The Avengers was most certainly not a household name in South Africa prior to the radio series. With no national television service until 1976, the mechanism simply was not present in the country to show television programmes to mass audiences. While many other countries revelled in the filmed adventures of John Steed and co., South Africa was not equipped to join in the fun. The series took Britain by storm and also made a major impression in the American markets, being that greatest of rarities, a British series given a network transmission slot. However, as a filmed series (rather than a videotaped one), The Avengers was able to gain a modicum of exposure in South Africa through film rentals.