In my last article, I discussed how the character of Q changed through the series of Bond films, and identified some of the essential aspects associated with the character. That Q became a recurrent character in the Bond films was evidence of the character's success. Another indicator is the fact that the character has been imitated in other films, although as we'll see, the imitation has been a little slower to emerge.
The success of the Bond films at the box office in the mid and late 1960s brought a rash of imitators. Most were low-budget and instantly forgettable, but others were successful enough to spawn sequels and their own imitators. Each film copied elements of the Bond films to lesser or greater extents. Gadgets made an important contribution to most of them, but what is perhaps surprising now is the near absence of a Q-like figure.
For example, in one of the earliest Bond parodies, Carry On Spying (1964), there is a reference to the trick attaché case of From Russia With Love (1963), but the film features no armourer or Q-like character. The case is referenced again in the first of the Derek Flint films, Our Man Flint (1966), but it is the M character, Cramden, who explains to Flint how the device works. Similarly, in one of the Matt Helm spy spoofs, The Wrecking Crew (1968), the M equivalent, 'Mac' MacDonald, has the additional role of equipping Helm with the gadgets.
The spy-film boom had ceased by the end of the 1960s, and a hiatus in spy films followed. One of the few Bondian films to be made in the 1970s was Bruce Lee's Enter the Dragon (1973). In that film, however, no gadgets are required, as Bruce Lee's hands and feet (and some nunchaku) are the only tools he needs.
The 1980s were also relatively lean, although there were a few films which borrowed from the Bond films. The Nude Bomb (1980) was a big-screen adaptation of the Get Smart television series of the 1960s. The film updated elements of that series, but also brought in a Q-like gadget master, named Carruthers. Eleven years later, Teen Agent (1991) – released in the US as If Looks Could Kill – featured a laboratory scene with Geraldine James in a Q-like role as a white-coated scientist or technician. She equips the protagonist, Michael Corbin (played by Richard Grieco), with a gadget-laden Lotus Espirit.
The 1990s saw renewed interest in the spy genre, and the gap between Licence to Kill (1989) and GoldenEye (1995) was filled with Bondian films, most notably True Lies (1994). Leslie Neilson's Bond and spy spoof, Spy Hard (1995) emerged during this time, and showed another gadget-testing laboratory scene.
Since then, spy films with Bondian elements have proliferated, and many of them have scenes featuring a Q-type character. Cody Banks, the teenage spy played by Frankie Muniz in Agent Cody Banks (2003), is equipped in the lab by Darrell Hammond's Earl. In Stormbreaker (2006), another teenage spy, Alex Rider, is equipped by gadget master Smithers, played by Stephen Fry. In Mission Impossible III (2006) computer wizard Benji Dunn, played by Simon Pegg, is not strictly a gadget expert, but his appearance nonetheless recalls the technical help provided by Q in the Bond films. There is a more obvious nod to Q in Christopher Nolan's Batman films, commencing with Batman Begins (2005). Lucius Fox, former head of research at Wayne Enterprises, becomes Bruce Wayne's armourer, and is shown in a workshop or laboratory, where he develops and tests equipment. Apart from providing technical support, Fox is also something of a mentor to Wayne, just as Desmond Llewelyn's Q is in the later Bond films.
We can see, then, from this brief survey of Bondian spy films and spoofs, that in the 1960s gadgets played an important role in the films, but Q as a character was absent or a very minor figure. It is only from the 1990s that Q-like characters were regularly depicted. We only need return to the Bond films to explain this pattern. Though seeming to be an essential component of the Bond film, Q's lab was not routinely shown until the mid 1970s, beginning with The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). Before then, Q appears in M's office or equips Bond in the field (the notable exception being Goldfinger). The obvious point here, therefore, is that, as the lab scene did not appear much before the late 1970s, it could not have been imitated in the films of the 1960s. And it is possible that Q was not imitated in those early films, because despite the attraction of Bond Aston Martin DB5 in Goldfinger, the scene in From Russia With Love in M's office where Bond is given the attaché case had greater impact in popular culture. It is this scene which was imitated through the decade. By the 1990s, when the lab scene was well established in popular culture, and because of factors such as Desmond Llewelyn's portrayal and the amusing interplay between Q and Bond, Q became an essential part of Bondian spy films and spoofs.
Sunday, 22 July 2012
Sunday, 15 July 2012
The evolution of Q
July has seen official confirmation of what was suspected for many months, that Ben Whishaw is playing the role of Q in the forthcoming James Bond film, Skyfall. An image from the film published by 007.com shows the young Q with an open metal case, which presumably contains a gadget or weapon of some kind. And, far removed from the tweedy suits of Desmond Llewelyn's Q, he wears glasses and a V-necked garment that epitomises geek chic (with a touch of Bondian sophistication).
As Ben Whishaw noted in an interview with Graham Norton, there is great public affection for the character of Q, helped in no small part by Desmond Llewelyn's character-defining portrayal and the public's familiarity and enjoyment of the Q-Bond exchanges that developed through the film series.
Despite the fact that the scene where Q equips Bond with the latest gadgetry has become a standard component of the Bond formula, the Q of the early films is different from that of the later films. The evolution is subtle, but over time there have been changes in approaches to the scene and to Q's style. Peter Burton, appearing in Dr No, was the first Q, or, rather, the armourer. The appearance was fleeting and a more-or-less straight depiction of the passage in Ian Fleming's novel. Desmond Llewelyn replaced Burton in From Russia With Love. Llewelyn's Q followed Burton's style, playing the scene reasonably straight. There was, however, a significant change in the approach to the role in Goldfinger. The director Guy Hamilton insisted that Llewelyn's portrayal reflected Q's hatred of Bond's cavalier attitude to the gadgets, and the result was a character that not only demonstrated the gadgets to Bond, but was also irritated by Bond as he did so.
This approach was ostensibly retained throughout Desmond Llewelyn's tenure, although the role has developed over time. Q becomes more than a laboratory technician concerned with developing the gadgets required in Bond's mission when he provides scientific and technological advice to the secret service and the government, as seen, for example, in The Spy Who Loved Me, where he advises on the heat signature recognition system that allows Stromberg to capture submarines.
Q also seems to have become more exasperated with Bond as the series progressed. We get a 'Try to be less than your frivolous self, 007' in Thunderball, a 'Oh, and missed you [ie Bond], did they? What a pity' in Octopussy, and a 'Grow up, 007' in GoldenEye and The World Is Not Enough. Parallel with this has been the increased humour in Q's lines, largely beginning in the Roger Moore era. Moonraker's 'I think he's attempting re-entry' is a classic, but there are other nice one-liners, such as, 'She [Mayday] must take a lot of vitamins' in A View To A Kill, or 'Explosive alarm clock – guaranteed never to wake up anyone who uses it' in Licence to Kill. In other words, Desmond Llewelyn's Q increasingly served as comic relief (admittedly among other comic moments, particularly in Roger Moore's time).
Another change has been the increased affection between Q and Bond, with Q becoming a father-figure or mentor to Bond. This is apparent in Licence to Kill, when Q unofficially equips Bond in the field ('If it wasn't for me, you would have been dead long ago'), and The World Is Not Enough ('I've always tried to teach you two things...'), Desmond Llewelyn's last appearance in the role.
As for style, the Q of the early films wears a three-piece suit, as is no doubt appropriate for a lower-level government employee. The style changes in the middle period to single-breasted suit (usually without a waistcoat) or blazer and smart trousers (occasionally interspersed with tropical or safari wear), and in the later period (from The Living Daylights onwards), Q wears a more tweed-like three-piece suit, as might be worn by an eminent university professor.
As is often the case with memetic change, these developments in the character have occurred gradually, as new scenes largely imitated the scenes depicted in films they immediately followed. This is clear from the fact that no film after Goldfinger returned to the basic Q-Bond exchange of Dr No or From Russia With Love, or that no film after Moonraker omitted to give Q his fair share of witty one-liners.
John Cleese's Q in Die Another Day references the humour and interplay of Desmond Llewelyn's Q in the earlier films ('Better than looking cleverer than you are' [in response to Bond's 'You're cleverer than you look'], and 'I wish I could make you vanish'), and more directly recalls Goldfinger ('As I learned from my predecessor, Bond, I never joke about my work'). In his first film, The World Is Not Enough, Cleese, as Q's assistant, was presented as a white-coated lab technician, albeit a character just as irritated by Bond.
There was no Q in Casino Royale or Quantum of Solace, although the forensics technician in Quantum of Solace, played by Brendan O'Hea, was a role that might have been taken by Q in the earlier films. Interestingly, the character's style combined geek chic with the professorial tweediness of Desmond Llewelyn's later Q.
When they created the role of Q, the producers of the Bond films could not have foreseen how the character would develop over time, or been aware of how successful the character would become, as measured the longevity of the character, but also by the fact that the Q is now well established in popular culture, with knowledge of the character probably being as widespread as that of Bond. Another sign of this success is the observation that aspects or memes that form the character have escaped beyond the Bond films into other productions, and in my next article, I will explore some of the Q memes that have been expressed in other films.
As Ben Whishaw noted in an interview with Graham Norton, there is great public affection for the character of Q, helped in no small part by Desmond Llewelyn's character-defining portrayal and the public's familiarity and enjoyment of the Q-Bond exchanges that developed through the film series.
Despite the fact that the scene where Q equips Bond with the latest gadgetry has become a standard component of the Bond formula, the Q of the early films is different from that of the later films. The evolution is subtle, but over time there have been changes in approaches to the scene and to Q's style. Peter Burton, appearing in Dr No, was the first Q, or, rather, the armourer. The appearance was fleeting and a more-or-less straight depiction of the passage in Ian Fleming's novel. Desmond Llewelyn replaced Burton in From Russia With Love. Llewelyn's Q followed Burton's style, playing the scene reasonably straight. There was, however, a significant change in the approach to the role in Goldfinger. The director Guy Hamilton insisted that Llewelyn's portrayal reflected Q's hatred of Bond's cavalier attitude to the gadgets, and the result was a character that not only demonstrated the gadgets to Bond, but was also irritated by Bond as he did so.
This approach was ostensibly retained throughout Desmond Llewelyn's tenure, although the role has developed over time. Q becomes more than a laboratory technician concerned with developing the gadgets required in Bond's mission when he provides scientific and technological advice to the secret service and the government, as seen, for example, in The Spy Who Loved Me, where he advises on the heat signature recognition system that allows Stromberg to capture submarines.
Q also seems to have become more exasperated with Bond as the series progressed. We get a 'Try to be less than your frivolous self, 007' in Thunderball, a 'Oh, and missed you [ie Bond], did they? What a pity' in Octopussy, and a 'Grow up, 007' in GoldenEye and The World Is Not Enough. Parallel with this has been the increased humour in Q's lines, largely beginning in the Roger Moore era. Moonraker's 'I think he's attempting re-entry' is a classic, but there are other nice one-liners, such as, 'She [Mayday] must take a lot of vitamins' in A View To A Kill, or 'Explosive alarm clock – guaranteed never to wake up anyone who uses it' in Licence to Kill. In other words, Desmond Llewelyn's Q increasingly served as comic relief (admittedly among other comic moments, particularly in Roger Moore's time).
Another change has been the increased affection between Q and Bond, with Q becoming a father-figure or mentor to Bond. This is apparent in Licence to Kill, when Q unofficially equips Bond in the field ('If it wasn't for me, you would have been dead long ago'), and The World Is Not Enough ('I've always tried to teach you two things...'), Desmond Llewelyn's last appearance in the role.
As for style, the Q of the early films wears a three-piece suit, as is no doubt appropriate for a lower-level government employee. The style changes in the middle period to single-breasted suit (usually without a waistcoat) or blazer and smart trousers (occasionally interspersed with tropical or safari wear), and in the later period (from The Living Daylights onwards), Q wears a more tweed-like three-piece suit, as might be worn by an eminent university professor.
As is often the case with memetic change, these developments in the character have occurred gradually, as new scenes largely imitated the scenes depicted in films they immediately followed. This is clear from the fact that no film after Goldfinger returned to the basic Q-Bond exchange of Dr No or From Russia With Love, or that no film after Moonraker omitted to give Q his fair share of witty one-liners.
John Cleese's Q in Die Another Day references the humour and interplay of Desmond Llewelyn's Q in the earlier films ('Better than looking cleverer than you are' [in response to Bond's 'You're cleverer than you look'], and 'I wish I could make you vanish'), and more directly recalls Goldfinger ('As I learned from my predecessor, Bond, I never joke about my work'). In his first film, The World Is Not Enough, Cleese, as Q's assistant, was presented as a white-coated lab technician, albeit a character just as irritated by Bond.
There was no Q in Casino Royale or Quantum of Solace, although the forensics technician in Quantum of Solace, played by Brendan O'Hea, was a role that might have been taken by Q in the earlier films. Interestingly, the character's style combined geek chic with the professorial tweediness of Desmond Llewelyn's later Q.
When they created the role of Q, the producers of the Bond films could not have foreseen how the character would develop over time, or been aware of how successful the character would become, as measured the longevity of the character, but also by the fact that the Q is now well established in popular culture, with knowledge of the character probably being as widespread as that of Bond. Another sign of this success is the observation that aspects or memes that form the character have escaped beyond the Bond films into other productions, and in my next article, I will explore some of the Q memes that have been expressed in other films.
Sunday, 1 July 2012
James Bond's £5 million Blower Bentley
In the novel Casino Royale, we are introduced to James Bond's supercharged 4½ litre Bentley. If the car came up for auction (if it hadn't been a complete write-off after Bond, in pursuit of Hugo Drax's Mercedes, collided with rolls of newsprint in Moonraker), how much would it be worth?
The answer might be over £5 million. The value reached at auction on 29 June 2012 by a 1929 single-seater 4½ litre Bentley originally driven by Sir Henry 'Tim' Birkin was £5,042,000. The car, fitted with an Amherst Villiers two-rotor, Roots-type supercharger, was known as a Blower Bentley. Officially, 55 cars had been produced. Four were made for Sir Tim Birkin, another was built from spares, and 50 were production models. But there was also the fictional Blower Bentley owned by James Bond.
Ian Fleming tells us in Casino Royale (chapter 5) that Bond bought his Bentley almost new in 1933, and suggests in Live and Let Die (chapter 2) that the car was built in that year, although in Moonraker (chapter 1), Fleming revises the date of production to a more plausible 1930 (the 55 Blowers were made between 1929 and 1931). Whatever the date, given that Bond would have been about 12 when he bought the car, Charlie Higson tells us in Double or Die that Bond acquired the car while at Eton (although Higson describes it as a Bentley 'Blower' and a veteran of the Brookfield circuit).
Fleming revealed in interview that he had put Bond in a Blower because he liked him to 'use dashing, interesting things.' We probably have Sir Tim Birkin to thank for that. His exciting exploits in the car at Brooklands (he reached speeds of 138 mph in 1932 – Bond only managed a little over 110 when was after Le Chiffre) and Le Mans 24-hours were the stuff of legend. But the choice was also no doubt in tribute to Fleming's friend, Amherst Villiers; the two met in 1927 and became firm friends during social gatherings and visits to Paris (Villiers would later paint Fleming's portrait).
Further reading:
Foulkes, N, 2005 Bentley: a motoring miscellany, Quadrille
Kenny, P, 2009 The man who supercharged Bond: the extaordinary story of Charles Amherst Villiers, Haynes
The answer might be over £5 million. The value reached at auction on 29 June 2012 by a 1929 single-seater 4½ litre Bentley originally driven by Sir Henry 'Tim' Birkin was £5,042,000. The car, fitted with an Amherst Villiers two-rotor, Roots-type supercharger, was known as a Blower Bentley. Officially, 55 cars had been produced. Four were made for Sir Tim Birkin, another was built from spares, and 50 were production models. But there was also the fictional Blower Bentley owned by James Bond.
Ian Fleming tells us in Casino Royale (chapter 5) that Bond bought his Bentley almost new in 1933, and suggests in Live and Let Die (chapter 2) that the car was built in that year, although in Moonraker (chapter 1), Fleming revises the date of production to a more plausible 1930 (the 55 Blowers were made between 1929 and 1931). Whatever the date, given that Bond would have been about 12 when he bought the car, Charlie Higson tells us in Double or Die that Bond acquired the car while at Eton (although Higson describes it as a Bentley 'Blower' and a veteran of the Brookfield circuit).
Fleming revealed in interview that he had put Bond in a Blower because he liked him to 'use dashing, interesting things.' We probably have Sir Tim Birkin to thank for that. His exciting exploits in the car at Brooklands (he reached speeds of 138 mph in 1932 – Bond only managed a little over 110 when was after Le Chiffre) and Le Mans 24-hours were the stuff of legend. But the choice was also no doubt in tribute to Fleming's friend, Amherst Villiers; the two met in 1927 and became firm friends during social gatherings and visits to Paris (Villiers would later paint Fleming's portrait).
Further reading:
Foulkes, N, 2005 Bentley: a motoring miscellany, Quadrille
Kenny, P, 2009 The man who supercharged Bond: the extaordinary story of Charles Amherst Villiers, Haynes
Tuesday, 26 June 2012
James Bond and Alan Turing
Saturday 23rd June marked the centenary of Alan Turing's birth. Turing died in 1954 of cyanide poisoning, but his fame lives on as the father of modern computing and the mathematical genius who was so instrumental in cracking German codes at Bletchley Park during the Second World War. His birth has been commemorated with the unveiling of two blue plaques – one at St Leonards, Hastings at his childhood home, and the other at Manchester University, where he studied after the war and continued his pioneering work – and over the last week or so, there has been much media focus on his work and legacy.
A number of articles have been published on the BBC website. One, by Graham Moore, looks at how the incredible, but troubled, and ultimately tragic life of Alan Turing has been addressed by writers of fiction. For example, in 1980 Ian McEwan wrote a short play, The Imitation Game, which was inspired by Turing's experiences at Bletchley. Another play, Breaking the Code, written by Hugh Whitemore in 1986, featured Turing more directly, and was later filmed for the BBC with Derek Jacobi as Turing. More recently, 2007 saw the publication of the novel, A madman dreams of Turing machines, by Janna Levin.
There was, however, one book that Graham Moore forgot to mention. That was, of course, Charlie Higson's Young Bond adventure, Double or Die, published in 2007. At the end of the book (and stop reading now if haven't read the book and you don't want to know what happens), we are introduced to an older James Bond at the end of the war. He arrives at Bletchley to collect an important code-breaker and take him to headquarters in London. That man is Alan Turing (and indeed, Young Bond meets Turing as a Cambridge Student earlier in the book).
The coda elegantly closes the book, with its themes of codes, puzzles and danger, and gives us a glimpse into the life of Bond at the start of his post-war secret service career. It also nicely brings in a place with which Ian Fleming was himself associated, visiting Bletchley every few weeks during the war in his role as assistant to the director of the Naval Intelligence Division, Admiral Godfrey.
A number of articles have been published on the BBC website. One, by Graham Moore, looks at how the incredible, but troubled, and ultimately tragic life of Alan Turing has been addressed by writers of fiction. For example, in 1980 Ian McEwan wrote a short play, The Imitation Game, which was inspired by Turing's experiences at Bletchley. Another play, Breaking the Code, written by Hugh Whitemore in 1986, featured Turing more directly, and was later filmed for the BBC with Derek Jacobi as Turing. More recently, 2007 saw the publication of the novel, A madman dreams of Turing machines, by Janna Levin.
There was, however, one book that Graham Moore forgot to mention. That was, of course, Charlie Higson's Young Bond adventure, Double or Die, published in 2007. At the end of the book (and stop reading now if haven't read the book and you don't want to know what happens), we are introduced to an older James Bond at the end of the war. He arrives at Bletchley to collect an important code-breaker and take him to headquarters in London. That man is Alan Turing (and indeed, Young Bond meets Turing as a Cambridge Student earlier in the book).
The coda elegantly closes the book, with its themes of codes, puzzles and danger, and gives us a glimpse into the life of Bond at the start of his post-war secret service career. It also nicely brings in a place with which Ian Fleming was himself associated, visiting Bletchley every few weeks during the war in his role as assistant to the director of the Naval Intelligence Division, Admiral Godfrey.
Sunday, 17 June 2012
Was an Octopussy stunt performed in GoldenEye?
By today's standards, the scene in the pre-titles sequence of GoldenEye where James Bond rides his motorbike off the cliff, discards the bike, freefalls towards a pilot-less plane in nose-dive, catches to it, hauls himself into the plane and the cockpit, and wrestles with the controls before lifting the nose and flying away to safety, looks a little ropey. As the special effects supervisor, Chris Corbould, says: 'The shot where he comes in from the doorway is on wires…it's probably not our finest moment' (Empire, June 2012). Well, I can think of worse (Bond glacier surfing in glorious CGI in Die Another Day?), but in any case, the scene is as exciting now as it was when I first saw the film in 1995. At least the scene was shot with real people, real props and, yes, real wires.
I remember that there was much incredulity expressed about the science of the stunt, but it is reassuring to know that the stunt was theoretically possible. In June's Empire magazine, Martin Campbell confirms that the production team considered performing the stunt in reality, and Chris Corbould suggests that the plane, a Pilatis Porter, could be slowed sufficiently to allow a skydiver to catch up to it and clamber on board.
Indeed, an early version of the stunt appears to have been performed during preparations of the aerial scenes in Octopussy. George MacDonald Fraser, who co-wrote the Octopussy screenplay, describes in his memoir, The Light's on at Signpost (Harper Collins, 2002), a stunt which was performed by the stuntmen B J Worth and Rande Deluca, who doubled for Roger Moore and Kebir Bedi in the aerial scenes. In retrospect, the stunt could have been a prototype of the GoldenEye sequence. B J Worth flew a light plane, out of which Rande Deluca jumped. Worth then took the plane into a nose-dive, caught up to Deluca, then manoeuvred the plane to allow Deluca to haul himself back inside.
The stunt doesn't match the GoldenEye sequence exactly, and it is unclear if the stunt was in fact related to the Octopussy preparations. However, GoldenEye's skydiving was performed by B J Worth, and it is possible that he provided elements of the stunt that he had successfully carried out around the time of Octopussy to the sequence which closely resembled it.
I remember that there was much incredulity expressed about the science of the stunt, but it is reassuring to know that the stunt was theoretically possible. In June's Empire magazine, Martin Campbell confirms that the production team considered performing the stunt in reality, and Chris Corbould suggests that the plane, a Pilatis Porter, could be slowed sufficiently to allow a skydiver to catch up to it and clamber on board.
Indeed, an early version of the stunt appears to have been performed during preparations of the aerial scenes in Octopussy. George MacDonald Fraser, who co-wrote the Octopussy screenplay, describes in his memoir, The Light's on at Signpost (Harper Collins, 2002), a stunt which was performed by the stuntmen B J Worth and Rande Deluca, who doubled for Roger Moore and Kebir Bedi in the aerial scenes. In retrospect, the stunt could have been a prototype of the GoldenEye sequence. B J Worth flew a light plane, out of which Rande Deluca jumped. Worth then took the plane into a nose-dive, caught up to Deluca, then manoeuvred the plane to allow Deluca to haul himself back inside.
The stunt doesn't match the GoldenEye sequence exactly, and it is unclear if the stunt was in fact related to the Octopussy preparations. However, GoldenEye's skydiving was performed by B J Worth, and it is possible that he provided elements of the stunt that he had successfully carried out around the time of Octopussy to the sequence which closely resembled it.
Sunday, 10 June 2012
Ian Fleming in Any Human Heart
When Ian Fleming Publications announced that author William Boyd was to write the next James Bond adventure, many of the media reports drew attention to the fact that not only was Boyd a self-confessed fan of the Bond novels – with From Russia, with Love being his favourite – but he had also written Fleming into his 2002 novel, Any Human Heart. A more complete read of the novel provides further connections with the world of Ian Fleming.
Any Human Heart takes the form of a set of journals by the protagonist, Logan Mountstuart. Beginning in 1923, the journals reveal the story of his life from his time at a minor public school to his final days in France in the early 1990s. In between, the journals encompass Mountstuart's years at Oxford University, his early period as a writer, his journalism covering the Spanish Civil War, his experiences in naval intelligence during the Second World War, his career as a New York art dealer, and his time living in London and West Africa. Throughout, he meets people of note, including fellow writers, artists, royalty, and, of course, Ian Fleming.
Fleming makes several appearances. We first encounter him in August 1935 in Scotland on a golf course. Fleming is introduced to Mountstuart by a mutual friend and tells Mountstuart that he is travelling to Kitzbühel. In reality, Fleming did visit Kitzbühel in August, and indeed went there most summers before the Second World War. But his visit in 1935 was especially meaningful for Fleming. While he was there, he met Muriel Wright, who would become his lover for nine years until she was killed in an air raid in London.
Then, in October 1935, Mountstuart plays golf with Fleming at Huntercombe, near Henley-on-Thames, before lunching with him at the Savoy Grill. The course had been a regular Fleming haunt since childhood. Amusingly, William Boyd appears to make Mountstuart responsible for turning Fleming to writing. We learn in the same journal entry that Fleming asked Mountstuart about his writing after revealing, as was indeed the case, that he was unhappy being a stockbroker.
Mountstuart's recruitment into the Naval Intelligence Division (NID) is described later in the novel in a journal entry dating to July 1939. Fleming invites Mountstuart to lunch at the Carlton Grill, within the Carlton Hotel, and tells him how impressed he was with Mountstuart's reports from the Spanish Civil War, and hints at a role for him at the Admiralty. On the way out, they meet Admiral Godfrey, director of the NID. Boyd tells us that Mountstuart began his career in the NID as a lieutenant in the Special Branch of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. Mountstuart's recruitment matches that of Fleming's very closely. Fleming joined the NID after lunching with Admiral Godfrey at the Carlton Grill, and he was appointed to the rank of lieutenant (Special Branch) of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. Later, Mountstuart is promoted to the rank of commander, just was Fleming was.
The final reference to Fleming dates to October 3, 1955. Mountstuart has read Live and Let Die, which had been published the year earlier, and writes that he cannot suspend his disbelief, as he sees Fleming as a very strong presence in it.
Other literary luminaries who cross paths with Logan Mountstuart to lesser or greater extents formed part of Ian Fleming's world. At Oxford Mountstuart meets Peter Quennell. Quennell was a close friend of Ann Fleming, and came to know Ian Fleming well. Then we learn that, after Oxford during his early period as writer in London, Mountstuart lives close to Cyril Connolly. Connolly was a friend of Ian Fleming's and wrote the James Bond parody, 'Bond Strikes Camp'. Later Mountstuart meets Evelyn Waugh at a party. After the Second World War, Evelyn Waugh and Ann Fleming became firm friends. Mention is also made by Mountstuart of William Plomer, Ian Fleming's editor at Jonathan Cape.
William Boyd's Any Human Heart provides much interest for the Fleming and Bond aficionado. It gives us insight into Boyd's style and the potential direction of his Bond novel, but his references to Fleming and others reveal a detailed knowledge and fascination with Ian Fleming, which can only point to his Bond adventure being a worthy tribute to Fleming and James Bond.
Any Human Heart takes the form of a set of journals by the protagonist, Logan Mountstuart. Beginning in 1923, the journals reveal the story of his life from his time at a minor public school to his final days in France in the early 1990s. In between, the journals encompass Mountstuart's years at Oxford University, his early period as a writer, his journalism covering the Spanish Civil War, his experiences in naval intelligence during the Second World War, his career as a New York art dealer, and his time living in London and West Africa. Throughout, he meets people of note, including fellow writers, artists, royalty, and, of course, Ian Fleming.
Fleming makes several appearances. We first encounter him in August 1935 in Scotland on a golf course. Fleming is introduced to Mountstuart by a mutual friend and tells Mountstuart that he is travelling to Kitzbühel. In reality, Fleming did visit Kitzbühel in August, and indeed went there most summers before the Second World War. But his visit in 1935 was especially meaningful for Fleming. While he was there, he met Muriel Wright, who would become his lover for nine years until she was killed in an air raid in London.
Then, in October 1935, Mountstuart plays golf with Fleming at Huntercombe, near Henley-on-Thames, before lunching with him at the Savoy Grill. The course had been a regular Fleming haunt since childhood. Amusingly, William Boyd appears to make Mountstuart responsible for turning Fleming to writing. We learn in the same journal entry that Fleming asked Mountstuart about his writing after revealing, as was indeed the case, that he was unhappy being a stockbroker.
Mountstuart's recruitment into the Naval Intelligence Division (NID) is described later in the novel in a journal entry dating to July 1939. Fleming invites Mountstuart to lunch at the Carlton Grill, within the Carlton Hotel, and tells him how impressed he was with Mountstuart's reports from the Spanish Civil War, and hints at a role for him at the Admiralty. On the way out, they meet Admiral Godfrey, director of the NID. Boyd tells us that Mountstuart began his career in the NID as a lieutenant in the Special Branch of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. Mountstuart's recruitment matches that of Fleming's very closely. Fleming joined the NID after lunching with Admiral Godfrey at the Carlton Grill, and he was appointed to the rank of lieutenant (Special Branch) of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. Later, Mountstuart is promoted to the rank of commander, just was Fleming was.
The final reference to Fleming dates to October 3, 1955. Mountstuart has read Live and Let Die, which had been published the year earlier, and writes that he cannot suspend his disbelief, as he sees Fleming as a very strong presence in it.
Other literary luminaries who cross paths with Logan Mountstuart to lesser or greater extents formed part of Ian Fleming's world. At Oxford Mountstuart meets Peter Quennell. Quennell was a close friend of Ann Fleming, and came to know Ian Fleming well. Then we learn that, after Oxford during his early period as writer in London, Mountstuart lives close to Cyril Connolly. Connolly was a friend of Ian Fleming's and wrote the James Bond parody, 'Bond Strikes Camp'. Later Mountstuart meets Evelyn Waugh at a party. After the Second World War, Evelyn Waugh and Ann Fleming became firm friends. Mention is also made by Mountstuart of William Plomer, Ian Fleming's editor at Jonathan Cape.
William Boyd's Any Human Heart provides much interest for the Fleming and Bond aficionado. It gives us insight into Boyd's style and the potential direction of his Bond novel, but his references to Fleming and others reveal a detailed knowledge and fascination with Ian Fleming, which can only point to his Bond adventure being a worthy tribute to Fleming and James Bond.
Saturday, 2 June 2012
James Bond's diamond jubilee
Across the length and breadth of the country, the UK is celebrating 60 years of Queen Elizabeth's reign with street parties, picnics and alcohol. The Queen's Diamond Jubilee reminds us of another significant event: James Bond was born in 1953, the year of Elizabeth's coronation, but was conceived in 1952, the year she acceded to the throne. Anthony Burgess called James Bond a new Elizabethan hero. How different was Bond's lifestyle from that of Fleming's readers?
We can get a sense of the difference from an interesting interactive guide on the BBC news website. Diamond Jubilee: You in '52 presents a series of lifestyle categories – work, music, fashion, food and housing – and invites us to select elements from a list under each category that best describe our current lives. In return, we see how different our lives may have been in the early 1950s. I did the test, and it was fun, but I thought it would be interesting to select the options that best fit James Bond's lifestyle in 1953.
Starting with fashion, I selected 'suit of office wear' out of smart casual, alternative, jeans and sportswear (I know Bond occasionally wears jeans, but a suit is more typical). 'A classic post-war suit could have been for you', the interactive guide told me. London gentlemen with means, it continued, adopted the neo-Edwardian look, with its single-breasted jacket, narrow trousers and velvet-collared overcoat. It doesn't quite match Bond's dark blue serge or worsted suit; there was no danger of Bond becoming a Teddy Boy.
What about music? I think Bond would select classical and opera – Bond is vaguely familiar with the Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor, and knows something of Wagner – though possibly easy listening is more his style, as he recognises ‘La Vie en Rose’ being played in the casino’s nightclub at Royale-les-Eaux. The BBC's interactive guide tells us that the hit parade of 1952 was dominated by the likes of Nat King Cole, classic Dixieland and bebop. This was more like Ian Fleming's kind of music; his 'desert island discs' included the Ink Spots and a jazz number.
For food, we're offered a choice of home-cooked British meals, foreign-inspired home-cooked meals, and takeaways. I've opted for a mixture of all three, as Bond ate English meals cooked by his housekeeper, May, and a range of foreign cuisine in hotel restaurants, which could count as takeaways. This must have seemed an unattainable luxury for most people in 1952, as continued rationing meant small portions of meat and lots of vegetables. Takeaways were limited to the occasional treat of fish and chips. That said, the interactive guide reveals that Mediterranean cooking was starting to become popular thanks to the books of Elizabeth David.
It was a little difficult to decide which category of work Bond fits into. In the end I chose 'Manager, administrator or professional in a senior role'. The interactive guide reminds us opportunities for senior or professional roles was limited in 1952, and most people would have been engaged in the manufacturing sector.
As for Bond's home, I've selected 'flat or maisonette', although being described as a newly-built flat in a tower block or a new maisonette, which replaced Victorian terraces and eased post-war housing shortages, this doesn't fit Bond's situation in a flat within a Regency house off the King's Road.
The picture one builds up of Bond, using the BBC's guide to early 1950s Britain, is a character removed from the everyday experiences of his readers. Bond's life is fantastic. He has the means to travel the world, dine on food rarely seen on Britons' dinner plates, and indulge in expensive material luxuries. No wonder Fleming's books were popular. As the saying goes, 'men want to be him, women want to be with him'. But given that Bond is still relatively young (mid 30s) in 1952/3, readers may have thought him a little old fashioned, at least in terms of his music and clothes. Ironically, though, it is these conservative tastes that have helped to give the novels a timeless quality.
We can get a sense of the difference from an interesting interactive guide on the BBC news website. Diamond Jubilee: You in '52 presents a series of lifestyle categories – work, music, fashion, food and housing – and invites us to select elements from a list under each category that best describe our current lives. In return, we see how different our lives may have been in the early 1950s. I did the test, and it was fun, but I thought it would be interesting to select the options that best fit James Bond's lifestyle in 1953.
Starting with fashion, I selected 'suit of office wear' out of smart casual, alternative, jeans and sportswear (I know Bond occasionally wears jeans, but a suit is more typical). 'A classic post-war suit could have been for you', the interactive guide told me. London gentlemen with means, it continued, adopted the neo-Edwardian look, with its single-breasted jacket, narrow trousers and velvet-collared overcoat. It doesn't quite match Bond's dark blue serge or worsted suit; there was no danger of Bond becoming a Teddy Boy.
What about music? I think Bond would select classical and opera – Bond is vaguely familiar with the Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor, and knows something of Wagner – though possibly easy listening is more his style, as he recognises ‘La Vie en Rose’ being played in the casino’s nightclub at Royale-les-Eaux. The BBC's interactive guide tells us that the hit parade of 1952 was dominated by the likes of Nat King Cole, classic Dixieland and bebop. This was more like Ian Fleming's kind of music; his 'desert island discs' included the Ink Spots and a jazz number.
For food, we're offered a choice of home-cooked British meals, foreign-inspired home-cooked meals, and takeaways. I've opted for a mixture of all three, as Bond ate English meals cooked by his housekeeper, May, and a range of foreign cuisine in hotel restaurants, which could count as takeaways. This must have seemed an unattainable luxury for most people in 1952, as continued rationing meant small portions of meat and lots of vegetables. Takeaways were limited to the occasional treat of fish and chips. That said, the interactive guide reveals that Mediterranean cooking was starting to become popular thanks to the books of Elizabeth David.
It was a little difficult to decide which category of work Bond fits into. In the end I chose 'Manager, administrator or professional in a senior role'. The interactive guide reminds us opportunities for senior or professional roles was limited in 1952, and most people would have been engaged in the manufacturing sector.
As for Bond's home, I've selected 'flat or maisonette', although being described as a newly-built flat in a tower block or a new maisonette, which replaced Victorian terraces and eased post-war housing shortages, this doesn't fit Bond's situation in a flat within a Regency house off the King's Road.
The picture one builds up of Bond, using the BBC's guide to early 1950s Britain, is a character removed from the everyday experiences of his readers. Bond's life is fantastic. He has the means to travel the world, dine on food rarely seen on Britons' dinner plates, and indulge in expensive material luxuries. No wonder Fleming's books were popular. As the saying goes, 'men want to be him, women want to be with him'. But given that Bond is still relatively young (mid 30s) in 1952/3, readers may have thought him a little old fashioned, at least in terms of his music and clothes. Ironically, though, it is these conservative tastes that have helped to give the novels a timeless quality.
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