James Bond

James Bond, also known as 007 (pronounced "double-oh seven"), is a fictional British spy introduced by writer Ian Fleming in 1953. Fleming wrote numerous novels and short stories based upon the character and, after his death in 1964, further literary adventures were written by Kingsley Amis, John Pearson, John Gardner, Raymond Benson, and Charlie Higson; in addition, Christopher Wood wrote two screenplay novelizations and other authors have also written various unofficial permutations of the character.

Books

By Ian Fleming

In January 1952, Ian Fleming began work on his first James Bond novel. At the time, Fleming was the Foreign Manager for Kemsley Newspapers, an organisation owned by the London Sunday Times. Upon accepting the job, Fleming asked that he be allowed two months vacation per year. Every year thereafter until his death in 1964, Fleming would retreat for the first two months of the year to his Jamaican house, "Goldeneye" to write a James Bond novel.

Related Topics:
Kemsley Newspapers - London Sunday Times - Jamaica

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1953Casino Royale

Related Topics:
1953 - Casino Royale

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1954Live and Let Die

Related Topics:
1954 - Live and Let Die

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1955Moonraker

Related Topics:
1955 - Moonraker

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1956Diamonds Are Forever

Related Topics:
1956 - Diamonds Are Forever

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1957From Russia With Love

Related Topics:
1957 - From Russia With Love

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1958Dr. No

Related Topics:
1958 - Dr. No

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1959Goldfinger

Related Topics:
1959 - Goldfinger

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1960For Your Eyes Only

Related Topics:
1960 - For Your Eyes Only

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1961Thunderball

Related Topics:
1961 - Thunderball

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1962The Spy Who Loved Me

Related Topics:
1962 - The Spy Who Loved Me

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1963On Her Majesty's Secret Service

Related Topics:
1963 - On Her Majesty's Secret Service

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1964You Only Live Twice

Related Topics:
1964 - You Only Live Twice

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1965The Man with the Golden Gun

Related Topics:
1965 - The Man with the Golden Gun

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1966Octopussy and The Living Daylights

Related Topics:
1966 - Octopussy and The Living Daylights

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Between 1953 and 1966, twelve James Bond novels and two short story collections by Fleming were published, with one novel and one short story collection issued posthumously. To this day, it is still debated whether Fleming himself actually finished 1965's The Man with the Golden Gun, as he died very soon after completing the book. His first anthology of short stories, For Your Eyes Only mostly consisted of converted screenplays for a CBS television series based on the character. When the project fell through, Fleming turned them into short stories: (i) "From a View to a Kill", (ii) "For Your Eyes Only", (iii) "Risico", plus two additional stories, "The Hildebrand Rarity" and "Quantum of Solace", which were previously published. The second anthology, Octopussy and The Living Daylights (in many editions titled only Octopussy), originally only contained two short stories, "Octopussy" and "The Living Daylights"; a third story, "The Property of a Lady" was added in the 1967 paperback edition, and a fourth, "007 in New York", was added in 2002.

Related Topics:
Whether Fleming himself actually finished - CBS - From a View to a Kill - For Your Eyes Only - Risico - The Hildebrand Rarity - Quantum of Solace - Octopussy - The Living Daylights" - The Property of a Lady - 007 in New York

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Post-Fleming James Bond novels

Following Ian Fleming's death in 1964, Glidrose Productions, publishers of the James Bond novels, planned a new book series, credited to the pseudonym "Robert Markham" and written by a rotating series of authors. Ultimately, only one Markham novel saw print, 1968's Colonel Sun by Kingsley Amis. Amis had previously written two books on the world of James Bond, the 1964 essay The James Bond Dossier and the tongue-in-cheek 1965 release The Book of Bond, or Every Man His Own 007 (written under the pseudonym "Lt.-Col. William ("Bill") Tanner", a recurring character in the Bond novels. Amis had also been claimed for many years as the ghost writer of The Man with the Golden Gun, although this has been debunked by numerous sources. (See The controversy over The Man with the Golden Gun.)

Related Topics:
Glidrose Productions - Robert Markham - Colonel Sun - Kingsley Amis - Ghost writer - The controversy over ''The Man with the Golden Gun''

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1973, Ian Fleming biographer John Pearson was commissioned by Glidrose to biograph the fictional character James Bond. Pearson wrote ' in the first person as if meeting the secret agent himself. The book was well-received by aficionados—readers and viewers, alike. Since the book has many discrepancies with Fleming's Bond (for example his birth year), the canonical status of James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007 is debated among fans—some consider it apocryphal, though at least one publisher issued it as an official novel along with the rest of Fleming's series. Glidrose reportedly considered a new series of novels written by Pearson, but this did not come to pass. Prior to writing this, Pearson had written an early biography of Ian Fleming, The Life of Ian Fleming.

Related Topics:
1973 - John Pearson - The Life of Ian Fleming

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1977, the film The Spy Who Loved Me was released and was subsequently novelised and published by Glidrose due to the radical difference between the script and Fleming's novel of the same name. This would happen again with 1979's Moonraker. Both novelisations were written by screenwriter Christopher Wood and were the first official novelisations, although technically, Fleming's Thunderball was a novelisation having been based on scripts by himself, Kevin McClory, and Jack Whittingham (although it predated the movie), and the For Your Eyes Only collection was also, for the most part, based upon unproduced scripts.

Related Topics:
1977 - The Spy Who Loved Me - 1979 - Moonraker - Screenwriter - Christopher Wood - Kevin McClory - Jack Whittingham

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the 1980s, the series was finally revived with new novels by John Gardner; between 1981 and 1996, he wrote fourteen James Bond novels and two screenplay novelisations, surpassing Fleming's original output. The biggest change in Gardner's series was updating 007's world to the 1980s; however, it would keep the characters the same age as they were in Fleming's novels. Generally Gardner's series is considered a success although their canonical status is disputed.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1981Licence Renewed

Related Topics:
1981 - Licence Renewed

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1982For Special Services

Related Topics:
1982 - For Special Services

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1983Icebreaker

Related Topics:
1983 - Icebreaker

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1984Role of Honour

Related Topics:
1984 - Role of Honour

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1986Nobody Lives For Ever

Related Topics:
1986 - Nobody Lives For Ever

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1987No Deals, Mr. Bond

Related Topics:
1987 - No Deals, Mr. Bond

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1988Scorpius

Related Topics:
1988 - Scorpius

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1989Win, Lose or Die

Related Topics:
1989 - Win, Lose or Die

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1989Licence to Kill (novelisation)

Related Topics:
1989 - Licence to Kill - Novelisation

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1990Brokenclaw

Related Topics:
1990 - Brokenclaw

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1991The Man from Barbarossa

Related Topics:
1991 - The Man from Barbarossa

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1992Death is Forever

Related Topics:
1992 - Death is Forever

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1993Never Send Flowers

Related Topics:
1993 - Never Send Flowers

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1994SeaFire

Related Topics:
1994 - SeaFire

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1995GoldenEye (novelisation)

Related Topics:
1995 - GoldenEye

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1996COLD

Related Topics:
1996 - COLD

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1996, John Gardner retired from writing James Bond books due to ill health, and American Raymond Benson quickly replaced him. As a James Bond novelist, Raymond Benson was initially controversial for being American, and for ignoring much of the continuity established by Gardner. Benson had previously written The James Bond Bedside Companion, a book dedicated to Ian Fleming, the official novels, and the films. The book was initially released in 1984 and later updated in 1988. Benson also contributed to the creation of several modules in the popular James Bond 007 role-playing game in the 1980s. Benson wrote six James Bond novels, three novelisations, and three short stories.

Related Topics:
Raymond Benson - The James Bond Bedside Companion - 1984 - 1988 - Role-playing game

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1997"Blast From the Past" (short story)

Related Topics:
1997 - Blast From the Past

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1997Zero Minus Ten

Related Topics:
1997 - Zero Minus Ten

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1997Tomorrow Never Dies (novelisation)

Related Topics:
1997 - Tomorrow Never Dies

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1998The Facts of Death

Related Topics:
1998 - The Facts of Death

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1999"

Related Topics:
1999 - Midsummer Night's Doom

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1999"Live at Five" (short story)

Related Topics:
1999 - Live at Five

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1999The World Is Not Enough (novelisation)

Related Topics:
1999 - The World Is Not Enough

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1999High Time to Kill

Related Topics:
1999 - High Time to Kill

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2000Doubleshot

Related Topics:
2000 - Doubleshot

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2001Never Dream of Dying

Related Topics:
2001 - Never Dream of Dying

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2002The Man with the Red Tattoo

Related Topics:
2002 - The Man with the Red Tattoo

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2002Die Another Day (novelisation)

Related Topics:
2002 - Die Another Day

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Benson abruptly resigned as Bond novelist at the end of 2002, despite having previously announced plans to write a short story collection. Low sales figures for the books, and plans by Ian Fleming Publications to focus on reissuing Fleming's original novels for the 50th anniversary of the character, were among reasons speculated by fans as to why Benson departed. The year 2003 marked the first year since 1980 that a new James Bond novel had not been published.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

On August 28, 2005, Ian Fleming Publications confirmed it is planning to publish a one-off adult Bond novel in 2008 to mark what would have been Ian Fleming's 100th birthday. This would feature the adult version of the character as opposed to the "Young Bond" character of the recent Charlie Higson books (see below). Although it has been suggested a "big name" author might take on the task, the publishers have yet to approach anyone about this project http://www.ianflemingcentre.com/index.cfm?page=news.

Related Topics:
August 28 - 2005 - 2008

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Young Bond

In April 2004, Ian Fleming Publications (Glidrose) announced a new series of James Bond books. Instead of continuing from where Raymond Benson ended in 2002, the new series would feature James Bond as a thirteen-year-old boy attending Eton College. Written by Charlie Higson (The Fast Show) the series is expected to align with the adult Bond's back-story established by Fleming and Fleming only. Since the concept was announced the series has taken heavy criticism for being aimed at the "Harry Potter audience" and has been seen by some as a desperate attempt to find a new audience for Bond. Regardless, the first novel became a bestseller in the United Kingdom and was released to good reviews. A second novel is due for release in January 2006. The series is currently planned out for five novels according to Charlie Higson.

Related Topics:
Eton College - Charlie Higson - The Fast Show - Harry Potter

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2005SilverFin

Related Topics:
2005 - SilverFin

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2006Blood Fever

Related Topics:
2006 - Blood Fever

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Young Bond series is expected to be expanded to include graphic novels in 2006. It is currently unknown whether these will be adaptations of Higson's books or original adventures.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Moneypenny Diaries

In May 2005 it was revealed that a new trilogy of novels edited by Kate Westbrook called The Moneypenny Diaries will be released by John Murray publishers that will centre on the character of Miss Moneypenny. While not initally authorised by Ian Fleming Publications, it was sanctioned after detailed negotiations http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,176-1753997,00.html. The first installment of the trilogy is scheduled for release on October 10, 2005.

Related Topics:
Kate Westbrook - The Moneypenny Diaries - John Murray - Miss Moneypenny - October 10 - 2005

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The novels had originally been touted as the secret journal of a colleague of the "real" James Bond, but the publishers admitted on 28 August 2005 that they were a spoof after an investigation by The Sunday Times of London.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Roland Philipps, managing director of John Murray, originally said: ?From the moment I heard about this remarkable discovery I knew it would be a crucial piece of historical record from a previously unpublished source.?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Westbrook is said to be niece of the "real" Jane Moneypenny and the diaries were "discovered" after her death in 1990. It was also claimed that Westbrook was a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. But the college ? where the Soviet spies Kim Philby, Donald Maclean and Anthony Blunt studied in the 1930s ? denied knowledge of her.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Other Bond-related fiction

In 1967, Glidrose authorised publication of ' written by Arthur Calder-Marshall under the pseudonym R D Mascott. This book is for young-adult readers, and chronicles the adventures of 007's nephew (despite the inaccurate title).

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

An early 1990s animated television series, James Bond Jr, ran for 65 episodes and spawned a six-episode novelisation series written by John Peel under the pseudonym John Vincent. (There appears to be no connection between this series and the 1967 book by Marshall).

Related Topics:
James Bond Jr - John Peel

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Russians were often the villains in Fleming's Cold War-era novels in at least some form. In 1968, they hit back with a spy novel of their own called The Zakhov Mission by Andrei Guliashki, in which a communist hero finally and forcefully defeats 007.

Related Topics:
Russians - Cold War - The Zakhov Mission - Andrei Guliashki - Communist

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In addition to numerous fan fiction pieces written since the character was created, there have been two stories written by well-known authors claiming to have been contracted by Glidrose. The first in 1966, was Per Fine Ounce by Geoffrey Jenkins, a friend of Ian Fleming who claimed to have developed with Fleming a diamond-smuggling storyline similar to Diamonds Are Forever as early as the 1950s. According to the book The Bond Files by Andy Lane and Paul Simpson, soon after Ian Fleming died, Glidrose Productions commissioned Jenkins to write a James Bond novel. The novel was never published. Some sources have suggested that Jenkins novel was to be published under the Markham pseudonym. The second story, 1985's The Killing Zone by Jim Hatfield goes so far as to have been privately published as well as claim on the cover that it was published by Glidrose; however it is highly unlikely that Glidrose contacted Hatfield to write a novel since at the time John Gardner was the official author. The text of The Killing Zone is available on the Internet and can be found here.

Related Topics:
Fan fiction - Per Fine Ounce - Geoffrey Jenkins - Andy Lane - Paul Simpson - The Killing Zone - Jim Hatfield - Internet

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1997, the British publisher B.T. Batsford produced Your Deal, Mr. Bond, a collection of bridge-related short stories by Phillip King and Robert King. The title story features James Bond, M, and other characters and features an epic bridge game between Bond and the villain, Saladin. No credit is given to Ian Fleming Publications, suggesting this rare story may have been unauthorized; a photo of Sean Connery as Bond is featured on the cover of the book.

Related Topics:
1997 - B.T. Batsford - Your Deal, Mr. Bond - Bridge - Phillip King - Robert King

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~