backLOST & FOUND
The "alternate" versions of "Arrival" und "The Chimes Of Big Ben" that were unearthed a couple of years ago are, in fact, differently edited episodes, made either for publicity purposes or as early tests.
With both of them, the most significant change to the usual TV version is the absence of the well known Ron Grainer title music. It is replaced or, rather, preceded instead with the Wilfred Josephs "Chimes" track. This track still appears as incidental music throughout other episodes. Partly longer than we know and with slightly different footage are the credit sequences of both episodes - Number Six' abduction, waking-up in the Village.
The white ballon, Rover, in the "alternate Arrival" does not kill one of the villagers gone crazy and Number Six' forced return
in the helicopter also takes a bit more screen time.
The "Alternate
Chimes of Big Ben" shows Number Six with a sextant observing
the stars in the nightly skies. Obviously, he is trying to calculate his
whereabouts. This scene was cut because on the one hand it doesn't really
result in something within this particular episode and, on the other hand,
renders the whole series worthless, in a way.
Both
episodes' end credits again are different from each other as they
are from the TV version we know. There is the Wilfred Josephs
score. And usually, having completed the animation of the Pennyfarthing there is a cut showing Rover emerging from the sea and drifting on the water
surface.
In the case of "The Alternate Chimes of Big Ben" the big and the small wheel start spinning until the big one dissolves. The small wheel undergoes a transformation becoming the Earth globe among stars and galaxies growing ever bigger and in the end there is the word "POP" in 60s capital letter typography.
"The Alternate Arrival" goes a slightly different way. The final image is the Pennyfarthing consisting of Earth and the universe - just "POP" is missing...
For a detailed survey of the "alternate" episodes visit: http://www.the-prisoner-6.freeserve.co.uk/
