MANNERING: THE AVENGER CONNECTION

'THE AVENGERS'
"THE INTERROGATORS"

SUMMARY:
A foreign agent in the guise of a Colonel Mannering has found an ingenious method of extracting secret information from British agents.  British agents are being tricked by a foreign spy in the guise of Colonel Mannering into believing that they are taking part in an interrogation exercise when they are actually betraying their contacts. When Steed convinces one of them that he has been duped he must locate Mannering and his latest subject - Miss King.

Colonel Mannering introduced himself to Tara King as the head of Interdepartmental Security.  To my reasoning, it would be a reference to all the intelligence agencies of the "British" empire, including whatever agency Steed and Miss King worked for. 

Mannering is dressed in the uniform of a British officer, but could it be that he was a member of a different organization than the military?  

Take a look at these guys:

The most famous of UNIT officers:

Brigadier General Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart
(with the Third Incarnation of the Doctor)

Colonel August Oduya

In charge of the British division from 2009 to 2013
Took charge of the negotiations with the 4-5-6

Colonel Alex Faraday

Future member of the TVXOHOF

AKA "MOTHER"

Apparently all of them are UNIT officers, which is international.  But the uniform is definitely British in origin.

So why couldn't it be that Colonel Mannering was a UNIT officer, which would put him in the perfect position to oversee a program governing all of those other departments in British Intelligence?

Mike Yates wouldn't be the only UNIT officer to go rogue....

BCnU!