Puppy - Steed's First Dog

Steed calls his Great Dane "Puppy".

John Steed owned three Great Danes (named Puppy and Katie) during series 1 - 3. Strictly spoken did two different dogs "portray" Steed's Great Dane called Puppy, as Patrick Macnee is referring to the Great Dane Junia as Puppy in The Avengers and Me.

Steed's first Great Dane was a dog named Juno (a photo of the dog with Patrick Macnee exists in Dave Rogers book The Ultimate Avengers, 39) in series 1, Macnee christened the animal "Puppy". And the dog's sister Junia appeared in Series 3 (The Avengers and Me,45). Both dogs Juno and Junia were trained by Barbara Woodhouse.

The first Great Dane (Juno) got killed in an accident on the London underground while on the way to studios to filming (not for The Avengers) but according to "Two Against the Underworld" (edition 2017) for Candid Camera at St.Martin's Theatre.in September 1961.

After the screening of the missing believed lost series one episode Tunnel of Fear at Birmingham on 12th of November 2016, a bit more is known about Steed's first Dane Puppy (Juno).

- Steed enters Dr. Keel's surgery with his dog.
- Puppy is a good judge of character because she likes Harry Black, an innocent man, who escaped from prison.
- Puppy's dogsitter is no other than Steed's superior One-Ten.
- The dog does whatever she likes. She runs away when Steed left Keel's surgery, and Steed run after her (meanwhile Harry Black 'stole' Steed's car, that was parked outside the surgery).
- Puppy is a gentle,calm dog.

According to Alan Hayes the episode Tunnel of Fear was the last appearance of Juno, as "this fact is confirmed by a production photograph that survives from the episode. Tragically, 'Tunnel of Fear' would prove to be Juno's final appearance in The Avengers. The dog was reportedly killed on the London Underground.... "
"Series guidelines issued by Leonard White on 31st October 1961 confirm that the dog had passed away."

Since 3rd October the search for a new dog was underway and another Great Dane, Milady of Hornsgreen, a two-year-old Great Dane, that belonged to the wife of co-script writer Donald Hewlett could have been a candidate but they later choose a Dalmatian to be Steed's next dog.

Sources: The Avengers Declassified and

Richard McGinlay, Alan Hayes and Alys Hayes, Two Against the Underworld, Hidden Tiger (updated and revised, January 2017)

Puppy (Juno) appeared in a few episodes in series 1 and it looks like the Great Dane was Steed's first dog ever in The Avengers.

Keel takes her to a walk in Ashes of Roses as Steed's hands are bandaged (The Strange Case of the Missing Episodes, 100) ,and Steed arrives with his dog Puppy at Keel's surgery (or flat) with a large cardboard which contains Puppy's food as Carol promissed to look after the dog for a couple of days (The Strange Case of the Missing Episodes, 169) in The Yellow Needle when Steed is out of the country for a few days.

Puppy hates kennels and obviously the dog is allowed to sleep at the foot of Steed's bed (The Strange Case of the Missing Episodes, 169).

The animal is also in Keel's surgery in Tunnel of Fear, Steed's superior One-Ten is her dogsitter in the episode (The Strange Case of the Missing Episodes, 211 and 214; Two Against the Underworld) and a photo of Death on the Slipway shows the dog sitting beside an exhausted Steed who is asleep on an examination couch.

Patrick Macnee referred to a second dog as "Puppy" (The Avengers and Me, 45), another Great Dane. The name of the animal, Junia, is in the credits of Concerto. "Puppy" however, the name that Macnee used for the dog, is not mentioned in the scripts of the episodes Concerto or The Golden Fleece.

This animal (Junia) was the sister dog of Juno (Steed's Puppy), the first Great Dane of Steed and she appeared twice in series 3: the first time in Concerto and again in a small scene in The Golden Fleece, when Steed is reading his Tintin et Milou comic. There also exist three lovely photos of her, two are publicity shots from the set of The Golden Fleece and one with Patrick Macnee when he is posing as Father Christmas on set (The Avengers and Me, 45).

She also was one of the Great Danes, called Dancer, in Death of a Great Dane from series 3. According to "Bowler Hats and Kinky Boots" the second dog (Bellhound) in the episode however was Patrick's own Great Dane called "Heidi". Both dogs were in the credits of Death of a Great Dane.

Like Sheba Puppy (#2) is allowed to sit on Mrs Gale's sofa (Concerto).