, designed to peacefully quell terrorist uprisings. The gas, and its antidote, inevitably fall into the Wrong Hands, those hands belonging to a gang of crooks who plan to send all of London off to slumberland so that they can embark upon a wholesale crime spree. To prevent this, the New Avengers once again go undercover--with Purdey (Joanna Lumley) posing as a department store window mannequin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
In exchange for providing valuable information to the government, a convict is set free. But no sooner has the prisoner set foot on the "outside" than he is mowed down by enemy gunfire. The New Avengers try to find out what he was going to tell, and why he was killed--with a tattered paperback copy of a Western novel as their only clue. Ingredients essential to the outcome of this story are a marathon cross-country chase and a deadly game of cards. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1976
Steed (Patrick MacNee) Purdey (Joanna Lumley) and Gambit (Gareth Hunt) go undercover in one of the seamier neighborhoods of London. The Reason? Several prominent governmnet officials, including a friend of Steed's, have turned up dead. It turns out that someone is using disguised derelicts to replace the dead officials. The real trouble begins when the identical doubles for Gambit and Purdey show up (though it does permit Purdey the plum acting assignment of doubling for her own double). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
Unicorn (Jean Claudio), a top enemy agent, is accidentally killed by his own comrades during a shootout. To fool the Other Side, the New Avengers arrange an elaborate hoax to make it appear as though Unicorn is still alive. Unfortunately, the villains have captured a foreign Prince in hopes of exchanging him for Unicorn--and the Prince has been wired to explode in case the exchange goes awry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
An international swindler intends to destroy Steed (Patrick MacNee) by framing him as a turncoat and a murderer. Somehow or other, a fake spiritualist, Victoria Stanton (Sue Holderness), picks up on the villain's plans and warns Steed. It would seem that Victoria is able to anticipate the bad guy's every move--but can she be trusted? And if not, what new dangers lie in store for our bowled-hatted hero? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
Teaming up with CIA agent Marty Brine (Stuart Damon), the New Avengers foil a huge drug deal engineered by Mandarin crime boss Soo Choy (Terry Wood). In retaliation, Soo Choy lures Steed (Patrick MacNee), Gambit (Gareth Hunt) and Purdey (Joanna Lumley) into his lair, then hunts them down like animals. Just in case anyone has missed this episode's resemblance to Richard Connell's classic short story "The Most Dangerous Game", let it be noted that the villain intends to claim our heroes' heads for his trophy room--and he already has three personalized chopping blocks at the ready. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
Larry Doomer (Martin Shaw), ex-fiancee of New Avenger Purdey (Joanna Lumley), is determined to get even for the death of his father. To this end, Doomer has targetted an Arab diplomat for assassination. Unfortunately, Doomer's misguided missile will not only wipe out the diplomat, but all of the Parliament as well. Guest stars Martin Shaw and Lewis Collins) were later reteamed on the popular British action-adventure series The Professionals. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
In the first episode of a two-part story filmed in France, a Russian "K" agent, imbedded as a "sleeper", commits mass murder and then drops dead, aging rapidly as he expires. This occurs in 1965; twelve years agent, another long-imbedded "K" agent is likewise reactivated and likewise launches a murderous attack--this time on an empty house. Steed (Patrick MacNee) and his associates find out that there are 250 sleeper agents throughout France and England, all programmed to be activated by a Soviet satellite--which is now malfunctioning, unleashing death and destruction on an unsuspecting world. Former Avengers costar Diana Rigg appears as Emma Peel in scenes culled from the 1960s episodes "The Winged Avenger" and "The Hidden Tiger". Parts one and two of K is for Kill were telecast in the US as a "feature film" on March 23, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gareth Hunt, Joanna Lumley, (more)
- 1977
The title character in this episode is Purdey (Joanna Lumley), who has been abducted by the Other Side. In order to save Purdey's life, Steed (Patrick MacNee) must agree to hand over top-secret allied defense plans. Unaware that Purdey is in danger, Gambit (Gareth Hunt) reluctantly sets about to "terminate" Steed as a traitor and a murderer. Simon Oates, here cast as Spellman, also played John Steed in a British stage adaptation of The Avengers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
The first of four New Avengers episodes filmed in Canada finds our dauntless trio of dogooders in Toronto, on the trail of an elusive Russian agent known as Scapina. Getting separated from her colleagues, Purdey (Joanna Lumley) finds herself trapped in a computerized building. Even worse: The building itself is the techno-murderer Scapina--an anagram for Special Computerized Automated Project in North America. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
In the conclusion of the two-part story, a malfunctioning Soviet satellite has reactivated Russian "K" agents throughout France and England, transforming the agents into homicidal zombies. The New Avengers think they can rest easy upon confirming that all 250 K agents are dead--until they learn that there were actually 252. Once they have disposed of Number 251, our heroes must somehow prevent the last, unknown K agent from assassinating an equally unknown but very high-profile official, thereby launching World War 3. Parts one and two of K is for Kill were telecast in the US as a "feature film" on March 23, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
- 1977
In the third of four New Avengers episodes filmed in Canada, Steed (Patrick MacNee), Gambit (Gareth Hunt) and Purdey (Joanna Lumley) are assigned to guard an antique automobile known as Emily. It seems that the old car contains the only known fingerprints of an elusive secret agent known only as (what else?) The Fox. Perhaps because it was played purely for laughs, "Emily" emerged as the top-rated New Avengers episode of the 1977-78 season--not to mention the highest rated Avengers installment of all time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Macnee, Gareth Hunt, (more)
