Emma Peel (Excerpts from “Emma Peel - feminist icon” by Elizabeth Eggleston)

Screen 2 of 9

Emma Peel is the embodiment of a strong, liberated and independent woman. In the episode Escape In Time, Emma is apparently sent back in time to the sixteenth century. Emma tells the villains, “I’m thoroughly emancipated” A brutal man accuses her of being “a heretic, a bawd, a witch – designed to drive a man to lust”. Her reply…is to look up, toss back her hair, and offer the following: “You should see me in four hundred years”.

The point about this emancipated woman is that she is only threatening to repressed men. Her male partner, Steed (played by Patrick Macnee), seems to have no issues with her independence and thrives on it. Steed trusts her capabilities more than he would trust any man and has no qualms about using her for dangerous missions. The most engaging aspect of her character is that she manages to be strong and independent in a television world of superficiality and chauvinistic men.