50 years of The New Avengers: Purdey, Pop Art & 70s Style

25th August 2026

50 years of The New Avengers at Art & Hue

2026 marks 50 years of The New Avengers!

Wondering how a 1970s television show redefined British fashion and action history? To mark the 50th anniversary of The New Avengers, explore the lasting cultural legacy of Purdey, John Steed, and Mike Gambit, alongside Art & Hue’s officially licensed pop art print collection celebrating the iconic series.

Despite the resurgence of Seventies trends in decor, the period was frequently referred to as “the decade that taste forgot”. Looking through any interiors magazine nowadays, you’d wonder why it earned that admonishment but there may have been more economic factors at play.

Following the cultural youthquake of the stylish Sixties and before the flashy excess of the Eighties (a decade that taste truly forgot – early to mid-80s fashion and design was a Fisher-Price jumble, wrapped in a string vest and doodled in kohl), the Seventies carved its own path, cut to its own cloth, influenced by hippies and Habitat.

The State of British Cinema and TV in the 1970s

In the 70s, the British film industry was on its knees due to a number of factors – rising inflation, the fuel crisis, relaxed film-licensing rules for adult films, and competition from television vying for eyeballs.

Art & Hue presents The New Avengers stylish pop art prints

Perhaps this is why the trashy early-80s overcorrected by gauchely splashing the cash after the 70s recession.

Respected actors had to make do with appearances in low-budget saucy comedies to tick along. Less glamour and more seedy Soho, even actresses like the alluring Valerie Leon and elegant Joan Collins struggled in penny-pinching films such as “Can You Keep it Up for a Week?” and “Alfie Darling”.

The New Avengers stylish pop art print by Art & Hue

On television, studio-based sitcoms ruled the roost to the point that their popularity led to big-screen adaptations. As fun as “On the Buses” and “Are You Being Served?” may have been, they didn’t create fashion trends (it took 40 years for Mrs Slocombe‘s purple rinse to catch on).

How The New Avengers Sparked a 70s Style Revival

Against this somewhat dreary brown corduroy backdrop, it’s understandable why “The New Avengers” made such an impact when it debuted in 1976. A re-imagined version of the cult 60s show “The Avengers“, Steed returned with two new partners: the dashing Gambit and the stylish Purdey.

Making its world premiere on Irish station RTÉ on the 28th of September 1976, The New Avengers’ British debut was on the HTV channel at 7.50pm on the 17th of October 1976, then broadcast on the Thames channel on the 19th ahead of other ITV networks on the 22nd.

The Cultural Impact and Legacy of the “Purdey Cut”

In a decade starved of glamour, Joanna Lumley‘s Purdey was a revelation. Her iconic hairstyle instantly inspired a nationwide trend with women and girls across the country running to their local hairdresser demanding the “Purdey Cut”.

With a wardrobe supervised by Betty Jackson that included Catherine Buckley, Lee Bender for Bus Stop, and other notable fashion designers at the time, Purdey became an instant fashion icon – a beacon of style amongst the drab mainstream.

In an era when female TV characters were often secretaries, wives, or harassed assistants, Purdey was a fully trained agent holding her own alongside Steed and Gambit. She was quick-witted, physically formidable (those martial arts moves taught to her by fight arranger Cyd Child were no joke), and decidedly uninterested in being rescued.

In many ways, she was the spiritual successor to Honor Blackman’s Cathy Gale and Diana Rigg‘s Emma Peel – women who dressed beautifully, spoke wittily, and kicked bad guys through furniture without breaking a nail. Where Cathy & Mrs Peel embodied the liberated 60s, Purdey captured the slightly more complicated 70s: stylish but streetwise, feminine but fierce, and utterly in control of her own choices. For a generation of young women watching in 1976, she wasn’t just a fashion icon but also a blueprint.

Purdey Biker stylish pop art print by Art & Hue

From Spy-Fi to Gritty Realism: The Show’s Lasting Influence

The show continued the legacy of “The Avengers” with elements of fantastical spy-fi (The Return of the Cybernauts) and OTT surrealism (Gnaws!), but also developed a grittier action show realism that laid the groundwork for future projects.

The New Avengers Trio stylish pop art print by Art & Hue

Due to convoluted funding arrangements with French and Canadian partners, there were only two series of “The New Avengers” and it wrapped in 1977. However, it successfully laid the groundwork for “The Professionals” which was to start up in that year and run for five series until 1983.

Also masterminded by The New Avengers’ Laurie Johnson & Brian Clemens, “The Professionals” owed its casting to the show: stars Lewis Collins & Martin Shaw were first paired on screen together in “The New Avengers” episode “Obsession”.

Joanna Lumley: From Purdey to Patsy Stone

“The New Avengers” didn’t just launch a haircut, it launched Joanna Lumley into the stratosphere. Before Purdey, she’d been a fashion model and had roles in the Bond film “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service“, “Are You Being Served?“, “Coronation Street“, and “The Breaking of Bumbo” with Richard Warwick. However, Purdey made her a star.

After Purdey came the haunting, cult-classic “Sapphire & Steel” alongside David McCallum, where she played a mysterious, time-travelling operative – proof she could do eerie as effortlessly as elegant. And then, of course, came working with Ruby Wax which led to “Absolutely Fabulous“. Patsy Stone, the chain-smoking, champagne-guzzling fashion magazine editor, couldn’t have been further from Purdey – which perfectly demonstrates Lumley’s range, wit, and sheer magnetic presence which turned Patsy into a comedy icon.

That through-line from Purdey to Patsy is remarkable: two utterly different women, both unforgettable, both bearing the unmistakable Lumley stamp. Half a century on from Purdey, she remains one of Britain’s most beloved actresses. It may have all started with a John Frieda haircut but it helped us to realise what a national treasure Dame Joanna is.

Triple Purdey stylish pop art print by Art & Hue

Celebrate the 50th Anniversary with 4K UHD & Pop Art Prints

Fifty years on, “The New Avengers” remains a masterclass in mid-70s style, proving that even in the darkest economic times, British television could still deliver peak glamour.

Recently restored in 4k UHD from the original film reels, “The New Avengers” have never looked so good – see the Art & Hue unboxing video with comparisons of the upgraded 4k images online here (and sign up to the mailing list to get news about the upcoming giveaway of the Collector’s Edition Box Set later this year to help mark the anniversary).

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the impactful show, Art & Hue presents “The New Avengers” pop art collection of stylish prints featuring Steed, Purdey & Gambit.

Available in three sizes and many colour options to suit all interiors – from swanky Seventies-inspired pads to contemporary spaces – they’re ideal for anyone who believes that true style never goes out of fashion.