128 Fun Facts About James Bond

Which Goldfinger henchman kills with a steel-rimmed bowler hat?

Oddjob actor Harold Sakata was badly burned filming his electrocution death scene, but he kept holding the hat until the director called cut.

Which singer held the last note of Thunderball's theme so long that the room was spinning?

Tom Jones got the song only after the original theme was dropped for not containing the film's title.

Which band sang the theme song for The Living Daylights?

A-ha and composer John Barry worked together so badly that two versions exist: his mix on the soundtrack and theirs on a 1988 album.

Piz Gloria, the mountaintop restaurant filmed as Blofeld's lair, stands in which country?

Switzerland's Piz Gloria was still half-built when the filmmakers found it, so they helped pay to finish it in return for exclusive use.

Which actress portrayed M in several James Bond films, including 'Skyfall'?

Judi Dench's M was modelled on Stella Rimington, the real spy chief who became the first woman to run MI5.

Which US president named a Fleming novel among his ten favourite books, sparking a Bond boom in America?

John F. Kennedy picked From Russia, with Love for a 1961 Life magazine list, and the sales surge made Fleming America's biggest-selling crime writer.

Which sport does Bond play against Auric Goldfinger, who tries to cheat him?

Bond wins at golf by tricking the cheating Goldfinger into playing the wrong ball on the last hole, with a bar of Nazi gold as bait.

Which singer recorded the theme songs for three James Bond films?

Shirley Bassey's first Bond theme became the only US top-40 hit of her long career, peaking at No. 8 in 1965.

Which pop star sang a Bond theme and appeared in the same film as a fencing instructor?

Madonna's cameo as fencing coach Verity won her a Golden Raspberry for Worst Supporting Actress.

Which director helmed both the James Bond films 'Skyfall' and 'Spectre'?

Sam Mendes had directed Daniel Craig in Road to Perdition, and Skyfall went on to gross more than $1 billion worldwide.

Which band's debut single came out the day Dr No premiered?

The Beatles released Love Me Do on 5 October 1962, the same day Dr No premiered at the London Pavilion.

In Moonraker, which billionaire industrialist, whose company builds space shuttles for NASA, plans to wipe out humanity and repopulate Earth from orbit?

Hugo Drax owns Drax Industries, the firm building NASA's shuttles, and means to gas humanity from his space station before repopulating Earth with his chosen few.

Which Bond film ends with a battle inside the volcano base where Blofeld hides a spaceship-snatching rocket?

You Only Live Twice ends in Blofeld's volcano base, a Ken Adam set where SPECTRE is hired by a great power to start a Soviet-American war.

Which actor played James Bond only once in the Eon Productions series?

George Lazenby quit after one film because his agent convinced him the secret agent would seem archaic in the liberated 1970s.

What is the name of the CIA agent who is often an ally to James Bond?

Felix Leiter is fed to a shark in one of Fleming's novels and survives, with a note pinned to him: 'He disagreed with something that ate him.'

Who sang the theme song for the Bond film Skyfall?

Adele's Skyfall became the first Bond theme to win the Oscar for Best Original Song, a prize every earlier Bond song had missed.

Which actress played Tracy di Vicenzo, the countess who marries James Bond?

Brigitte Bardot was approached first but chose the western Shalako instead, so Diana Rigg, fresh from playing Emma Peel in The Avengers, took the part.

Which villain runs the heroin operation in the 1973 Bond film set in Harlem and on the island of San Monique?

Dr. Kananga doubles as the Harlem drug lord Mr. Big, whose plan is to give away two tons of heroin for free to bankrupt his rivals and corner the market.

What is the nationality of the actor Pierce Brosnan, who played James Bond?

Irish-born Pierce Brosnan was offered Bond in 1986, but NBC renewed Remington Steele and held him to his contract.

Which James Bond film features an invisible car gadget?

Die Another Day, the twentieth Eon Bond film, gave 007 an invisible Aston Martin V12 Vanquish for Brosnan's 2002 farewell.

Which letter is the code name of the MI6 officer who supplies Bond's gadgets?

Q stands for quartermaster, and Desmond Llewelyn, who played him in 17 films, had been a prisoner of war at Colditz Castle.

Which drink is James Bond famous for ordering shaken rather than stirred?

On screen, Bond's vodka martini catchphrase is first spoken by the villain in Dr No; Bond only says it himself in Goldfinger, ordering just 'a martini'.

Which actress played Pussy Galore, leader of the all-female Flying Circus pilots?

Honor Blackman already threw villains with judo as Cathy Gale in The Avengers, and Pussy Galore flips Bond with judo too.

Which actor is known for playing the henchman Jaws in 'The Spy Who Loved Me' and 'Moonraker'?

Richard Kiel said Jaws's steel teeth were so painful that he could keep them in only briefly at a time.

Which Bond villain, a reclusive shipping tycoon, plans nuclear war and a new civilisation under the sea?

Karl Stromberg plans to fire stolen submarines' nuclear missiles at Moscow and New York, then ride out the war in his undersea base, Atlantis.

After Bernard Lee died in 1981, which actor took over as M starting with 'Octopussy'?

Robert Brown had played Admiral Hargreaves in an earlier Bond film, and Bond scholars think his M is that admiral, promoted.

In 'Casino Royale' (2006), what game does James Bond play against Le Chiffre?

Bond and Le Chiffre play Texas hold 'em poker, replacing the baccarat of Fleming's original 1953 novel.

Where does the opening sequence of the Bond film Spectre take place?

Mexico City had no real Day of the Dead parade until 2016, when authorities staged one inspired by the film's opening.

Which pop artist performed the theme song for 'No Time to Die'?

Billie Eilish was still a teenager when she recorded it, making her the youngest artist ever to sing a Bond theme.

Which pet does Blofeld stroke while his face stays hidden in the early Bond films?

A white cat: Blofeld's Persian was so iconic that Austin Powers spoofed it with Dr. Evil's cat, Mr. Bigglesworth.

Which martial-arts star played Chinese agent Wai Lin opposite Pierce Brosnan's Bond?

Michelle Yeoh, Bond's kung-fu equal as Wai Lin, later became the first Asian winner of the Oscar for Best Actress.

Which composer won libel cases over claims that John Barry really wrote the James Bond Theme?

Monty Norman wrote the theme and John Barry arranged it; Norman's last libel win came against The Sunday Times in 2001.

Which From Russia with Love villain hides a poisoned blade in her shoe?

Rosa Klebb was played by Lotte Lenya, who had created the role of Jenny in the first production of The Threepenny Opera.

In which city does 'Casino Royale' (2006) open, with Bond earning his 00 status?

Prague's black-and-white opening shows Bond making the kills that earn his double-0 status, before the film switches to colour.

Which royal did Daniel Craig's Bond escort in a short film for the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony?

Queen Elizabeth II played herself, greeting Bond with 'Good evening, Mr Bond', before a stuntman dressed as her jumped from a helicopter above the stadium.

Which gadget does Bond strap on to fly to safety in Thunderball's opening scene?

The jetpack Bond flies in Thunderball was a real, working Bell Rocket Belt, not a special effect.

Who plays Alec Trevelyan, 006, Bond's ally turned enemy in 'GoldenEye'?

Sean Bean's Trevelyan fakes his own execution, then returns nine years later, scarred, as Janus, the crime boss Bond is hunting.

Which actor plays Gareth Mallory, who takes over as M at the end of 'Skyfall'?

Ralph Fiennes's Mallory had chaired Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee and served as an army lieutenant colonel before running MI6.

In the 1967 film where American and Soviet spacecraft vanish, which country is Bond sent to?

Japan's real Shinmoedake volcano, on Kyushu, played the mountain hiding the villains' secret rocket base.

What is the title of the James Bond theme song performed by Paul McCartney and Wings?

Live and Let Die earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song but lost to Barbra Streisand's The Way We Were.

Octopussy's floating palace was filmed at a real luxury hotel in which country?

India's Lake Palace in Udaipur, a former royal summer palace now run as a hotel, played Octopussy's home.

In Thunderball, which cargo does SPECTRE steal by hijacking an RAF Vulcan jet during a training exercise?

Two NATO atomic bombs are the haul, and SPECTRE demands £100 million or it will destroy a major city, later revealed to be Miami.

Which Paris landmark does Bond henchwoman May Day parachute from after a killing?

May Day kills Bond's contact over dinner in the Eiffel Tower's restaurant, then escapes by leaping off the tower with a parachute.

Which James Bond film sees Bond marry for the first time in the Eon series?

On Her Majesty's Secret Service ends in tragedy when Blofeld and Irma Bunt machine-gun the newlyweds' car as they drive off, killing Tracy.

Which rock singer recorded You Know My Name, the theme for Daniel Craig's first Bond film?

Chris Cornell co-wrote the song with composer David Arnold and kept the film's title out of the lyrics, breaking a long Bond-song habit.

Which actor played Francisco Scaramanga in The Man with the Golden Gun?

Christopher Lee was Ian Fleming's step-cousin, and Fleming had suggested him to play Dr No before the producers cast someone else.

Which comedian spoofed Bond as the bumbling spy Johnny English?

Rowan Atkinson had already been in a real, if unofficial, Bond film, playing a Foreign Office man in the Bahamas.

Which tarot-reading psychic loses her powers after sleeping with Bond?

Solitaire, played by Jane Seymour, knows that losing her gift puts her in danger from the villain who employs her.

Which stolen painting hangs in Dr No's lair as a joke about a real art theft?

Goya's Duke of Wellington had vanished from London's National Gallery shortly before filming, so its cameo hinted Dr No was the thief.

Which Italian city's famous bareback horse race is woven into a chase in Quantum of Solace?

Siena's Palio, a bareback race around the Piazza del Campo, was filmed for real with fourteen cameras and cut into Bond's chase.

Ian Fleming took 007's name from the author of a field guide he used for which hobby?

Birdwatching was Fleming's hobby in Jamaica, and his copy of Birds of the West Indies by ornithologist James Bond supplied the name.

Which children's book did James Bond creator Ian Fleming write as a bedtime story for his son?

Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, about a car that sprouts wings and flies, came out two months after Fleming died in 1964.

Which WWII deception, a corpse carrying fake plans, grew from an idea in a memo linked to Ian Fleming?

Operation Mincemeat floated a dead man carrying fake invasion plans off Spain in 1943, steering German eyes away from Sicily.

Which playwright did Ian Fleming want to play the title role in Dr No?

Noël Coward, Fleming's friend and neighbour in Jamaica, turned down the part with a reply that began 'No, no, no'.

Roughly how many copies have Ian Fleming's Bond books sold worldwide?

About 100 million copies sold puts Fleming's Bond stories among the best-selling fiction series of all time.

Which author wrote the Bond novel published in 2023 to mark the new king's coronation?

Charlie Higson had already written the first five Young Bond novels, about 007's schooldays at Eton, before this adult Bond book.

Which actor first played Bond on screen, as an American agent on 1954 live TV?

Barry Nelson's Bond was an American agent some characters call 'Jimmy', broadcast live by CBS in October 1954.

Roughly how much have the Eon Bond films grossed at the box office in total?

About $8 billion in unadjusted box office makes Bond the fifth-highest-grossing film series to date.

Bond's father Andrew Bond came from which Scottish village, according to Fleming?

Glencoe is where Fleming placed Bond's father, Andrew, after Sean Connery's casting nudged him toward giving Bond Scottish roots.

Why was the literary Bond expelled from Eton?

Trouble with a maid cut Bond's Eton career short after two halves, so he was sent to Fettes College, his father's old school.

Which musician did Fleming say Bond resembled facially?

Hoagy Carmichael is who both René Mathis and Vesper Lynd say Bond resembles in Fleming's first novel, though Bond himself disagrees.

Roughly how many cigarettes a day does Ian Fleming's Bond smoke?

Sixty a day, by M's medical file, is part of why Bond gets packed off to a health clinic in the novel Thunderball.

What nickname did Bond producer Albert Broccoli go by?

Cubby was the nickname his cousin, producer Pat DiCicco, gave Albert R. Broccoli, and it stuck through all his Bond films.

Who created the gun-barrel opening and title sequences for Dr No?

Maurice Binder first tried filming through a real gun barrel, and a pinhole camera fixed the focus so the whole barrel looked crystal clear.

Which country hosted location filming for From Russia with Love?

Turkey's Istanbul shoot was cut short when co-star Pedro Armendáriz was diagnosed with terminal cancer, so his scenes were rushed forward.

Which director helmed four Bond films, starting with Goldfinger?

Guy Hamilton was asked back to direct For Your Eyes Only, but a cash-strapped United Artists could not afford his salary.

Which toy company made the James Bond Aston Martin DB5 die-cast car that won the first British Toy of the Year award?

Corgi's DB5 had an ejector seat that fired a passenger through a roof panel, and demand outran the factory for Christmas 1965.

Which actress appeared painted gold on the cover of Life to promote Goldfinger?

Shirley Eaton's gold-painted death scene as Jill Masterson started an urban myth that the actress herself had died during filming.

Thunderball was the first Bond film with what technical distinction?

Thunderball was the first Bond film shot in widescreen Panavision, and also the first to run over two hours.

Which author wrote the screenplay for Eon Productions' 1967 James Bond film?

Roald Dahl, author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, had worked alongside Ian Fleming in wartime and had never finished a screenplay before.

Which actor was the first to show Blofeld's face on screen in an Eon Bond film?

Donald Pleasence replaced Czech actor Jan Werich, whom the director and producer judged not menacing enough, more a benevolent Father Christmas.

Which actor played Blofeld in the 1969 Bond film set at the Piz Gloria allergy clinic?

Telly Savalas's Blofeld threatens to spread a virus that makes crops and livestock infertile unless the world grants him a pardon.

Producer Albert Broccoli cast the Australian model who played Bond in 1969 after seeing him advertise what?

Broccoli spotted him in a Fry's chocolate commercial, and the model dressed the part in a Savile Row suit Connery had ordered but never collected.

Blofeld's plot in Diamonds Are Forever uses the gems to build what?

Blofeld's space-based laser weapon destroys nuclear installations in the US, Soviet Union and China before he proposes an auction for global nuclear supremacy.

Which actress played Rosie Carver, the first African American Bond girl romantically involved with 007?

Gloria Hendry's Rosie Carver came two years after Trina Parks's Thumper, who fought Bond rather than romancing him.

Which producer sold his stake in the Bond franchise after The Man with the Golden Gun?

Harry Saltzman's money troubles forced him to sell his half of the Bond parent company to United Artists in 1975.

Which Soviet agent teams up with Bond in The Spy Who Loved Me?

Anya Amasova, KGB Agent Triple X, vows to kill Bond once their mission ends after learning he killed her lover on the mountain.

Which composer scored The Spy Who Loved Me?

Marvin Hamlisch wrote the music for 'Nobody Does It Better', and both the song and his score earned Academy Award nominations.

Which film's success prompted the producers to make Moonraker instead of For Your Eyes Only?

The previous film's end credits promised For Your Eyes Only next, but Star Wars revived science fiction, so the producers sent Bond into space.

Moonraker was primarily shot in which country because of budget problems?

Moonraker was shot mainly in France because of budget problems, and Pinewood's soundstages were used only by the special effects team.

Which singer performed the title theme for For Your Eyes Only?

Sheena Easton was the first Bond theme singer seen performing in a film's opening titles, and the song earned an Oscar nomination.

Which exiled Afghan prince does Louis Jourdan play in Octopussy?

Kamal Khan helps the rogue Soviet general Orlov in exchange for jewels stolen from the Kremlin, with Maud Adams's Octopussy as his associate.

Which region does Christopher Walken's Max Zorin plan to destroy in Moore's last Bond film?

Max Zorin plans to flood Silicon Valley by triggering an earthquake along its fault lines, giving him a monopoly on microchips.

Which is the only Bond theme to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100?

A View to a Kill came about after Duran Duran bassist John Taylor drunkenly asked Albert Broccoli at a party if he could write a theme.

Which actress replaced Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny in The Living Daylights?

Caroline Bliss's first screen role was Princess Diana in a 1982 TV film, and Samantha Bond replaced her as Moneypenny in GoldenEye.

Which was the first Eon Bond film with an original title rather than one taken from an Ian Fleming story?

Licence to Kill was originally titled Licence Revoked, and it was the last of the five Bond films John Glen directed in a row.

Why was the 1989 Bond film retitled from Licence Revoked before release?

US viewers linked it to driving: American test screenings showed 'Licence Revoked' was a common phrase for losing a driving licence, so MGM changed it.

GoldenEye was the inaugural production shot at which studio?

Pinewood was booked, so GoldenEye's crew turned an old Rolls-Royce engine factory at Leavesden Aerodrome into Leavesden Studios.

Who directed GoldenEye, the film that ended the Bond series' six-year legal hiatus?

Martin Campbell passed on more Bond films after GoldenEye, agreeing to return only with a new star, and he later launched Daniel Craig in Casino Royale.

Which actor played media tycoon Elliot Carver in Tomorrow Never Dies?

Jonathan Pryce's Elliot Carver is a media baron who tries to start a war between Britain and China to win broadcasting rights there.

Which blockbuster kept Tomorrow Never Dies from opening at number one?

Titanic opened the same day, so Tomorrow Never Dies finished second and became the only Brosnan Bond film not to open at No. 1.

'The World Is Not Enough' is the translation of what?

The Bond family motto, Orbis non sufficit, belonged to Sir Thomas Bond, the spy's supposed real-world ancestor, and Spain's Philip II used it too.

Which agency employs Halle Berry's character Jinx in the 2002 Bond film?

Jinx is an NSA agent, and her emergence from the sea in a bikini pays homage to Ursula Andress in Dr. No.

Which director was first announced for Quantum of Solace before leaving over script delays?

Roger Michell: after he left, a writers' strike cut off work on the script, so Daniel Craig and the director rewrote scenes themselves.

Dominic Greene's plot in Quantum of Solace targets which country's freshwater supply?

Dominic Greene poses as an environmentalist while backing a coup in Bolivia, in exchange for land that lets him control its water supply.

Which actor plays villain Raoul Silva in Skyfall?

Javier Bardem's Silva is a former MI6 agent who turned cyberterrorist after his chief gave him up to the Chinese in 1997.

Which director turned down an offer to direct Spectre, the 2015 Bond film?

Nicolas Winding Refn, the Danish director of Drive, later revealed that he had turned down the chance to direct Spectre.

Which long legal controversy ended with SPECTRE's return in the 2015 Bond film?

The Thunderball dispute began when Kevin McClory sued Ian Fleming in 1961, and the settlement gave him the novel's film rights, SPECTRE included.

Which director originally attached to No Time to Die left over creative differences?

Danny Boyle left in August 2018 over a dispute about the script, and Cary Joji Fukunaga was announced as his replacement a month later.

Which writer joined the No Time to Die screenplay team alongside Purvis, Wade and Fukunaga?

Phoebe Waller-Bridge, creator of Fleabag, was brought in at Daniel Craig's request to polish the dialogue and add humour.

Which actress plays new 00 agent Nomi in No Time to Die?

Lashana Lynch's Nomi takes over the 007 number while Bond is retired, making her the first Black woman to hold it on screen.

The 1983 non-Eon Bond film's title refers to what?

Connery's vow to quit the role in 1971 gave the film its title, which his wife suggested when he agreed to play Bond again.

Who directed the 1983 Bond film made outside Eon Productions' official series?

Irvin Kershner's film opened bigger in the US than Eon's Octopussy that year, yet earned less overall.

Which actor played 'Sir James Bond' in the 1967 spoof Casino Royale?

David Niven had been Ian Fleming's choice to play Bond in Dr. No, and the spoof finally cast him as the retired 'original' Sir James Bond.

Sean Connery won his Academy Award for which 1987 film?

The Untouchables made Connery the first Scottish actor to win a major Oscar, Best Supporting Actor, as the street-wise cop Jim Malone.

What was Sean Connery's first job in Edinburgh?

Connery's first job, as a milkman for an Edinburgh co-operative, paid just over £1 a week, as his rediscovered employment record showed.

Which Western character did Roger Moore play after replacing James Garner as the lead of a TV series?

Beau Maverick was the brothers' English-accented cousin, and Moore found Garner's name scratched out on his costume tags.

Roger Moore was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for which organization in 1991?

Roger Moore became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in August 1991, and he was knighted in 2003 for services to charity.

Which 1996 drama serial gave Daniel Craig his breakthrough role?

Daniel Craig played troubled Geordie Peacock in Our Friends in the North, the BBC serial that also helped establish the careers of Christopher Eccleston and Mark Strong.

Which DC hero did Pierce Brosnan play in Black Adam (2022)?

Pierce Brosnan's Doctor Fate foresees Hawkman's death and sacrifices himself fighting Sabbac alone to prevent it.

Which Time Lord did Timothy Dalton play in Doctor Who?

Rassilon, president of the Time Lords, returned opposite David Tennant's Doctor in the 2009-10 special The End of Time.

Which Monty Python star succeeded Desmond Llewelyn as Bond's gadget master in the Eon films?

John Cleese was introduced as the quartermaster's heir, nicknamed R, shortly before Desmond Llewelyn died in a car crash in 1999.

Which MI6 chief's habit of signing with a green-ink 'C' inspired the letter codenames?

Mansfield Smith-Cumming signed himself 'C', and later MI6 chiefs kept the custom, though the letter now stands for Chief.

What first name was Moneypenny given in Skyfall?

Eve Moneypenny starts Skyfall as an MI6 field agent working alongside Bond, then takes the desk job of secretary to the service's new chief.

Moneypenny was originally named what in Fleming's first draft of Casino Royale?

Miss 'Petty' Pettaval came from Kathleen Pettigrew, the senior MI6 secretary who worked for chiefs including Stewart Menzies.

Which special effects expert modified the DB5 for Goldfinger?

John Stears later won an Academy Award for Thunderball's visual effects, and he went on to build the robots R2-D2 and C-3PO.

Roughly how much did one of the Aston Martin DB5s driven in Goldfinger sell for at a 2010 auction?

$4.6 million bought the car at RM Auctions in London, and the same DB5 had also been driven by Connery in Thunderball.

As of 2025, which two Bond themes have topped the UK chart?

Writing's on the Wall and No Time to Die both debuted at number one in the UK, and both went on to win the Oscar for Best Original Song.

Which singer performed the theme to the 1989 Bond film?

Gladys Knight's theme reached number six in the UK but never entered the US Billboard Hot 100, and it was her last UK solo chart hit.

Who sang John Barry's 1969 Bond love song?

Louis Armstrong sang 'We Have All the Time in the World', with lyrics by Hal David, and his recording returned decades later in No Time to Die.

Which two film scores earned John Barry both an Oscar and a Grammy?

Out of Africa and Dances with Wolves each won John Barry both prizes, and he won five Oscars in all.

Ian Fleming's Jamaican estate sits on which bay?

Oracabessa Bay is where Fleming wrote all his Bond stories, and the nearby Ian Fleming International Airport opened in 2011.

Which holding company was the parent of Eon Productions, the Bond films' producer?

Danjaq blends the first names of the producers' wives, Dana and Jacqueline, and it was first registered in Switzerland as Danjaq S.A.

Which two Bond girls appeared on screen before Ursula Andress in the first Eon Bond film?

Eunice Gayson and Zena Marshall played Sylvia Trench, planned as Bond's recurring girlfriend, and Miss Taro, a double agent for Dr. No.

Under what pseudonym did Kingsley Amis write the 1968 continuation novel Colonel Sun?

Robert Markham was meant to be a house name for all future Bond authors, but Colonel Sun was the only novel published under it.

Which company bought MGM, and with it the Bond film library, in a deal that closed in March 2022?

Amazon paid $8.45 billion, and in 2025 it spent about $1 billion more to take creative control of Bond from Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson.

Which company published James Bond 007, the first Bond video game to get a worldwide release?

Parker Brothers scrapped an earlier Octopussy tie-in version, and James Bond 007 finally came out in May 1984.

Which pistol did the literary Bond carry in the first five novels, until a gun expert called it 'a lady's gun'?

Gun expert Geoffrey Boothroyd called Bond's .25 Beretta 'a lady's gun', so Fleming switched Bond to a Walther PPK and named MI6's armourer after him.