Focus Of The Week: Kissy Suzuki

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In You Only Live Twice (1967), Kissy Suzuki (Mie Hama) works as a local field agent for Japanese Intelligence Chief Tiger Tanaka (Tetsuro Tamba). Based on the island of Matsu, she works as an Ama diver (female divers known for collecting pearls), a skill, along with her courage and tenacity, that makes her invaluable in assisting 007 (Sean Connery) in his mission to track down captured US and Soviet spacecraft.

Kissy first meets Bond when he must pose undercover as a local fisherman. She is chosen by Tanaka to marry Bond in a pretend wedding ceremony, allowing Bond invisibility to continue his search of the islands as a local. During a meal at Kissy’s house, she makes it perfectly clear to Bond that, despite their faux marriage, their relationship is purely business.

Later, Kissy offers Bond useful information for his investigation when she explains that an Ama girl died in Ryuzaki, a cave on the mainland that served as an ancient vent for a nearby volcano. The following day, Kissy takes Bond to the caves and the pair discover it is filled with lethal phosgene gas, and so swim underwater to escape danger. Continuing to look for clues, the couple share an intimate moment cut short by a helicopter flying into the mouth of the volcano. Kissy tells Bond the volcano has never been active in her lifetime and, on further investigation, they discover what looks like a lake within the crater’s surface is actually a canopy for a SPECTRE rocket base below.

As 007 infiltrates the base, Kissy heads back to meet Tanaka. During the swim home, she is targeted by a SPECTRE helicopter taking shots at her. Employing her skills as an Ama diver, she stays beneath the water to protect herself. She makes it to the mainland and joins Tanaka and his ninjas on an assault on the volcano. She saves Tanaka’s life by shooting an assailant during the battle. When Blofeld blows up his own base, Kissy and Bond escape via the Ryuzaki cave. They find a raft and relax in each other’s arms — until their dinghy is scooped up by M’s submarine.

 

Focus Of The Week: Diamonds Are Forever

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For the first James Bond film of the seventies, producers Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman were facing a challenge. While the filmmakers believed On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) worked as a film, they also felt the need to return to the entertainment values of Goldfinger (1964). This hunch was confirmed when studio United Artists released Thunderball (1965) and You Only Live Twice (1967) barely six months after On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, the double bill opening to full houses and cheering crowds. The message was clear: with Diamonds Are Forever (1971) audiences wanted the return of classic Bond. They also wanted the return of the original 007. Although the producers originally chose John Gavin, an American actor, to take over from George Lazenby, they reverted to wooing back Sean Connery.

To direct and also ensure the “Goldfinger” touch, Broccoli and Saltzman hired that film’s director Guy Hamilton and co-screenwriter Richard Maibaum. Maibaum’s first draft included a story involving Auric Goldfinger’s twin brother and a boat chase on Lake Mead. Later, American screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz was hired to bring some wit and pace within the remit of 007’s essentially British tone. To further consolidate the return to the series’ core values, all agreed to bring back Bond’s arch nemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld (this time played by Charles Gray) whose story arc was left unresolved. Mankiewicz’s final screenplay also saw a return to memorably sinister henchman — Mr. Wint (Bruce Glover) and Mr. Kidd (Putter Smith) — a grand villainous scheme and lots of humour amidst the action.

The final story saw MI6 assign Bond to investigate who is hoarding the world’s supply of diamonds. Posing as criminal Peter Franks, Bond meets small-time smuggler Tiffany Case (Jill St. John) and the pair smuggle a stash of diamonds to Las Vegas, where Bond believes industrialist Willard Whyte (Jimmy Dean) is involved in the conspiracy. 007 infiltrates Whyte’s laboratory and discovers the diamonds are being used as a part of a laser-beam satellite. Bond’s detective work leads him to a run-in with Blofeld who has kidnapped Whyte and is planning to hold the world hostage for ransom with the deadly satellite.

Shooting began on April 5 1971 with the desert outside Las Vegas doubling for South Africa. Cooperation from billionaire Howard Hughes (whose use of doubles and reclusive behaviour inspired Willard Whyte) helped pave the way for a spectacular car chase through downtown Las Vegas. The memorable moment in which Bond turns a Ford Mustang on two wheels had to be shot three times: once at Universal and then twice more in Las Vegas to capture the car emerging from an alley.  The climax, an attack on Blofeld’s base, was filmed at an oil rig off the coast of Oceanside, California.

Yet the biggest challenge facing the team occurred when the main unit returned to Pinewood Studios. Every shot with Connery had to be completed within 18 weeks. On August 13, 1971, Hamilton called cut on Connery’s last shot in an EON 007 film. He finished the shoot with a game of golf, a grudge match against production designer Ken Adam.

John Barry returned to score the music, bringing back Goldfinger chanteuse Shirley Bassey to sing Don Black’s lyrics. Barry’s score captured the glamour and glitter of diamonds without  diluting Hamilton’s tone and visuals. Gordon  K. McCallum, John Mitchell and Alfred J. Overton were nominated for Best Sound Oscar. Bond had returned with a spectacular success and a fitting goodbye for Sean Connery.

 

New LEGO Aston Martin DB5

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Today, the LEGO Creator Expert James Bond Aston Martin DB5 was unveiled at its Global launch in London.
Naomie Harris exclusively revealed the new 1:8 scale LEGO DB5 model at LEGO’s UK flagship store in Leicester Square alongside a real silver birch Aston Martin DB5.
Speaking at the launch, Naomie Harris said: “It’s such an honour to be here. To see the iconic DB5 reimagined in LEGO brick form is such an exciting moment to be part of and the attention to detail on the model is truly remarkable.”
LEGO designer Michael Psiaki said: “James Bond fans will go wild for all the authentic features and functions we’ve put into this car including the tyre-scythes, pop-up machine guns, and working ejector seat. The iconic status of James Bond’s DB5 makes this car a perfect fit for the LEGO Creator Expert series. We’re really excited to unveil our LEGO brick version of this elegant and timeless machine.”
The DB5 is available now from LEGO stores and shop.lego.com. It will also be available at 007store.com from 1 August.

Focus Of The Week: Mary Goodnight

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In The Man With The Golden Gun (1974), Mary Goodnight (Britt Ekland) is a Hong Kong based field operative who hinders Bond (Roger Moore) as much as she helps him in his mission to kill assassin Francisco Scaramanga (Christopher Lee). Enthusiastic, courageous and with a crush on 007, Goodnight often finds herself in over her head in her attempts to be taken seriously in Bond’s eyes.

She helps 007 to track down Scaramanga’s girlfriend Andrea Anders (Maud Adams) but fails to inform Lt. Hip (Soon-Taik Oh) of Bond’s presence, a mistake that gives Scaramanga a chance to steal the Solex Agitator (a small device that harnesses solar energy) from its designer Gibson (Gordon Everett). Lt. Hip is played by Soon-Taik Oh.

Bond finally responds to Goodnight’s advances only to suffer the indignity of being shoved into the closet by 007 when Andrea Anders arrives. She has to keep hidden while the pair make love, eventually falling asleep.

Later, at the meeting point with Anders, Goodnight takes control of the Solex. Placing a tracking device in Scaramanga’s AMC Matador, she is discovered by the killer, pushed into the boot and taken to his island. She awaits Bond’s arrival and is present during dinner when Scaramanga proposes to Bond the idea of a duel.

During the showdown, Goodnight is guarded by technician Kra (Sonny Caldinez). He makes a crude pass at her so Goodnight hits him over the head with a spanner, sending him into the temperature-sensitive vat of liquid helium in Scaramanga’s solar energy plant. After 007 kills Scaramanga, Mary helps him retrieve the Solex, accidentally triggering a lethal solar-powered laser cannon.

When the island explodes due to Kra’s body in the cooling vats, she escapes with Bond in Scaramanga’s personal junk. Following a final battle with Nick Nack (Hervé Villechaize), Goodnight finds herself alone with Bond — just where she always wanted to be.

S.T. Dupont 007 Limited Edition Collection

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Celebrate the legacy of the James Bond movies with the new S.T. Dupont 007 limited edition collection. Two styles of pens and lighters are amongst the collection: A pale gold guilloche design on a Line 2 lighter and a New Line D Pen. Plus an alternative version of the Line 2 lighter and Line D pen featuring the same guilloche design but beautifully coated in black lacquer. Each item is limited to 1962 pieces to celebrate the year the first James Bond movie, DR. NO, was released.

A range of accessories is also included in the collection: Cufflinks in the same pale gold guilloche, engraved with both the 007 logo and the signature of S.T. Dupont. A seven credit card wallet and a cigarette case in subtle black leather enhanced by the same embossed guilloche pattern. Minijet with its powerful torch flame completes the collection with a choice of PVD gold or matt black finishes. A cigar cutter and a key ring hand spinner both in PVD gold guilloche, are also available.

The centre piece of the range is the limited-edition collectors set containing a
Line D Pen, lighter, cigar cutter, cufflinks and extra roller nib. The ingenious composition of the accessories pays homage to Bond’s Walther PPK. The set is limited to 400 pieces.

To buy go to:

S.T. DUPONT 007 COLLECTION

 

Naomie Harris Opens 007 Elements

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007 ELEMENTS, an exciting new James Bond experience situated within the summit of the Gaislachkogl mountaintop in Sölden, Austria is now open to the public. The cinematic installation was officially opened by actress Naomie Harris who plays Moneypenny (Spectre, Skyfall) and Jakob Falkner Managing Director of Bergbahnen Sölden.

After visiting 007 ELEMENTS for the first time, Harris commented: “It’s fantastic to be here today at the launch of the brand new exhibition in this amazing location at the top of the Gaislachkogl mountain in Sölden”.

Jakob Falkner said: “It was wonderful to have Naomie here with us to mark this special day. I’d like to thank EON Productions and Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) for their guidance and support. Special thanks go to architect Johann Obermoser and his team for designing and building the perfect mountaintop home, to Neal Callow, Tino Schaedler and the team at Optimist Inc. for bringing the idea to life by creating this unique Bond experience and our partners Jaguar Land Rover, OMEGA and Bogner.”

“007 ELEMENTS complements the wide range of activities we have to offer and firmly puts Sölden and the wider Tyrol region on the map as a year-round destination for sports and entertainment in the Alps.”

At over 3,000m above sea level, 007 ELEMENTS is the highest experience of its kind taking visitors on a journey through a series of nine galleries and an outside plaza with stunning views of the Alps. The dramatic spaces complete with an immersive soundscape showcase the fundamental elements that define the James Bond films placing visitors inside the world of 007 and revealing how that world is made. Construction of the 1,300sqm permanent structure started in May 2017 and was completed just over one year later.

Visitors to 007 ELEMENTS will see the original Land Rover Defender and Range Rover Sport SVR from Spectre and learn how the thrilling action sequences were filmed in Sölden. Also featured are four James Bond OMEGA watches including the Seamaster 300 from Spectre the laser watch from GoldenEye, the Seamaster Quartz from Tomorrow Never Dies, and the Piton from The World Is Not Enough. In addition to the stylish uniforms designed by Bogner for the 007 ELEMENTS team, several iconic Bogner ski suits worn by Bond are on display.

EON Productions’ Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli commented: “We are truly proud to be in partnership with Jakob Falkner and launching our latest experience, 007 ELEMENTS on the very mountaintop in Sölden where we filmed Spectre. Architect Johann Obermoser, our Art Director Neal Callow and Tino Schaedler have created a Bondian lair worthy of a Ken Adam set in which visitors immediately become enveloped in the cinematic world of 007.”

007 ELEMENTS is accessed via the Gaislachkoglbahn Gondola in the resort village of Sölden. Open daily from 09:00 to 15:30, tickets are available online or from the Bergbahnen Sölden ticket offices and cost €22 for adults, €12 for children. For further information or to book tickets, please visit: 007elements.com

Focus Of The Week:A View To A Kill

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A View To A Kill (1985), the 14th EON 007 adventure, proved to be Roger Moore’s last appearance as James Bond. Deftly mixing humour and action, it typified his genial approach to the role and made for a fitting goodbye to the series. The title itself comes from Ian Fleming’s 1960 short story collection ‘For Your Eyes Only’. Screenwriters Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson developed their own story. Wilson came up with the idea of using Silicon Valley as a backdrop and the pair hatched a plot where Bond is out to thwart psychopathic industrialist Max Zorin attempting to destroy America’s high tech centre by flooding the San Andreas Fault so creating a double earthquake. Success would mean Zorin would gain complete monopoly over the lucrative microchip market.

To play Max Zorin (originally named Zorn), the producers chose Christopher Walken, an Academy AwardÒ winner for The Deer Hunter. Tanya Roberts signed on to play geologist Stacey Sutton, the granddaughter of an oil tycoon whose company is taken over by Zorin. Model and singer Grace Jones was hired to play Zorin’s super-strong cohort May Day. The role of Sir Godfrey Tibbett, a horse trainer working undercover as Bond’s chauffeur, went to Patrick Macnee, best known as John Steed in TV series The Avengers.

A vast undertaking, the scope of the story demanded five film units working at various times in France, San Francisco, Iceland, Switzerland and the UK. In June 1984, the 007 Stage at Pinewood Studios burned down during the production of Ridley Scott’s Legend. EON productions set about rebuilding the stage but the delay meant production designer Peter Lamont’s set for Zorin’s mine could not be completed until the end of shooting. It took clever shuffling of schedules and locations to keep the production on track.

Filming began in Paris in August 1984. To perfect May Day’s iconic jump from the Eiffel Tower, parachute/skydiving expert BJ Worth made 22 test jumps from a hot-air balloon. After lengthy negotiations, the French authorities approved the jump that looked in jeopardy when two daredevils jumped off the tower for fun. Yet the thrill-seekers served to prove the stunt could be performed safely. Worth pulled off the leap in one take captured by multiple cameras.

The production moved to San Francisco, simulating a real fire at City Hall and shooting a fire truck chase over three weeks of night shooting. For the climactic Golden Gate Bridge action sequence, Martin Grace rehearsed stuntmen fighting on the main suspension tables. On Jan 7th 1985, the crew celebrated the re-opening of the 007 stage. Pinewood renamed the stage the Albert R. Broccoli 007 stage in honour of the producer’s long association with the studio and huge contribution to the British film industry.

John Barry composed his tenth score for the series. John Taylor of pop-rock group Duran Duran asked Broccoli if the band could create the title song. Broccoli agreed and Duran Duran, collaborating with Barry, created the most successful Bond theme to date, hitting number one in the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US and, helped by a tongue in cheek video directed by Godley & Creme, reaching number two in the UK.

January 16th 1985 proved to be a momentous day in James Bond history. It marked the last day Roger Moore played James Bond on film.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Focus Of The Week: Karl Stromberg

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Misanthropic, impatient, obsessed with life under the sea (he even has webbed fingers), Karl Stromberg (Curt Jurgens) is one of the richest men in the world. Unlike other Bond adversaries he is not looking for riches. Instead his plan is to orchestrate global nuclear destruction, destroy humanity and rebuild a more civilised world beneath the waves. It’s a plan only thwarted by the sometimes testy collaboration between James Bond (Roger Moore) and KGB agent Major Anya Amasova (Barbara Bach).

Stromberg lives in a submersible ocean laboratory known as Atlantis and owns a shipping line, including the Liparus, a huge tanker, capable of swallowing up submarines whole. He hires scientists Professor Markovitz (Milo Sperber) and Dr. Bechmann (Cyril Shaps) to develop a tracking system that he uses to trace and capture the ballistic missile-equipped submarines, Britain’s HMS Ranger and the Soviet Potemkin. His plan: to use them to launch strikes against Moscow and New York to initiate nuclear warfare.

When Markovitz and Bechmann come to discuss their payment ($10 million each), Stromberg asks his assistant (Marilyn Galsworthy), who has placed a microfilm detailing the tracking system up for sale, to leave them in private. When she enters the elevator, Stromberg presses a button and the lift drops her into a shark tank. After the two scientists leave, Stromberg instructs his henchman Sandor (Milton Reid) and Jaws (Richard Kiel) to kill anyone who comes into contact with the microfilm. To prove his point, he lets the two scientists survive a nervy lift journey but coldly dispatches them by blowing up their helicopter. He asks their families be informed the pair were “buried at sea”.

The microfilm catches the attention of Bond and Amasova, who visit Atlantis under the guise of marine biologist Robert Sterling and his wife. Stromberg sees through their disguise and orders the pair to be killed, the instruction starting numerous attempts on their life. Bond and Amasova go aboard the submarine USS Wayne which is sent to attack the Liparus. Stromberg captures the Wayne, kidnaps Amasova and sets the HMS Ranger and the Potemkin to launch their missiles.

As Stromberg returns to Atlantis to enjoy the fruits of his nefarious endeavours, Bond joins forces with British, American and Soviet sailors and takes over the Liparus to foil the missile strike. Using a Wetbike, Bond travels to Atlantis to confront Stromberg. Sending the lethal elevator to collect Bond, Stromberg intends to drop 007 in the shark tank. Yet Bond evades the trap door by keeping his feet off the floor. The two men sit at a long table. Stromberg tries to shoot Bond with a hidden torpedo gun attached to the underside of the table. Bond evades the missile and returns with four shots from his Walther PPK.

James Bond Swim Shorts Collection

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EON Productions have partnered with men’s resort wear brand Orlebar Brown to create an exclusive collection of swim shorts using iconic poster art from the James Bond archive. The four shorts in the collection feature artwork from Dr. No, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice and Live And Let Die with each pair coming complete with a 007 woven label and a limited edition waterproof swim bag.

The shorts can be purchased from 007 STORE: 007store.com/collections/orlebar-brown-swim-shorts

Focus Of The Week: Tatiana Romanova

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A corporal in Soviet Army Intelligence, Tatiana Romanova (Daniela Bianchi) — known as Tania — works as a cipher clerk at the Soviet Consulate in Istanbul. Loyal, innocent, graceful (she studied ballet in Leningrad, but grew one inch too tall to qualify), she is unknowingly entrusted with a pivotal role in SPECTRE’s plot to kill 007 in From Russia With Love (1963).

She meets with her commanding officer Rosa Klebb (Lotte Lenya), not knowing that Klebb works for SPECTRE. With her life depending on the mission, she agrees to Klebb’s demands to give false information to the enemy, becoming a pawn in the terrorist organisation’s plot to humiliate and discredit the British Secret Service.

Tania begins by contacting Istanbul head of Station T, Turkey, Kerim Bey (Pedro Armendáriz), claiming she wishes to defect with a Lektor decoder (a cipher machine) but only on the condition that 007 (Sean Connery) escorts her and the decoder to England — she claimed she had fallen in love with him from a picture she saw in a secret file and wanted to live with him.

She first meets Bond in his hotel room (“You’re even nicer than your photograph,” she tells him), slipping into his bed wearing only a black choker and black stockings. SPECTRE surveillance experts secretly film their lovemaking from behind a mirror, garnering footage to scandalize the service and Bond in retaliation for killing Dr. No.

Tania helps Bond obtain the Lektor and escapes with him aboard the Orient express bound for Italy. She is deeply conflicted about her growing feelings for Bond versus her fear of Klebb and loyalty to Russia. When Bond confronts her about the murder of Kerim Bey at the hands of SPECTRE assassin Red Grant (Robert Shaw), she truthfully defends her ignorance but does not reveal Klebb’s plot.

Grant, operating under the cover of British spy Nash, catches up with Bond and Tania on the train. Grant sedates Tania during dinner and overpowers Bond, revealing Tania is a pawn in SPECTRE’s conspiracy. Bond’s booby-trapped briefcase distracts Grant and the men begin brutal hand to hand combat until Bond manages to stab Grant with a knife concealed in his case before strangling Grant with his own garrotte.

After Grant’s death, Bond and Tatiana escape to Venice where they are confronted by Rosa Klebb, who disguises herself as a maid and tries to eliminate 007 with a gun and a dagger-tipped shoe poisoned with blowfish venom. As she disarms Klebb and picks up the gun, Tatiana must decide where her true loyalties lie: the world of freedom represented by Bond or Soviet-style obedience. Klebb orders Tania to shoot Bond but instead she turns the gun on Klebb, saving the day.

Later, she and Bond enjoy a boat trip in Venice. The couple look at the surveillance film, before Bond nonchalantly tosses it into the water.

 

Focus Of The Week: Oddjob

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The bodyguard, chauffeur and caddy of Auric Goldfinger (Gert Fröbe) in Goldfinger (1964), Oddjob (Harold Sakata) is the perfect henchman, an intimidating mix of brute strength, unique skills and unquestioning loyalty. He is capable of killing his prey with a single blow or, if his victims run, by throwing his steel-rimmed hat with pinpoint accuracy. He is a true force to be reckoned with.

Oddjob first meets 007 at the Fontainebleau hotel in Miami Beach, knocking Bond out and murdering Jill Masterson (Shirley Eaton). When Bond regains consciousness, he discovers a lifeless Jill covered head to foot in gold paint having died from ‘skin suffocation’.

Oddjob and Bond’s paths cross again at a golf club in Britain. During a high stakes game with a Nazi gold bar as the prize, Oddjob caddies for Goldfinger, helping him cheat by surreptitiously putting down a new ball when Goldfinger loses his original in the rough.

Becoming increasingly suspicious of 007’s motives Goldfinger sends him a warning about meddling in his affairs by ordering Oddjob to decapitate a marble statue by throwing his metal-rimmed hat. Before the pair depart in Goldfinger’s 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III, Bond tosses Oddjob the duplicate golf ball, which the henchman duly crushes in his bare hand.

Later, when Bond and Jill’s sister Tilly (Tania Mallet) trip an alarm in Goldfinger’s factory in Switzerland, Oddjob supervises a squad of Korean guards in the chase and kills Tilly with a lethal hat throw. He further shows his cold-blooded streak by shooting Mr. Solo (Martin Benson), the one gangster who refuses to take part in Goldfinger’s scheme. Oddjob later has his body crushed in a Lincoln Continental.

Deploying an atomic bomb to irradiate the US Gold Supply, Goldfinger locks Oddjob, Bond and Goldfinger’s enforcer Kisch (Michael Mellinger) in Fort Knox. Once again revealing unswerving allegiance to his boss, Oddjob refuses to join forces to get the bomb disarmed, killing Kisch and turning on 007. During the fight, Oddjob displays incredible resilience — Bond throws a gold bar which just bounces off his chest — but also for the first time, fear when 007 uses his own steel-rimmed hat against him.

Oddjob manages to dodge Bond’s throw, the hat getting stuck between a pair of bars. As he goes to retrieve it, Bond acts quickly and pushes a severed live wire onto the rods, the electric current transferring from the metal bars to the metal in the steel hat, which electrocutes Oddjob in a spectacular flurry of sparks.

Focus Of The Week: Licence To Kill

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Following the success of The Living Daylights, Producer Cubby Broccoli looked to continue with harder-edged stories suitable for Timothy Dalton’s tougher incarnation of 007. The Screenplay was written by Screenwriter Richard Maibaum and Producer/Screenwriter Michael G. Wilson.

The filmmakers decided to base storyline around the drug cartels in Mexico, investing 007 with a much more personal motivation than ever before. En route to the wedding of his friend Felix Leiter (David Hedison) in Florida, James Bond and Leiter arrest drug baron Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi). As the wedding party hits full swing, Sanchez escapes from law enforcement officers and orders the murder of Felix’s new bride. Swearing revenge, Bond sees his licence to kill rescinded by the British government. With the help of CIA operative Pam Bouvier (Carey Lowell) as well as MI6 gadget specialist Q (Desmond Llewelyn), Bond sets out to thwart Sanchez’s plot to smuggle huge quantities of cocaine by dissolving the drug in petrol.

Looking for an actor with enough presence to play Sanchez, Broccoli and Maibaum spotted Robert Davi in a TV movie Terrorist On Trial — The Us Vs. Salim Ajami. To prep for the role, Davi not only researched South American drug lords but also had the script translated into Spanish to learn the lines with the correct cadence. Davi also played opposite actresses auditioning for the role of his mistress Lupe, eventually played by Brooklyn born Talisa Soto. Future Academy Award winner Benicio Del Toro played knife-wielding henchman Dario. The role of televangelist Professor Joe Butcher was played by Las Vegas legend Wayne Newton, fulfilling a life-long dream to appear in a Bond film.

On Bond’s team, Carey Lowell won the role of CIA operative Pam Bouvier while David Hedison returned as Felix Leiter, which he had previously played in Live And Let Die. Desmond Llewelyn enjoyed his largest role ever as Q, a reassuring presence amidst the darker storyline. “I’d never really been on location before, so I loved every moment of it,” Llewelyn recalled.

Filming began on July 18 1988 at Churubusco Studios in Mexico City. On August 18, the production re-located to Key West, Florida with the second unit led by Arthur Wooster capturing Bond lassoing Sanchez’s plane in mid-air. Special consultants Sparky Greene and Jillian Palenthorpe came up with the sequence involving Bond’s escape from the Wavecrest and then via plane — water-skiing champion David Reinhardt doubled for Bond barefoot skiing behind a plane.

The idea of drug dealers smuggling cocaine by dissolving it in aircraft fuel and then reconstituting it in the US came from a Coast Guard law enforcement friend of Michael G. Wilson’s. The film’s climax sees Bond destroy the tankers shipping the illegal substances. To allow the tankers to do side and back wheelies, stunt arranger Rémy Julienne contacted Larry Orr chief engineer of Kenworth Trucks, who modified the stunt trucks known as Pamela 1, 2 and 3 (after the film’s heroine). The scene was shot over seven weeks at Rumorosa Pass, an hour from Mexicali.

After filming was finished, the film’s original title, Licence Revoked, was changed to Licence To Kill. With a score by action maestro Michael Kamen, Gladys Knight performed the title song and Patti LaBelle sang the end credits number ‘If You Asked Me To’ which later became a hit for Celine Dion. The film proved to be the last 007 film not only for Dalton but also for many Bond regulars; title designer Maurice Binder, screenwriter Richard Maibaum, director of photography Alec Mills and director John Glen, Licence To Kill being his fifth 007 film.

“I think it is probably the best film I’ve ever done,” recalled Glen, “and I’m very proud of it,”