This TV has actually been available in Boston over the air (meaning with an antenna) for a few years now, but not all cable companies have been providing it (luckily mine has been). So, it could be the case that your friend's and your cable company recently picked it up.
I almost never check out my DVR's schedule to see what's on between 5am and 7am so I was completely unaware that the Honor Blackman eps of
The Avengers have been on. Thanks so much for the heads up!
I've already programmed my DVR to record them.
As for Thayer, I watched his ep today after not having seen it in years. I'd completely forgotten how in several ways his performance foreshadows how Thayer would interpret Petofi. Hannibal Egloff, his TWWW character in the ep, and Petofi definitely share some of the exact same mannerisms.