Spode Under the name 'Spode Ltd' the same factories and business was continued after 1970. In 2006, the business merged with Royal Worcester. The merged company entered administration on 6 November 2008. The brand names and intellectual property were acquired by Portmeirion Group on 23 April 2009. On 23 April 2009, Portmeirion Pottery purchased their rival Royal Worcester and Spode brands, together with some of the stock, after they had been placed into administration the previous November. The purchase did not include Royal Worcester or Spode manufacturing facilities. Many items in Spode's Blue Italian and Woodland ranges are now made at
The Village (The Prisoner) the "Tales of the Shadowmen" anthology series, Xavier Mauméjean's short story "Be Seeing You!" describes the origin of The Village. It was established in 1912 by Winston Churchill, the original Number 1, to interrogate his enemies, including Sherlock Holmes. In the science fiction TV series "Babylon 5", the culture of the Psi Corps organization pays homage to aspects of "The Prisoner", including a modified salute and use of the phrase "Be seeing you". The Village (The Prisoner) The Village is the fictional setting of the 1960s UK television series "The Prisoner" where the main character, Number Six, is held with