While the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 markets have remained stable this week, Aston Martin’s share price “stood out like a beat-up old banger in Harrods’ car park”, said Ben Marlow in The Telegraph.

When it joined the London stock market in 2018, Aston Martin likened itself to industry titan Ferrari in what has since become a “ridiculous” comparison. While Ferrari “flew off the starting grid”, the British company “went immediately into reverse”, and is now “dangerously close to running out of road”.

One of Britain’s most iconic brands, the company’s performance carries “symbolic and economic weight” in the industry, said Una Hajdari on Euronews. It could be a “bellwether” for the fate of the high-end manufacturing sector.

‘Alerts and alarms’: how bad is it?

Despite its cachet with consumers, its Bond-favourite reputation has slipped to a “112-year-old marque that burns cash like an AI start-up”, said Bryce Elder in the Financial Times.

Based on estimates of cars sold wholesale since 2014, each individual vehicle has “cost the company more than £45,000 on average”, which extrapolates to a “£2.8 billion customer subsidy” in the present day.

It is only “exceptional generosity” that has kept the company afloat in the last few years, said The Telegraph. Nearly £2 billion has been collected from investors in seven separate “fund-raisings”, and billions more from banks.

Despite the “alerts and alarms” flashing on the dashboard, surrounded by missed performance targets and slumps in demand, “there is still some residual belief that Aston Martin is not heading for its eighth bankruptcy in a little over a century”, said Robert Lea in The Times.

The “Elysian fields where Ferrari hangs out” may be too much to hope for, but the eventual rollout of Aston Martin’s flagship £850,000 “Valhalla” supercar this quarter could slow the demise. The pressure on this is immense, and the company is “fully dependent” on producing “high-margin supercars” to sustain its future profitability.

A “smooth launch” of the Valhalla model could be a welcome marker that “things were finally starting to turn the corner,” experts told Carwow. If the introduction fails to materialise, dogged by previous delays and disruptions faced by the project since it was announced in 2021, then this could be the “final straw” for investors.

‘Brunt’ of American tariffs

Aston Martin’s sliding demise is a “stark reminder that prestige cannot shield a brand from tariffs and sluggish demand”, said Euronews.

Unlike other larger British or foreign car-building companies, Aston Martin has no American base for manufacturing, meaning it cannot “avoid the brunt of the tariffs” by expanding further into US production. As a result, Aston Martin must make “costly trade-offs”, by absorbing tariff hits, which restricts profit margins, or delaying deliveries, which “stalls” revenue.

Donald Trump’s tariffs “ravaged” Aston Martin’s US sales, and the company faces “new taxes on luxury cars” in China, said Jonathan Prynn in London’s The Standard.

Though undoubtedly a major thorn in Aston Martin’s side, tariffs are not the company’s only concern, said the BBC. In February, before any tariffs were announced, the manufacturer cut 170 jobs, after witnessing “losses widen by a fifth” last year as their debts began to “pile up”.

In the complicated terminology of Hollywood, a reboot is a film that sets aside some or all of a series' or franchise's previous timelines, ideas or characters while still preserving the core narrative. That excludes pure remakes and leaves the reboot distinct from sequels that begin where a previous entry left off. The very best reboots, like the ones below, remind audiences of what they love about a story, without sacrificing originality.

'Batman Begins' (2005)

The "Batman" superhero franchise had fallen on hard times before it was handed over to auteur director Christopher Nolan in 2005. Starring Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, many critics "presumed it to be a kind of prequel to the 1989 'Batman' rather than its own separate thing," but Nolan's movie launched a new storyline, said Forbes. And while some assailed it as "humorless, cold and hyperrealistic," the film succeeded because it gave audiences a "good story that was well-told and well-performed." Bale starred as Batman in two more films, "The Dark Knight" (2008) and "The Dark Knight Rises" (2012).

'Dune: Part One' (2021)

David Lynch's 1984 film version of Frank Herbert's celebrated science fiction novels about rival "houses" of an intergalactic empire was "widely panned" at the time, although his "great shame remains a great undertaking worth watching," said Vulture. Perceptions of the books as unadaptable forced audiences to wait nearly four decades for someone to take another crack. Director Denis Villeneuve "wisely decided that the only way to properly tell this story was to split it into multiple movies," and the first effort was a "dazzling space odyssey" characterized by "total sensory grandeur," said Esquire. Part Two was released in 2023 and Part Three is scheduled for 2026, while a TV spinoff was released in 2024.

'Evil Dead' (2013)

Director Fede Alvarez's reboot of the frequently ripped-off 1980s-era horror-comedy series follows a group of twentysomethings who rent a cabin in the wilderness and inadvertently summon a demonic force that eliminates them one by one. Featuring "extraordinarily strong stuff, from gratuitous and repeated eye damage to the bifurcation of tongues," the film "sweeps along on its own crazy momentum," said Den of Geek, to a conclusion whose "last half an hour is a joyously nasty exercise in gruesome horror." The reboot spawned a 2023 sequel, "Evil Dead Rise," and a planned third installment, "Evil Dead Burn."

'Star Trek' (2009)

After four feature films starring the cast of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," the franchise was in need of fresh thinking when Paramount handed it over to "Lost" co-creator J.J. Abrams. Abrams resurrected the characters from the original "Star Trek" but used a time-travel gimmick known as "the Kelvin Timeline" to send them on brand-new adventures — discarding the franchise's existing narrative. More than "just a pleasurable rethink of your geek uncle’s favorite science-fiction series," the film offered an "origin story directed with a sure touch and perfect tone," said The New York Times. The film led to two sequels, "Star Trek Into Darkness" (2013) and "Star Trek Beyond" (2016), with a fourth reportedly in development.

'Casino Royale' (2006)

The James Bond espionage franchise is clearly no stranger to reinvention given how many men have played the globe-trotting British spy. After four decades, relative newcomer Daniel Craig was cast as a glowering Bond in a darker, no-nonsense franchise reboot. The filmmakers also cleverly seized on the early aughts Texas Hold 'Em craze by setting the movie's most significant action around a game of high-stakes poker. The result was a "smaller, less ambitious Bond that somehow felt grander and more audacious," said The Guardian. Craig would play Bond in four more movies, concluding with "No Time to Die" (2021).

For years, the biggest threat to 007 "was the apocryphal 'woke police'", said Adam White in The Independent: a "mob of rainbow-haired bisexuals" determined to turn James Bond into a woman and replace his vodka martini with "vegan wine".

But now, we know how Bond will really be killed off: through "a slow, sad corporate takeover". Last week, the Broccoli family yielded creative control over the franchise to Amazon MGM Studios.

'Hallmark of Britishness'

For Brits, 007 "is not just A.N. Other action hero", said Janice Turner in The Times: "he's our soft power, our collective national id" – an alluring mix of "tradition and modernity" and "understated cool", "salted" with a dash of humour. Now, it's only a matter of time before Jeff Bezos and his algorithm-led streaming platform turn Bond into a bland, "Americanised" figure.

Still, the buyout is "grimly appropriate", said Madeline Grant in The Telegraph. "Bond films always mirror geopolitical reality": how fitting, then, that a tech giant from the US – so "vastly wealthy" and "culturally self-confident in a way we no longer are" – should be gobbling up "this hallmark of Britishness".

'Supervillain's bounty'

It's a "worrying" time for us fans, said Dominic Maxwell in The Times. But this should at least end the Bond drought. New films used to come along every three years or so, but it has been four since Daniel Craig's swansong, "No Time to Die", and no new installment is in sight. This is largely due to infighting between Amazon (which bought MGM and the rights to Bond in 2017) and Barbara Broccoli, whose father launched the films in 1962. After one fractious meeting, she reportedly labelled Amazon executives "f**king idiots" for describing Bond films as "content". Now that the family has ceded their control – reportedly for a cool £1 billion – someone might "finally be motivated" to make a film.

There is a reason Bezos paid this "supervillain's bounty", said Alexander Larman in The Spectator: the deal has given Amazon what all studios covet – control over the series' intellectual property. Just as Disney has "so inexpertly done with 'Star Wars'", Bezos will now milk the franchise for all it's worth: get ready for spinoffs galore, from Teen Bond to Blofeld's "origin story".

It's a shame. Bond has endured "not because of the terrible quips" and martinis, but because Broccoli fiercely guarded the brand, making sure each film was an event. Now the floodgates are open for a vulgar free-for-all. That sound you hear is "1,000 Amazon executives rubbing their hands together with glee".

This is one transaction that is shaken, not stirred. It was announced on Feb. 20 that a deal had been reached to give control of the "James Bond" film series to Amazon-MGM, likely opening the doors to a whole new future for Hollywood's most legendary spy. The agreement relinquishes control of the "Bond" IP from the longtime stewards of the franchise.

Ever since the most recent "Bond" actor, Daniel Craig, was killed off in 2021's "No Time to Die," the search has been on for a new actor to take up the role of 007. But giving control of "Bond" to one of the biggest companies in the world could have ripple effects throughout the film industry.

What are the deal's terms?

The deal was made between Amazon MGM and the Broccoli family, whose patriarch Albert Broccoli started the "Bond" film franchise 60 years ago. The two parties "formed a new joint venture to house the 'James Bond' intellectual property rights," under which "Amazon MGM Studios will gain creative control of the 'James Bond' franchise," Amazon MGM said in a press release.

This marks the end of a longstanding wrestling match between the parties. "Bond" was originally owned by MGM, which was "acquired by Amazon in 2022," said NPR. At that time, Albert Broccoli's daughter Barbara Broccoli and her stepson Michael Wilson said they "would retain creative control of the films through their own production company, Eon." But with this deal, they are "stepping down from their creative roles and allowing the new home of the 'Bond' franchise to take the lead."

What does this deal mean for 'Bond'?

This marks the biggest change in the history of the "Bond" franchise. Broccoli and her stepson had "extraordinary control over the 'Bond' franchise, personally steering the films" in certain directions, said IndieWire. More than anything, they were the "arbiters of 'what is a James Bond film,' navigating Bond's post-Cold War reinvention with Pierce Brosnan in the '90s and selecting Daniel Craig as his replacement in 2005."

But now Amazon and its owner, Jeff Bezos, are at the helm, and "fan reaction — including this one — is mixed," said IndieWire. There is the "possibility of more 'Bond' projects than ever. But at what cost?" It is "hard not to think that Bond has sold out," given that for the Broccolis, each "'Bond' film was a bespoke product of a family business." Of course, this may have also "limited the potential for new takes on 'Bond,'" the outlet added.

Such limits on "Bond" may no longer exist; the deal is part of the "transition from movies to content, from curated popcorn to popcorn sold by the yard," said Variety. The "seismic nature of the 'Bond' news today marks that transition as a cultural done deal." There is now potential, too, for the franchise to be spun off into a larger saga — with films that are released much more often.

Amazon and Bezos apparently wanted the "Bond" IP so badly that they paid a lofty sum; Amazon purchased MGM for $8.5 billion in 2022, but it "took another $1 billion to ensure that they could fully steer and exploit" the "Bond" franchise, said Deadline. Amazon probably has a "desire to expand the 'James Bond' franchise into its own universe akin to Marvel or Star Wars," creating a new era of spy thrillers.

Sit back and relax with our pick of the best small-screen entertainment, from Gavin & Stacey, Wallace & Gromit and Doctor Who to hilarious opera, little fish and Swan Lake.

Inside Classical: Hallelujah – The Gospel Messiah

Marin Alsop conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra for this uplifting gospel-and jazz-infused interpretation of Handel's masterpiece.

Sun 22 Dec, 9pm, BBC4

The Hairy Bikers: You'll Never Ride Alone

Si King looks back on the life of his fellow TV chef and best friend Dave Myers, as he leads a motorcycle convoy to Myers's hometown in Cumbria.

Mon 23 Dec, 9pm, BBC2

A Ghost Story for Christmas: Woman of Stone

Mark Gatiss presents a story about newlywed Victorians who make a terrifying discovery.

Christmas Eve, 10.15pm, BBC2

Swan Lake from English National Ballet

At lunchtime on Christmas Day, you can catch a recording of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake", performed at the Royal Albert Hall in June by the English National Ballet. Choreographed by Derek Deane, the "most memorable element" of this "naturally grand-scale piece of work" is the "corps of 60 swan maidens manoeuvring their melancholy way through some mesmeric – almost militaristic – formations", said The Times of the original performance.

Christmas Day, 12.50pm, BBC Two

Tiddler

Starting with "The Gruffalo" in 2009, Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler have regularly had their much-loved children's books turned into animated BBC specials. This Christmas, it's the turn of "Tiddler" – the tale of a "small grey fish with a big imagination". It "boasts a star-studded cast", said Radio Times, with Hannah Waddingham of "Ted Lasso" fame "taking the lead as the narrator".

Christmas Day, 2.35pm, BBC One

Doctor Who: Joy to the World

Nicola ("Bridgerton") Coughlan, as new character Joy, joins lead star Ncuti Gatwa for this seasonal Doctor Who special. It centres on a "hotel chain that gets hold of time travel and capitalises on it to sell stays throughout history", said Radio Times. Beyond the hotel's secret doorway, a "deadly plan is unfolding", said the BBC. With an old enemy "lurking in the wings" and "all of human history" hanging in the balance, "can the Doctor save Christmas, everywhere, all at once?"

Christmas Day, 5.10pm, BBC One

Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

It's been 16 years since their last adventure, and Wallace and Gromit are making a "joyous return", said The Guardian. The storyline for the latest stop-motion animated comedy, created by Nick Park and produced by Aardman Animations, "chimes with our current anxieties around technology". Gromit feels pushed out when Norbot the "smart-gnome" arrives and handles "all of Wallace's odd jobs effortlessly". Then villainous penguin Feathers McGraw, last seen in "The Wrong Trousers", hacks into Norbot from prison and makes him recruit a band of gnomes to build a submarine for Feathers' jailbreak.

Christmas Day, 6.10pm, BBC One

The Merry Widow from Glyndebourne

Filmed during this summer's Glyndebourne Festival, Franz Lehár's "hilarious opera" has been "sumptuously reimagined" by West End director Cal McCrystal, said the i news site. Australian soprano Danielle de Niese plays Hanna, the wealthy widow looking for a new lover. "Utterly glorious!", said the news site's Jessica Duchen of the original performance.

Christmas Day, 8pm, BBC Four

Gavin & Stacey: The Finale

This final, "hugely anticipated" return of the much-loved sitcom will "pick up from the cliffhanger ending of the 2019 special", when Nessa (Ruth Jones) asked Smithy (James Corden) to marry her, said The Sun. What's occurring? There's only one way to find out…

Christmas Day, 9pm, BBC One

From Roger Moore with Love

Roger Moore, the "lovable" actor who played James Bond in seven films between 1973 and 1985, gets "the indulgent, affectionate treatment he deserves in this documentary celebration", said The Guardian. An "enjoyable watch", this film reveals how Moore "really did invent himself", in a "lifelong method-acting project" to create an "unvarying dapper persona", which did not vary on screen or off.

Christmas Day, 9pm, BBC Two

“The quest to find the next James Bond may be over,” said The Mail on Sunday. Callum Turner has been “blabbing all over town” that the role is his. “It’s been confirmed. Everyone in his circle is talking about it. It’s the worst-kept secret going.”

If Turner really has secured the role, producers at Amazon could “seal a two-for-one deal”, with the actor’s fiancée, Dua Lipa, lined up to record the theme song for the new film.

It’s a prospect so “wincingly cute that it can’t possibly be true, surely?” said Adam White in The Independent. But the “Turner part isn’t too far-fetched”. After all the “iffy speculation” about who will bag the role, Turner’s is “the first name that feels really ‘right’ for this”. He’s “famous and busy but not too famous and busy”, so he would likely have the time to be tied to a multi-year franchise; he’s “yet to have a proper breakout role”; and he “looks very good in a suit”.

Bond 26, as the new film is known, will be directed by Denis Villeneuve and written by “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight, with production expected to begin in 2027. Despite the latest flurry of rumours, no official announcement has yet been made about the identity of the latest Bond. Here are some of the names said to be in the running.

Anthony Boyle

Following his starring role as Arthur Guinness in “House of Guinness”, Boyle has become a “surprise” new front-runner for the role, said Metro. The “lesser-known” Irish actor has “largely played supporting roles” so far, appearing in “Tolkien” and “Tetris”, and scooping an Olivier award for best supporting actor as Scorpius Malfoy in “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”, said MovieWeb. And while his turn in “House of Guinness” might not “scream James Bond”, the hit Netflix show does have an important tie to 007: it was created by “Peaky Blinders” Steven Knight. Yes, the writer who is currently working on the James Bond 2026 script.”

Aaron Taylor-Johnson

"Not only does Aaron fit the ideal casting bill but he also has plenty of support behind him," said Metro. The 35-year-old British actor has been among the front-runners since rumours began to swirl that he was formally offered the role. Taylor-Johnson demonstrated his action-hero credentials as the lead in "Kick-Ass", and as Quicksilver in "Avengers: Age of Ultron". With his "classic movie star looks", said CNN, he is "a no-brainer" for 007.

Theo James

"While James has, for now, doused any remaining sparks of Bond rumours, we're not ready to give up," said The Standard. The 41-year-old British actor is the right age and his performances as "roguish, morally ambiguous characters" in "The White Lotus" and "The Gentlemen" are "perfect training" for 007 success. He also won over fans in 2014's "Divergent", and his appearances in Hugo Boss and Dolce & Gabbana adverts would not be out of place in a Bond movie.

Henry Cavill

Last year, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos asked his X followers who should play the next James Bond, and the "answer shouted with a deafening yell" was Henry Cavill, said Forbes. The "Superman" and "Witcher" star has a "legion of superfans" and "existing connections to Amazon" after signing up to produce and star in its hotly anticipated "Warhammer 40,000" project.

He even auditioned for the role of Bond "way back when" but lost out to Craig because he looked too young at the time. But the "possibility that he could be the new 007 is sharply dividing fans", said Men's Journal. Their main criticism? That "he is almost too suave and handsome, and not rough-and-tumble enough" to be the next Bond.

James Norton

Norton has established himself as a TV star, garnering praise for his roles in "Happy Valley", "War & Peace" and "Grantchester". But he is "yet to prove that he's true blockbuster material", said GQ, so the "transition from beloved TV actor to the face of the world's biggest action franchise" may be too big an ask.

Jack Lowden

Dismiss this young actor “at your peril”, said Esquire. Lowden has plenty of films under his belt: he's appeared in dramas "Denial", "'71" and "Small Axe", action film "Dunkirk" and period pieces "Mary Queen of Scots" and "War & Peace". The "Slow Horses" star has already proven he's an excellent spy, and he's in "the prime slot" for "grooming into the next 007". Though many big names are swirling around in casting conversations, the Scottish actor might just end up being the "dark horse successor".

Harris Dickinson

The "Beach Rats" star has been cast as John Lennon in a four-part Beatles film biopic due out in April 2028, directed by "Skyfall" and "Spectre" director Sam Mendes. He had a "leading role in 'The King's Man', a spy thriller that owes an obvious debt to classic James Bond movies", said Screen Rant. And his role in "Babygirl" opposite Nicole Kidman did "showcase his potential as both a romantic lead and a darker version of 007".

Callum Turner

Best known for his roles in the mini-series "Masters of the Air" and "Fantastic Beasts", the 35-year-old British actor is a relative unknown, compared to some of the other favourites. He is "currently a tabloid obsession thanks to his relationship with Dua Lipa", said Time Out, and he has the "charisma and chameleonic skillset to take on the mantle of Britain's most famous fictional spy". Following the latest rumours, the odds have shifted in his favour and Turner is now the bookies’ favourite to be the new Bond.

When will the next Bond be announced?

Since Craig bowed out in the explosive finale of "No Time to Die" the rumour mill has been working non-stop with tip-offs about who could replace him and when the next film will be released.

The film's bosses have been given "a whopping £250 million budget to get the next 007 movie on screen within the next three years", said The Sun. The sale to Amazon "has prompted a fast track of creative meetings to build a new script, officially sign the new 007 and land a director", with "honchos" hoping it will "be in cinemas before the end of 2027".

Three years on from Daniel Craig's final outing as James Bond, we still don't have "an heir apparent sized up for the tuxedo", said Den of Geek's David Crow.

Eon Productions is reportedly holding meetings with potential directors for the next film, but there is still no actor to play the character who was "shockingly killed off" in the last instalment in 2021. At the time, "think pieces pondered whether he really needed to come back", but now "headlines have transitioned dangerously close to 'why haven't they cast the next Bond yet?!'"

When will the next James Bond come out?

"Late 2026, at the ­earliest. Maybe 2027. Perhaps even 2028," said The Telegraph, citing the British film industry's "current best guesses". The franchise has "taken a similar hiatus before", such as the gap between 1989's "Licence to Kill" and 1995's "GoldenEye", starring Pierce Brosnan.

Apart from this guesstimate, we know little else. There's "no script, no title, not even a director", no source material has been selected, there's no singer for the title theme and 007 is yet to be recruited. "If Blofeld strikes in the next 24 months, we're basically doomed."

Why the delay?

Some are speculating that the problem is "creative", the difficulty of rebooting a series "after allowing its main character to die", but industry insiders say it's more likely to be financial, said The Times. Amazon's acquisition of MGM Studios for $8.5 billion means that it now owns half of the rights to Bond.

Co-producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson are "no longer handcuffed to an ailing studio that could only afford to lurch from one film to the next". With Amazon on side, "they are able to plan the next three or four films at the same time". This means lots of work is going on behind the scenes, Ajay Chowdhury, media lawyer and co-author of the Bond history book "Some Kind of Hero", told the paper. "The Bond franchise is like a plot of land and Amazon are building the utilities," he said. "Casting is like hanging the curtains."

The delay could even be the "greatest of blessings", said Crow at Den of Geek. The franchise increasingly "resembles a bespoke, prestige label which is deliberately keeping its supply limited".

Who will be the next James Bond?

Who knows, said Esquire. "You might as well get the Ouija board out to ask the spirit of Cubby Broccoli what he reckons."

What we do know is that Bond is now a more "mutable figure" than he used to be, and from interviews with insiders the next 007 is likely to be British, male and not too "fresh-faced".

Casting director Debbie McWilliams told the Radio Times last year that in the last Bond recast, they had auditioned a lot of younger actors but they lacked the "gravitas", "experience" and "mental capacity" to take on the role.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson is the bookmakers' favourite. He "has it all", said GQ. Plus, of course, he is "no stranger to stunts" as an "action star in the making" through roles in the Kick-Ass movies, "Avengers: Age of Ultron", "Godzilla" and "Bullet Train". What's more, he has a fantastic "emotional range".

Another recent option is Leo Woodall, the reason you sobbed ugly tears all the way through Netflix's "One Day". He is "very, very young", said Esquire. But given how slow moving the Bond juggernaut is, he could "easily be in his late thirties before a decision is actually made". Oscar-nominated Barry Keoghan's turn in "Saltburn" has also made him a "must-watch".

Conclusion, no one knows anything, but knowing nothing is exactly what keeps us talking about it. Which surely makes for one of the cleverest marketing campaigns in movie history.

Since Daniel Craig's final outing as James Bond in "No Time to Die", many actors have been touted as the next 007. The latest – and reportedly most likely – is 33-year-old Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

The British actor is "taking his martinis shaken, not stirred, after being formally offered the job", said The Sun. "Bond is Aaron's job, should he wish to accept it. The formal offer is on the table and they are waiting to hear back," an insider told the paper.

This appeared to corroborate reports that Taylor-Johnson "floored Barbara Broccoli with an incredible screen test in Slough two years ago", said Annabel Nugent in The Independent.

'Burly machismo and suave Britishness'

Born in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, Taylor-Johnson made his first professional stage appearance in "Macbeth" aged six. As a teenager he appeared in several films, including comedy drama "Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging". His breakthrough role came in 2009 when he played John Lennon in "Nowhere Boy".

"If toughness is the benchmark of a great Bond," said Nugent, "well, Johnson could take that bench and fling it into the ocean without breaking a sweat."

He demonstrated his action-hero credentials as the lead in "Kick-Ass", and as Quicksilver in "Avengers: Age of Ultron". He has also just finished the Marvel superhero film "Kraven the Hunter", in which he plays the title role of the Spider-Man foe.

James Bond is also famously dapper, and in that regard "Taylor-Johnson, an avatar of burly machismo and suave Britishness, would make an excellent 007", said Nugent. Having risen to fame "playing soft-spoken, shaggy-haired boys", it might be hard to imagine him "sipping a dry martini without spitting it up and ordering a Jägerbomb instead", she added. "But people change; they grow up."

And can he carry off a tux? "Quite frankly – yes," said Bethany Minelle on Sky News, as he "was named one of GQ's 50 best-dressed British men in 2015".

'A great compliment'

Asked last week whether he was going to "step into Bond's shoes", said The Sun, the actor replied: "I find it charming and wonderful that people see me in that role. I take it as a great compliment."

When Christina Newland at Rolling Stone asked again, she said she was "greeted with a predictable poker face" and told that he "can only really talk about the things I'm going to show and tell".

"Working out who will play the world's favourite spy is now possibly more thrilling than whatever beautifully shot yet ever so slightly disappointing adventure he ends up filming," said Dominic Maxwell in The Times.

Cillian Murphy was the frontrunner until recently. But "however sculpted his cheekbones, however fine an actor he is", he turns 48 in May, said the paper. And "like Idris Elba before him, now 51, he's surely too senior for the potential Bond club now".

The "scorching-hot choice" when "Bridgerton" launched was 35-year-old Regé-Jean Page, but his "star has waned slightly".

Debbie McWilliams, the "legendary casting director" who brought Daniel Craig, Pierce Brosnan and Timothy Dalton to the role, told The Telegraph she thought Taylor-Johnson was an unlikely successor. "In the 40-odd years I have worked on Bond, I have never read any predictions that have been true," she said. "Not one."

A zoo in the US is offering the romantics of the world the chance to have a Madagascar hissing cockroach named after their Valentine. "You don't always have the right words, but you can still give them goosebumps, said the Bronx Zoo. "Name a Roach for your Valentine, because roaches are forever." Meanwhile, noted UPI, The San Antonio Zoo is offering a candle "bearing the scent of hippo poop" as a "potential Valentine's Gift for that special someone".

Porn boss offers 'self pleasure' breaks

An adult film company boss has made masturbation breaks a "permanent policy" for her 40 plus staff. The boss of Erika Lust Films said she is giving workers "an extra 30-minutes off every day to use for their self-pleasure routine", with a private room in the office known as "the masturbation station" to provide them with a "safe, comfortable space" for their personal break. "Not sure why people would need 30 minutes, but there you go," said Lad Bible.

Ye goes for Jaws look

Kanye West has fitted $850,000 titanium teeth implants in a new look he compared to Jaws, the James Bond villain. The hip hop star, also known as Ye, posted a photo to his Instagram account with his mouth wide open to show off his new metallic dentures. The Washington Post said the "technical term" for the fittings are "fixed prosthodontics". It added that this is "another massive stunt from the controversial producer and recording artist who is nearing the release of another album".

Dame Judi Dench has admitted that she accidentally video called her James Bond co-star Ben Whishaw from the bathtub. The actress said she meant to send a message to her friend Chris Logan for his birthday. "I pressed something and said 'Chris, happy happy' and I just saw these two people," she said. "Well, it was FaceTiming them." She insisted that her phone is "anathema" and she "doesn't know what buttons are for", noted The Telegraph.

American billionaire claims he faces prejudice for being white and rich

Jim Irsay, owner of the American football team the Indianapolis Colts, has claimed his 2014 arrest for driving under the influence was a result of prejudice against him for being white and rich. "I am prejudiced against because I’m a rich, white billionaire," Irsay told Andrea Kremer on Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. “If I’m just the average guy down the block, they’re not pulling me in, of course not.” Asked by Kremer how he thinks it sounds for a white billionaire to claim that he’s a victim of prejudice, Irsay replied: "I don’t care what it sounds like. It’s the truth." 

Man wins word count record

A man from Jordan has earned a Guinness World Record for the fastest time to mentally count letters in 10 sentences. Mohammad Sayaheen, 51, counted the number of letters in 10 sentences in 35.5 seconds, reported UPI. "I don't need any warm-up; I can instantly do these calculations first thing in the morning," he told Guinness World Record officials.

The UK record for the largest gathering of golden retrievers has been broken, reported The Telegraph. According to organisers, there were 466 of the dogs at the Guisachan House in Glen Affric, where the world’s first golden retriever puppies were born in 1868. This comfortably broke the previous British record of 361, set at the same location five years ago. “We want to hold on to the confidence, the biddability, the companionship and loyalty – all the things the golden retriever was built on,” said Carol Henry, secretary of the Golden Retriever Club of Scotland.

‘James Bond car’ up for sale

A “James Bond” Aston Martin DB5 is going on sale, but the lucky buyer will have to assemble the sportscar themselves. The distinctive grey outer shell of the 1964 model is being offered at auction, meaning motorists hoping to emulate 007 will have to assemble the parts to complete the sportscar which was taken apart 50 years ago. The car, in British racing green, would be a “suitable starting point for a collector or enthusiast to restore it to its former glory”, said The Sun.

Bull leads cops a merry dance

A bull that led US police on a chase through city streets has been given a new home at a sanctuary, reported UPI. Police said the bull, bearing an ear tag with the name Punch, was found wandering in Cleveland. An officer with experience of farmed animals tracked Punch to a wooded area, but the bovine again fled until he was finally cornered by officers in the back yard of a home. No owner came forward to claim the bull, so he will now have a new home at the Happy Trails Animal Sanctuary in Ravenna.

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Film star Eva Green has blamed her “Frenchness” for expletive-laden messages in which she blasted “weak and stupid” film bosses and described a producer as an “inexperienced, pretentious moron”.

The Paris-born actor, who played Vesper Lynd in James Bond film Casino Royale, is “locked in a bitter lawsuit” with UK-based production company White Lantern Film over her $1m (£810,000) fee for a film that was “abandoned” in 2019, said The Telegraph. Giving evidence at London’s High Court yesterday, Green claimed she was entitled to the money under a “pay or play” agreement that guaranteed payment regardless of whether the project was completed.

White Lantern is bringing a counterclaim, accusing Green of making “excessive creative and financial demands” and undermining the production. Responding to those allegations, her barrister accused the company of trying to paint Green as a “diva” to damage her reputation.

‘Nothing against peasants’

Green was due to star in a sci-fi thriller titled A Patriot, but “fell out with fellow producers over the budget, location and preparations”, said the BBC.

Representing White Lantern, Max Mallin KC claimed Green had an “animosity” towards the vision of the film held by one of the film’s executive producers, Jake Seal. The court heard that in a series of Whatsapp messages with her agent and the film’s director, Green claimed Seal was planning to make a “cheap B movie” and described him as “the devil” and “evil” .

She also referred to the crew members working on the film as “shitty peasants... from Hampshire”. Green told the court that she had concerns over “working with people who are not experienced”, adding that she had “nothing against peasants”.

“I didn't want to work with a sub-standard crew. I wanted to work with a high-quality crew who just wanted to be paid standard industry rates,” she said.

Referring to another message in which she described two of the film-makers as “weak and stupid”, she said: “It's my Frenchness coming out sometimes.”

“Sometimes you say things you don’t actually mean,” she added. “Of course they are not weak and stupid.”

Feared ‘B movie’ would ‘kill her career’

Green said she withdrew from the “chaotic” film after budget cuts forced filming to move to Ireland and led to “extremely dangerous” corner-cutting, such as a reduction in her stunt training. She also claimed the crew was paid “significantly” below standard industry rates.

The original budget for the project, which was written and set to be directed by Bournemouth-based film-maker Dan Pringle, was “initially projected at around $10m”, reported Variety. But as producers “desperately tried to secure financing amid a rapidly changing independent film landscape”, the budget was “slowly decreased without Green’s knowledge”.

The star told the court that she had feared appearing in a “B movie” would “kill my career”. And when she realised the full extent of the financial troubles facing the project, she “kind of panicked”.

“I live to make good films, it’s my religion,” said Green. She had given her “heart and soul” to the project that was originally presented to her, Green insisted, and being forced to jump ship had been like “abandoning my baby”.

According to The Independent, she had been due to star alongside Game of Thrones actor Charles Dance and Hollywood icon Helen Hunt, “with Oscar winner Kathy Bates attached to the movie at one point” too.

Green was due to finish giving evidence today as the eight-day trial continues.

Ford has announced the end of Britain’s most popular car – the Fiesta.

The US carmaker has confirmed it will end production of the UK’s all-time bestselling car next June. Its factory in Cologne, Germany, will switch to producing two new electric models in the “latest symbol of the shift from internal combustion engines to batteries”, said The Guardian.

The Fiesta was developed in response to the 1973 oil crisis, which saw “the price of fuel rocket and motorists needing a more economically efficient car”, said Sky News. Since it was launched in 1976, more than 22 million Fiestas have been sold around the world. Of those, 4.8 million were in the UK, where the Fiesta was the best-selling model for 12 successive years from 2009 to 2020.

A 2013 poll found the Fiesta was the most popular car to have sex in, said The Sun. A Fiesta appeared in 1976 Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me with Roger Moore – one of more than 4,000 appearances by the model in films, according to the Internet Movie Cars Database.

The “legendary car touched many lives and it will be missed”, said The Telegraph. “It’s the car in which countless teenagers learned to drive” and has been the “faithful friend of elderly drivers who have relied on it to get around on little more than a state pension” and “pretty well everyone in between”.

Announcing the end of the road for the model on Twitter, Ford said: “It’s time to say goodbye to the little car that has touched us all.”

The first Fiesta model was launched in 1976.

In its peak year, 1987, over 150,000 Fiesta models were sold in the UK.

Produced from 1989-97, generation three of the Fiesta looked very different to previous models.

The fourth generation of Fiesta was Britain’s best-selling car from 1996 to 1998.

Fiesta Mark V was ergonomically and mechanically more advanced than any previous generation.

The sixth generation Fiesta ran from 2008-2019.

Launched in 2017, the seventh generation was larger, roomier, safer and more efficient.

Pay attention, 007

The fifth and final 007 film starring Daniel Craig, No Time to Die, “scored an estimated $119.1m” in international sales last weekend, notching up the best ever “opening weekend results for a James Bond flick in 24 countries”, said Sarah Whitten on CNBC.

Welcome news for the movie’s co-distributors, Amazon-owned MGM and Universal, following the film’s repeatedly postponed opening during the pandemic. Ultimately, that has worked in its favour, said Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian. “Pent-up demand built over a six-year wait since Spectre, plus the significance of the end of the Craig era… made this required viewing for even the most casual 007 fan.” Indeed, William Hill has cut the odds from 10-1 to 7-1 that No Time to Die will become the highest grossing UK film of all time.

Licence to sell

The franchise’s success and longevity owes much to the right props, said Lex in the FT. “Take away the Aston Martin, the Omega watches and the Dom Pérignon”, and Bond “is little more than a hitman with a penchant for one-liners”. In 2002, Ford, then owner of Aston Martin, reportedly paid $35m to reunite Bond with the marque in Die Another Day after BMW had “usurped” the role. That deal is proving fruitful: No Time to Die features no fewer than four different Aston Martin models. This latest release also saw a Nokia mobile phone replace Bond’s old Sony one. Nokia’s Finnish owner, HMD, is likely to have paid handsomely. But the “return on investment” can be impressive. Soon after Craig sported swimwear maker Orlebar Brown’s trunks in 2012’s Skyfall, the company “was acquired by Chanel”.

A Time to Buy?

Bond memorabilia collectors can also expect a payday, said Rachel Russell on Sky News. At an upcoming Prop Store auction, a suit worn by the late Sean Connery in You Only Live Twice is expected to go for more than £40,000. Great news for a “superfan” like David Zaritsky whose collection, honed over 25 years, ranges from an Armani leather jacket worn in Casino Royale to “beer bottles from Skyfall”, said the Daily Mail. Zaritsky launched a YouTube channel on the back of it – and now, he says, “we’re up to 9.3m viewers”.

1. James Bond’s mission stays the same: letting Britain think it’s still a superpower

Dan Sabbagh in The Guardian

on 007’s bigger mission

James Bond has faced many challenges but his “true purpose”, suggests Dan Sabbagh in The Guardian, is to be “a not very secret weapon in the struggle to assert Britain’s place as a cultural superpower”. Amid the fuel crisis, the Afghanistan retreat and the “bizarre, Franglais-laden tit-for-tat with Emmanuel Macron”, the new instalment of 007 out this week offers “an alternative universe in which a powerful British secret service ranges across the world, albeit to foil dastardly, non-state enemies”, writes Sabbagh. Over the years, the franchise has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of revamped film tax rules in 2007 and was product-placed in the 2012 Olympic Games opening ceremony. And, this time around, No Time to Die features a British military warship and Army soldiers. “Whatever the reality of Britain’s standing in the world, the projection of power that comes via a Bond movie is something the UK cannot otherwise buy.” But, in a real-life version of the UK, says Sabbagh, “007 might be queuing for petrol in his gleaming Aston Martin”.

Read more

2. Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner both have a big problem: each other

Stephen Bush in the New Statesman

on finding trust

Despite their shared interest in leadership rule reforms, “Labour’s two most powerful politicians have a dynamic defined by mutual suspicion”, writes Stephen Bush in The New Statesman. Angela Rayner helped secure union backing for Keir Starmer’s change in rules to give MPs more sway over leadership elections, but “the view from the Labour leader’s close allies is that his deputy has her own agenda”. Some Starmer supporters feel Rayner’s “growing profile constitutes a barely concealed pitch for the party leadership”. Yet, in the service of her leader, Rayner has also “risked alienating a section of Labour MPs who would be her natural supporters when the next leadership contest comes”. The difficulty for both, says Bush, “is that between them they hold all the qualities of an unbeatable election-winning politician, and yet they remain stuck in a forced political alliance”. He concludes: “The reality is that neither’s ambitions are ultimately served by the other’s failure. If they want the next Labour conference to be more of a success than this year’s, they will have to learn to trust and even like each other again.”

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3. The energy crisis offers a taste of future war

Con Coughlin in The Telegraph

on a lack of grit

“If a shortage of truck drivers can cause nationwide disruption and inconvenience, just imagine the panic that might ensue if Britain’s national infrastructure were to suffer a genuine catastrophic collapse,” says Con Coughlin, The Telegraph’s defence editor. The past week has seen “conduct associated more with failing states than the forecourts of British petrol stations”. Dramatic advances in technology mean that future state-on-state conflicts are more likely to involve attacks on an enemy’s critical infrastructure – such as knocking out electricity and water supply or crippling financial services – than on a traditional battlefield, argues Coughlin. Therefore, “if a media report that simply raises the possibility of fuel supply shortages can provoke the scenes of panic-buying that have been witnessed throughout Britain this past week, it almost defies imagination how the public might react to real shortages caused by an enemy attack on our national infrastructure”.

Read more

4. This is what the death of democracy looks like

Anthony Pahnke for Al Jazeera

on a quiet peril

“A coup d’etat with tanks rolling in the streets? Or a civil war that rages as soldiers and guerillas fight for political power?” writes Anthony Pahnke for Al Jazeera. “Such scenes probably come to mind when thinking of a country where democratic institutions and norms are in peril. But a better representation may be what is currently under way in the United States.” From Florida to Iowa, Republican-controlled state legislatures have passed bills into law that restrict voting, just as polls suggest a clear majority of GOP voters believe that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump. While little evidence of the latter exists, there have been “partisan gerrymandering efforts throughout the country, for years, that have effectively been cases of politicians picking their electorate rather than the other way around”. These dynamics are “afoot in what is supposed to be the bastion of democracy”, says Pahnke. “America is in a dark place.”

Read more

5. As a gay man, I refuse to feel grateful that a same-sex couple was allowed on Strictly Come Dancing

Patrick Strudwick on the i news website

on misguided gratitude

“Have you ever seen such an outpouring from a tango?” asks Patrick Strudwick on the i news website, following the “history-making” first dance between two men on Strictly Come Dancing last Saturday. Underneath the “paroxysm of bittersweet joy bathed in relief” was a hum of gratitude – and “such gratitude reveals something appalling”, says Strudwick. “It exposes not how wonderfully liberal Britain now is, but how hard LGBT people have to fight for the basic rations of human dignity. The right to dance with each other on television? Wow. What next: the right to queue at the Asda checkout?” It’s not just the entertainment industry that elicits this reaction: gay people getting the “right” to join the Army, donate blood and get married provoked a similar response. But Strudwick says he will only feel gratitude “if, by some metaphysical miracle, I can relive my life without the threats and blackout denial of our existence”. Then, he says, “I’ll be so grateful I’ll be tangoing in the streets”.

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1. Labour conference: Join the party, we all hate each other here

Quentin Letts in The Times

on infighting

“Veterans of the east London boxing scene remember halls where fighting in the audience was bloodier than anything in the ring,” writes Quentin Letts in The Times. “It nearly turned like that here in Brighton when they were debating Sir Keir Starmer’s rule changes reducing the clout of activists,” he continued. “Opponents of the measure were greeted with furious, palm-bruising applause,” writes Letts. “This, in turn, upset Starmerites. ‘Wiv respect,’ said a 60-something geezer near me, turning to the Corbynista woman behind him, ‘shut the f*** up!’.” Letts summed up the atmosphere: “Welcome to the Labour conference where comradeship is scarcer than BP unleaded.” He concluded by noting: “And the conference’s slogan? ‘Stronger Future Together.’”

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2. The petrol queues seem like a throwback. But at least in the 70s our leaders weren’t so callow

John Harris in The Guardian

on a crisis of leadership

“Among the words that will send the collective British psyche into panic, three are among the most potent: Christmas, petrol and winter,” writes John Harris in The Guardian. “Put them together, and you have the perfect ingredients for a crisis, made all the more surreal by the fact that one of its key causes – Brexit – is a word no one in politics wants to mention,” he says. Headlines over the past week have “repeatedly drawn comparisons with the fabled winter of discontent of 1978-79”, he notes. “For a few people, that might also evoke hopes of some Margaret Thatcher-esque saviour sooner or later coming to clean up the mess,” he continues. But it also begs the question: “why do our current front-rank politicians hardly inspire confidence?” As he says: “For now, there is only the unsettling combination of a mounting social and economic crisis, and political responses so unconvincing they suggest the Nirvana lines to which I and my fellow Gen X-ers once bellowed along, almost as an apology: ‘Oh well, whatever, never mind.’”

Read more

3. Why James Bond being called ‘basically a rapist’ is more important than you think

Katie Edwards in The Independent

on a troubling legacy

“Is nothing beyond the reach of the self-righteous tentacles of the woke brigade? Now Bond? Surely, not the saviour of our cinemas James Bond?!” jokes Katie Edwards in The Independent. A slew of headlines were triggered this week when Cary Fukunaga, the director of No Time To Die, the latest instalment in the James Bond franchise, “said what we already knew: James Bond is ‘basically’ a rapist,” writes Edwards. “Predictably and tediously, Fukunaga is now accused of creating a Bond for the woke era. What can we expect from a snowflake Bond? He whips off his disguise to reveal a Black Lives Matter T-shirt?” she writes. “Nope. Just a 12A certificate from the British Board of Film Classification.” “We should pay close attention to the many incarnations of Bond,” argues Edwards. “The character is a mirror that reflects back our cultural mores – even when that includes sexual violence against woman as entertainment with a jaunty quip and a devilish smirk.”

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4. Germany is stuck. And there isn’t anyone who can move it

Oliver Nachtwey in The New York Times

on political paralysis

“It could have been a fresh start,” writes Oliver Nachtwey in The New York Times on Germany’s federal elections. “In the face of a number of pressing challenges, rising inequality, run-down infrastructure and spiraling climate change among them, the election was a chance for the country to chart a better, more equal course for the 21st century,” he continues. “Instead, Germany is stuck. Ms. Merkel may be leaving. Yet the Germany she cultivated – careful, cautious, averse to major change – will carry on as before.” With the election campaign playing out against a backdrop of “multiple crises” the current moment “demands boldness”, argues Nachtwey. “But that’s not going to happen. Instead the new era, locked into consensual politics and tepid policy, is likely to be more of the same.”

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5. Havana Syndrome is (obviously) a hoax

Arthur Bloom on UnHerd

on a mysterious illness

“American deference to the intelligence community has reached the point of absurdity,” writes Arthur Bloom for UnHerd. “According to the powers-that-be, we are supposed to believe that someone is sending little green men to Guangzhou, Hanoi, Havana, Vienna, India, and the National Mall, pointing sound guns at them and giving them concussions.” He goes on: “Havana Syndrome has all the signs of a scientific hoax: advanced technology never before seen by mankind combined with vague and contrasting accounts from survivors. UFO abductees provide more detail than Havana Syndrome sufferers,” Bloom argues. “The best explanation for Havana Syndrome is mass psychogenic illness, possibly due to stress,” he contends. But the ensuing panic “even has unnamed diplomatic sources begging to be taken seriously. From pee tapes to Russian bounties to spook Morgellons, we’re living in the dumbest spy novel ever.”

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There’s nothing like a Daniel Craig interview to put one’s own problems in perspective, said Camilla Long in The Sunday Times. “Never has anyone been more horribly embarrassed or clinically depressed by his life choices than the star of five hugely successful James Bonds.”

Last week the actor was brooding about what he would do with the estimated £116m “he has amassed flying around the globe pretending to shag lovely ladies while reciting laughable dialogue”. Describing the idea of large inheritances as “distasteful”, Craig said he was not planning to leave “great sums” to either of his daughters. “My philosophy is: get rid of it or give it away before you go,” he said.

There will be “a lot of giving away to do”, said Rebecca Nicholson in The Guardian. Variety revealed last week that Craig is now the highest-earning actor in the world: Netflix has reportedly agreed to pay him $100m to appear in two sequels to the comic thriller Knives Out.

Good on him, said Karren Brady in The Sun. The son of a Merchant Navy midshipman from the Wirral, Craig earned his fortune through his own hard work. He’s rightly keen that his children’s development isn’t stunted by the expectation of inheriting untold riches.

Craig is one of many celebrities who have made “public displays of virtuous disinheritance”, said Helen Rumbelow in The Times. Bill Gates says he’ll give his children a mere $10m each. Nigella Lawson declared back in 2008 that she wants her children to have no financial security, saying “it ruins people not having to earn money”. It’s a reckoning that many parents are having to make these days, albeit to a lesser degree, as the unprecedented wealth of the boomer generation passes down.

In the UK alone, an estimated £327bn is set to be inherited by younger people over the next decade. The billionaire investor Warren Buffet famously said that the trick was to give children “enough money so that they feel they can do anything, but not so much that they could do nothing”. But the question of how much is too much is very subjective. As Buffet’s example shows – he plans to leave his children $2bn each–the “genetic imperative to protect your offspring is hard to override”.

Could the end credits be set to roll for the UK’s beleaguered cinema industry?

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in delays to a number of major blockbuster films, leaving cinema companies facing a dark future.

Movie theatres were forced to close their doors during worldwide lockdowns, and after reopening many film-goers continue to stay away.

Industry bosses had hoped that one of the year’s biggest scheduled releases, James Bond: No Time to Die, would attract movie fans back into cinemas after hitting big screens in November. However, the next instalment of the 007 series - starring Daniel Craig in his final outing as the British super-spy - will now not be shown in cinemas until April next year.

No Time to Die’s makers - MGM, Universal and Bond producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli - issued a statement earlier this month announcing that the release “will be delayed until 2 April 2021 in order to be seen by a worldwide theatrical audience”.

“We understand the delay will be disappointing to our fans,” they added - but viewers aren’t the only ones set to suffer.

Lights out for Cineworld

The delay to the release of the new Bond film has major implications for UK cinema operators.

On 4 October, Cineworld confirmed that it was suspending its operations in the UK and the US after “an absence of blockbuster movies to lure in customers” left the cinema chain struggling for survival, as the BBC reported at the time.

The closures put up to 45,000 jobs at risk, including 5,500 in the UK. The company did not give a date for reopening its 663 cinemas, which include 127 Cineworld and Picturehouse theatres across Britain.

Odeon and Vue also affected

A day after Cineworld’s announcement, Odeon announced that the opening hours for some of its cinemas in the UK and Ireland would be reduced to weekends only. The decision to open between Friday and Sunday will affect a quarter of Odeon cinemas.

And this week, Vue has said that it is also switching to a weekend-only model for around a quarter of its 87 sites.

A Vue spokesperson said: “We remain committed to ensuring that Vue has a long-term future, to protecting the livelihoods of our staff and keeping our doors open to ensure our cinemas continue to serve the communities they operate in.

“However, from next week, we will be temporarily reducing our opening days to Friday-Monday [inclusive] at 21 out of our 87 UK sites to ensure that our business is financially well-placed to withstand the uncertainty ahead.”

Admissions hit record low

The Vue spokesperson said the company’s “belief in the future of this industry is unshaken”.

However, UK cinema admissions are set to hit their “lowest level since records began almost a century ago”, The Guardian reports.

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic has wiped almost £1bn from box office sales, and attendance in 2020 will be about 75% down on the 176m admissions in 2019.

The UK box office is estimated to fall by a “staggering 73% this year to £334m”, the lowest total since 1992, the newspaper adds. In 2019, the UK box office raked in £1.25bn as global ticket sales set a record of $42bn (£32.1bn).

‘Catch-22 situation’

With no major films released since Christopher Nolan’s Tenet in August, the No Time To Die delay is “the straw that broke the camel’s back” for Cineworld, according to Robert Mitchell, director of theatrical insights at Gower Street Analytics.

Speaking to the BBC’s Today programme, Mitchell said: “A lot of films have been moving for some time now and ultimately, the cinemas need a pipeline of regular content to draw cinema goers in. Bond was really the one that UK exhibitors were really relying on more than any.”

“James Bond’s latest act could be the death knell for many British cinemas,” agrees The Guardian, which says that many venues are facing “financial obliteration because of the absence of other forthcoming blockbuster films”.

The industry is caught in a “Catch-22 situation”, the newspaper adds. Studios are “reluctant to release blockbuster films until they are sure that audiences will return”, but cinema owners are “unable to prove they can lure back audiences given the absence of blockbusters”.

Philippa Childs, head of arts union Bectu, said: “The stark reality is that without new releases it is unlikely that footfall will increase to a level that makes opening financially viable.”

Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.

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In this week’s episode, we discuss:

Pregnancy pains

New research shows that nine in ten pregnant women’s birth choices have been derailed by the Covid crisis, with many said to be enduring “shocking” conditions during labour. Meanwhile, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is mulling plans for the mandatory recording of all alcohol consumed by expectant mothers on their child’s medical records. So are mums getting a rough deal from the nanny state?

Electric bubble

In the second quarter of 2020, “green” cars outsold diesel cars in the UK for the first time ever. Meanwhile, the share prices of electric car companies are rocketing in the US. This looks like a bubble – and that could be excellent news for the future of clean motoring.

Killer spies

Despite his reputation for violence, James Bond knocked off just 38 enemies in a dozen Ian Fleming novels. But legislation tabled in the House of Commons this week could hand Britain’s real life secret agents the “licence to kill”. So should our supersleuths have the power of life or death - or are the powers ripe for abuse?

You can subscribe to The Week Unwrapped on the Global Player, Spotify, Apple podcasts, SoundCloud or wherever you get you get your podcasts

Billie Eilish’s new James Bond theme has been released to great critical acclaim today.

The 18-year-old American singer-songwriter is the youngest artist ever to record a 007 title track. No Time To Die, which hits cinemas in April, is the 25th film in the franchise.

In Daniel Craig’s fifth and final appearance as Bond, the veteran MI6 spy is recruited to rescue a kidnapped scientist, only to find himself hot on the trail of a mysterious villain.

The release of Eilish’s track coincides with a new teaser trailer for the movie featuring the theme song.

Eilish wrote and produced the song with her elder brother Finneas O’Connell, with whom she made her Grammy-winning debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?

“Subconsciously and consciously, we’ve been trying to write a Bond theme for our whole lives,” she told E! News.

What has the reaction been?

The BBC says the track is a “dramatic, unsettling ballad that hints the plot will centre around the secret agent’s betrayal”.

“Shrewdly, the duo retain their dark, off-kilter style throughout the song, while incorporating several of the film series’ musical touchstones – swelling strings, discordant brass, and, best of all, it finishes with the distinctive minor 9th chord that closes out Monty Norman’s original Bond theme,” the broadcaster writes.

The Independent said Eilish’s Bond theme is “one of the best we’ve had in some time”. “The flourish of violins, electronic guitar and faint brass all pay tribute to classic Bond theme tropes, but Eilish's subtle synth motif makes this song her own,” it says.

The Guardian describes the track “a Bond theme befitting the Craig era… The pop sensation sidelines her trademarks for a tasteful track that matches the haunted solitude of its leading man”.

The BBC’s entertainment correspondent Colin Paterson said he thought the track was the “first serious Oscar contender for next year”.

Across the Atlantic, The Week US also asks whether Eilish’s track could score her an Academy Award: “At the very least, does every other artist debuting an original song in a 2020 movie have some competition on their hands? To quote Eilish, duh,” says Brendan Morrow.

The Telegraph’s headline above its review by Neil McCormick says: “downbeat noir is spine-tingling”.

“A brooding ballad about betrayal, Eilish sings throughout in her trademark soft murmur, as if she was recording in her bedroom at night afraid to wake her parents up. Which, to be fair, she probably was,” writes McCormick as he ranks all Bond themes over the years.

Billie Eilish has written and recorded the title track for the new James Bond film, No Time To Die.

The singer, who turned 18 last month, is the youngest artist ever to record a theme for the spy franchise.

Eilish composed the song with her brother Finneas O’Connell, who also worked on her Grammy-nominated debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? last year.

“It feels crazy to be a part of this in every way,” said the pop star, who added that the job was a “huge honour”.

“James Bond is the coolest film franchise ever to exist. I’m still in shock,” she said.

The last two Bond themes, Sam Smith’s Writing On The Wall and Adele’s Skyfall, both won an Oscar for Best Original Song in 2015 and 2012 respectively.

Whether Eilish’s take on the theme will live up to that level of recognition is yet to be seen, but her involvement is “another potential plus” for a new Bond instalment that “has a lot going for it”, says The Guardian’s Stuart Heritage. “Billie Eilish is refreshing. She’s young. She’s authentic. She has a signature sound.”

Neil McCormick at The Telegraph agrees, saying Eilish is a “sensational” Bond theme choice. She is the “smartest young pop star out there right now, with on-the-button instincts and a counterculture allure that could put a rocket up the traditional Bond song format”, he says.

Here are some of the Bond songs Eilish will be hoping to live up to:

Writing’s On The Wall, Sam Smith (2015)

Smith’s melancholic effort was the theme to Spectre, and became the first Bond theme to reach number one in the UK singles chart. Like Adele’s effort before him, Smith picked up the Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Original Song, making it just the second Bond theme to win an Oscar.

Skyfall, Adele (2012)

Adele’s Skyfall was the first Bond theme song to win a Golden Globe and Academy Award. It topped the iTunes chart within hours of its release in October 2012, although only reached number two in the UK’s official singles chart.

Goldfinger, Shirley Bassey (1964)

Shirley Bassey holds the record for singing the most James Bond themes, including Diamonds Are Forever in 1971 and Moonraker in 1979. But it was Goldfinger that became one of the star’s signature songs and stood the test of time like few others, says Wales Online.

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Live and Let Die, Paul McCartney (1973)

Rolling Stone named Live and Let Die the greatest James Bond theme song in 2012. Guns N’ Roses gave it a second lease of life in 1991 with their own “even more over-the-top cover”, notes the magazine.

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A View To A Kill, Duran Duran (1985)

It was the only Bond song to reach the top of the Billboard charts and was named best of the Bond themes by Digital Spy in 2017. “Duran Duran’s tune brilliantly straddles the line between being a great ‘Bond theme’ and a cracking song in its own right,” says the website.[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"content_original","fid":"144971","attributes":{"class":"media-image"}}]]

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More than 160 letters between James Bond creator Ian Fleming and his wife, Ann, are to appear at auction.

The collection spans more than 20 years and details the rise of Bond and the decline of their previously passionate marriage.

They letters - which are set to sell for up to £300,000 say Sotheby’s - detail how the 007 novels became a point of frustration for Ann, who said she was “desperately tired of that ass Bond”.

Gabriel Heaton, a specialist in books and manuscripts at the auction house, said the Bond novels served as “both as an outlet for his libido and imagination, and also... an attempt to make money for a woman who was used to being unthinkingly rich”.

Ann cheated on at least two husbands

Ann and Ian Fleming had an intense love affair while she was married - to two different men. Her first husband was the 3rd Baron O’Neill, who died in military action and was followed by newspaper magnate Esmond Harmsworth, the 2nd Viscount Rothermere, says The Guardian.

During both marriages, the pair were lovers, with Ann becoming pregnant with a baby girl, who died eight hours after her birth.

“I have nothing to say to comfort you. After all this travail and pain it is bitter. I can only send you my arms and my love and all my prayers,” Fleming told her after the child’s death. The letter was written on Gleneagles stationery - Fleming was there playing golf with Ann’s cuckolded husband, Rothermere, says The Telegraph.

Ian and Ann dabbled in BDSM

The letters reveal that the couple enjoyed a touch of sado-masochism.

“I long for you even if you whip me because I love being hurt by you and kissed afterwards,” Ann once wrote to Fleming.

And Fleming was explicit about his desire for Ann in his letters to her. “I love whipping you & squeezing you & pulling your black hair, and then we are happy together & stick pins into each other & like each other & don’t behave too grownup,” Fleming wrote.

In later correspondence, Ann said: “I wish a fairy would arrive with a wand and make everything alright, give Esmond [her second husband] a perfect wife and put me in your bed with a raw cowhide whip in my hand so as I can keep you well behaved for forty years.”

Fleming had more affairs than Bond

Fleming had numerous affairs with women while he was Ann’s lover, and didn't stop when the couple were married in 1952.

Ann once complained to the author: “You mention ‘bad old bachelor days’ – the only person you stopped sleeping with when they ceased was me!”

The Week’s daily round-up highlights the five best opinion pieces from across the British and international media, with excerpts from each.

1. Jeff Sparrow in The Guardian

on climate refugees fleeing to Australia

Australia’s Orwellian anti-refugee system hints at what’s to come for climate refugees

“Unless there’s massive political change, the bipartisan commitment to excluding people fleeing the carnage created (at least in part) by western military adventures will provide the basis for excluding people fleeing the carnage created (at least in part) by western industrial pollution. As the novelist William Gibson once said, the future is already here – it’s just unevenly distributed. If we don’t do anything now, the response to climate change will exacerbate and extend existing inequities, with the burden heaped upon the poor and the weak.”

2. Halie Soifer for CNN

on Donald Trump accusing four congresswomen of anti-Semitism

American Jews don’t want to be Trump’s political pawns

“Many Jewish Americans reject the President’s transparent attempt to divert the country’s attention from his own moral failings, just as we reject his attempts to politicise Israel and the rise of anti-Semitism. The President should recognise that Jews see his 280-characters of hate for what they are - an utter lack of character on his part and a betrayal of the values that truly make America great. Jews have experienced the devastating consequences of hatred and intolerance throughout history and do not want to be used as political pawns in Trump’s Twitter feed.”

3. Maha Hilal for Al Jazeera

on Hamza Yusuf joining Washington’s “commission on unalienable rights”

It’s time for Muslim Americans to condemn Hamza Yusuf

“One can argue Yusuf is only practising what he has preached by joining the Commission on Unalienable Rights and attempting to work with the Trump administration. But can we really believe that his inclusion in a human rights panel, clearly designed to enable anti-black, anti-women, Islamophobic and xenophobic policy decisions of the Trump administration, can lead to positive change? Can we give Yusuf the benefit of the doubt given his history of perpetuating imperialist propaganda and defending rights repression?”

4. Celia Walden in The Daily Telegraph

on the James Bond franchise’s newest recruit

Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s black, female 007 shows the new Bond will display the worst kind of virtue-signalling

“And although Ian Fleming purists can breathe easy – it turns out she’s not the new Bond, but an operative who takes over the spy’s secret agent number after he leaves MI6 – we’re assured the script has been washed clean of mucky misogynistic dialogue, with the phrase ‘Bond girls’ banned, and poor ‘new man’ Bond now a stooped, obsequious-faced, handbagged figure who has swapped the tux for a ‘This Is What a Feminist Looks Like’ T-shirt – and the microchipped cufflinks for a set of LGBT rainbow bracelets.”

5. Jenny Eclair in The Independent

on the “magic” of eating in restaurants

Today’s young people no longer appreciate the rare joy of eating out

“Then two girls were shown to the table next to us, both in their twenties, groomed to the elegant eyebrows, wearing incredibly expensive gym wear and clutching designer bags. They weren’t rude or noisy, they just weren’t particularly thrilled to be there (it was as if they’d popped into Maccy D’s for a burger). Neither had much to say to each other, one of them being a great deal more interested in her phone than her flesh friend. In fact, I think she only put it down to complain about her salad dressing.”

Excitement is growing about the next 007 film after Rami Malek was named as the villain and Daniel Craig announced that it will be his last outing as the super-spy.

But according to the Daily Mail, the upcoming movie, currently known only as “James Bond 25”, is “yet to have a completed script or title despite the official cast and crew line-up finally being confirmed”.

Only a brief outline of the plot has been revealed, with a source telling the newspaper that “the rest of the script is still being worked over”. The insider also expressed concerns that 51-year-old Craig could quit due to his “old age” if production takes any longer.

Here is everything we know so far about the 25th installment in the Bond series:

Who is involved?

Despite saying three years ago that he’d rather “slash his wrists” than play the secret agent again, Craig is returning for what he says will be his final portrayal of Bond.

Director Cary Fukunaga (Beasts of No Nation, True Detective) - taking the 007 reins from British filmmaker Danny Boyle - has said that Craig is his “favourite Bond”, and that he wants to “make sure this run of films, which have been fantastic, have a really great next chapter and keep upping the ante”.

US actor Malek has been brought on board as the film’s main antagonist, although his character is still unnamed. During a recent interview on Good Morning America, Malek said: “It’s going to be thrilling, and it’s Daniel’s last film. It’s sad but I’m going to give him a run for his money.”

A number of familiar faces will also return in the upcoming film, including Ralph Fiennes as M, Lea Seydoux as Dr Madeleine Swann, Ben Whishaw as Q, and Rory Kinnear as Bill Tanner.

Also joining the cast are Dali Benssalah, Lashana Lynch, Ana De Armas, David Dencik and Billy Magnussen.

What is it about?

The film’s producer, Barbara Broccoli, has revealed that the movie will begin with 007 on holiday in Jamaica, Wired reports.

“[His] peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help,” Broccoli said. “The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology.”

Oscar-nominated actress Naomie Harris, starring as Eve Moneypenny, told the YouTube channel of entertainment news site HeyUGuys that “some time will have passed since the preceding entry in the franchise, Spectre”.

“Moneypenny has grown up somewhat... but she still has that soft spot for Bond, though, that’s never gonna go, but she’s an independent woman with her own life,” Harris added.

When is it out?

Harris said that the film is due to be released in April 2020, noting that it “will have been five years - it’s half a decade” since the last installment.

Former Bond girl Eva Green has voiced her disapproval of the idea of a female James Bond.

Daniel Craig, who is about to star as Bond for a fifth time, will step down from the role next year. A number of high-profile actors including Emilia Clarke, Priyanka Chopra and Gillian Anderson have all called for the discussion of a female replacement.

But Green, who played Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale, told Vanity Fair: “I’m for women, but I really think James Bond should remain a man. It doesn’t make sense for him to be a woman.

“Women can play different types of characters, be in action movies and be superheroes, but James Bond should always be a man and not be Jane Bond. There is history with the character that should continue. He should be played by a man.”

Green’s opinions “echo those of the Oscar-winning British actor Rachel Weisz”, says The Daily Telegraph. “Why not create your own story rather than jumping onto the shoulders and being compared to all those other male predecessors?” she said. “Women are really fascinating and interesting, and should get their own stories.”

But Idris Elba, rumoured to be in the running for the role himself, believes it could be a possibility.

Speaking to Variety last year, Elba said that Bond “could be a woman - could be a black woman, could be a white woman”.

He added: “Do something different with it. Why not?”

However, bookmakers don’t see the character swapping genders any time soon, backing Tom Hiddleston, Richard Madden and Tom Hardy as the most likely successors.

The Fleabag writer and star Phoebe Waller-Bridge has signed a major new TV deal with Amazon.

The agreement will see Waller-Bridge write and produce new shows exclusively for streaming service Amazon Prime.

And the deal will net the 34-year-old around £16m a year over three years, says showbiz industry mag Variety.

Waller-Bridge said: “I’m insanely excited to be continuing my relationship with Amazon. Working with the team on Fleabag was the creative partnership dreams are made of.

“It really feels like home. I can't wait to get going!”

Fleabag was named the overall outstanding comedy series at the Emmys on Sunday, and also collected honours for writing, directing, acting, casting and editing, further adding to Waller-Bridge’s star power.

But senior UK television industry figures have warned that British talent is increasingly being bought up by international rivals.

Chief executive of Channel 4, Alex Mahon, told the Royal Television Society conference last week that there was a “growing concentration of power in the hands of just a few tech behemoths”.

The warnings are unlikely to trouble Waller-Bridge, who also created Killing Eve and has been hired to write on the new James Bond film.

Here are five things you may not know about her:

Her no-go word

Although Fleabag deals with adult subjects, Waller-Bridge has revealed there is one word that her bosses at the BBC won’t allow her to use.

The controversial line comes in a scene in which Fleabag speaks to a priest, played by Andrew Scott, on whom she has a crush, Digital Spy reports.

“Originally, the priest said he didn’t want to talk about his brother because his brother’s a c**t,” Waller-Bridge told the entertainment news site. “And the BBC were like, ‘You can’t say c**t,’ all they said was they need an alternative.”

What ended up in the script was that the priest didn’t want to talk about his brother, because the brother is “a paedophile”.

“I was like, ‘you want an alternative? OK! I appreciate the irony here,’” Waller-Bridge added.

In the dark about Star Wars

Waller-Bridge played L3-37, Lando Calrissian’s acerbic droid partner, in Solo: A Star Wars Story - but admits that having never seen any Star Wars films, she was a little clueless when she got the casting call.

Indeed, her reaction was: “Droid... droid... what’s a droid?”

According to Gizmodo, “she auditioned in an incredibly human, non-mechanical way, only to have her suspicions confirmed when one of the directors made a robot motion when asking her to read the part a little differently”.

All the same, the mix-up may have been to her advantage. “Strangely, I think it worked in my favour, because they thought my humanness was a choice,” Waller-Bridge told Vogue.

A family business

Both her brother, Jasper, and her sister, Isobel, are also in the entertainment business. Jasper is a music manager, while Isobel is a composer who was sound designer for a stage show version of Fleabag before providing the music for the TV series.

The glitzy family connections don’t stop there. Waller-Bridge’s maternal grandfather was Sir John Edward Longueville Clerke, 12th Baronet; while on her fathers side she is a descendant of The Reverend Sir Egerton Leigh, 2nd Baronet, a Tory member of Parliament for Mid-Cheshire from 1873 until 1876.

Touted as the next Doctor Who

Waller-Bridge was “widely speculated to be taking over from Peter Capaldi as the iconic Time Lord in Doctor Who”, reports The Sun.

But in July 2017 it emerged that her Broadchurch co-star Jodie Whittaker had actually landed the coveted role.

Whittaker has since revealed that she felt awful about all the media attention that followed Waller-Bridge in the lead-up to the announcement.

“It was just amazing that Phoebe Waller-Bridge had all that and she dealt with it all so amazingly and gracefully,” Whittaker told Dermot O’Leary on BBC Radio 2.

“And at no point could I just text her and go, ‘I’m so sorry’ – because I was under the radar the entire time until the last few days.”

Ready for the Run

Waller-Bridge’s next production project is another genre mash-up, with HBO due to air her romantic comedy-cum-thriller Run for a full season.

The series, written by her frequent collaborator Vicky Jones, follows Ruby (Merritt Wever), a woman living a humdrum existence who one day gets a text inviting her to take a journey with her first love, Billy (Domhnall Gleeson).

As well as producing the new show, Waller-Bridge will play the recurring character of Flick, and told Vogue she was looking forward to spending more time with Jones.

“Whenever Jones and I see each other, that’s when we analyse our lives for each other’s entertainment. And if either one of us says something particularly interesting, the other one is like, ‘stop, write it down - that was really poetic, darling, write it down,’” she said.

The new Amazon deal will allow for her to continue executive producing Run, says the BBC.

TV presenter Piers Morgan is facing a furious backlash after questioning James Bond star Daniel Craig’s masculinity for wearing a baby carrier.

The Good Morning Britain host posted the mocking comments on Twitter along with an image showing Craig carrying his month-old daughter on his front “in what is often known as a papoose”, reports the BBC.

Captain America actor Chris Evans was quick to defend Craig, who is married to fellow actor Rachel Weisz.

Other fathers also lined up to stick it to the former Daily Mirror editor and share photos of themselves proudly wearing their baby carriers.

Some also pointed out that Craig appeared more ready for his next Bond outing than Morgan had suggested.

Others noted that the papoose issue is hardly the most pressing of concerns facing the world.

But Morgan, who has four children, refused to back down on his claims that papooses are “ridiculous instruments of emasculation”.

The outspoken journalist defended his opinion on the social media platform and even called on US President Donald Trump to share his thoughts on the baby carrier, writing: “Everyone else seems to be getting very worked up about them. I don’t really have you down as a papoose kinda guy, but then you’re full of surprises.”

Uncharacteristically, Trump did not respond.

British filmmaker Danny Boyle will no longer direct the next instalment in the James Bond franchise owing to “creative differences”, the series producers announced on Tuesday.

Boyle, who won the best director Oscar in 2009 for Slumdog Millionaire, agreed in March to direct the 25th Bond film. The Independent reports that he “had begun work on the script alongside Trainspotting writer John Hodge”.

However, a statement posted on the franchise’s official Twitter account said: “[Producers] Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli and Daniel Craig today announced that due to creative differences Danny Boyle has decided to no longer direct Bond 25”.

The BBC reports that the as yet untitled film, which is Craig’s fifth outing as Bond, had “previously been given a release date of 25 October 2019 in the UK”.

The Daily Telegraph says Boyle’s original appointment was seen as an exciting development for the series, and “there was also a suggestion that he would update Bond for the #Metoo era”.

“Boyle’s hiring feels like thrilling news…[he] is an instinctive, rule-breaking, seat-of-his pants filmmaker,” said Telegraph critic Mark Monahan at the time of Boyle’s appointment.

The nature of the creative differences has not been elaborated on by either party.

News agencies have now begun to speculate as to who might take over from Boyle, with the Daily Mirror reporting that Christopher Nolan, director of Dunkirk, Inception and Interstellar, is the odds-on bookmaker’s favourite at 2/1.

The newspaper reports that Nolan “admitted in February that he’d like to do a Bond film”, saying: “I’d love to make a Bond film at some point and I think those producers – Barbara and Michael – they do a tremendous job and Sam Mendes has done a terrific job the last couple of films, so they don’t particularly need me.

“But I’ve always been inspired by the films and would love to do one some day.”

Others in the running include Yann Demange at 5/1, Denis Villeneuve at 8/1, Skyfall director Sam Mendes at 8/1, Lynne Ramsay at 12/1 and even Daniel Craig at 33/1.

“My name’s Elba, Idris Elba.” That was the Bond-style tweet from the 45-year-old actor, the lead in crime drama Luther, who had been tipped to take over Martini-sipping duties from Daniel Craig after 2019, that got 007 fans in a tizz last Sunday. But never mind the Twitter chatter. Collectors of vintage Bond film posters will always prefer Sean Connery and Roger Moore to whichever Jimmy-come-lately happens to be playing the Bond of the moment. After all, which modern film poster could rival the original artwork of, say, 1965’s Thunderball, created by artists Robert McGinnis and Frank McCarthy?

Derek East is one such collector. When he retired from teaching maths in Basingstoke, the “brightly coloured world of hyperbole and dramatic cinematic taglines took over from his old school life”, says Vanessa Thorpe in The Observer. By the time of his death in 2011 at the age of 72, he had amassed “an astonishingly comprehensive collection of vintage film posters”.

It was this collection that went under the hammer at Surrey-based auction house Ewbanks at the start of the month. While the star of the sale was a Get Carter poster from 1971, which fetched £2,800 (not including the buyer’s premium), almost all 16 Bond posters in the 69-lot sale smashed their upper estimates.

A 1974 poster advertising The Man With The Golden Gun, for example, valued at up to £600, sold for £1,200; another from You Only Live Twice from 1967, valued at up to £1,200, made £1,800; but the top billing went to a rather plain-looking poster declaring “Sean Connery as James Bond 007”, which sold for £1,900 (the upper estimate had been £400). In fact, the only Bond poster to “disappoint” was a slightly tired poster from Thunderball, which fetched £1,800 – below its £2,500 upper estimate, yet comfortably above the £1,500 lower valuation.

Another copy of the Thunderball poster, in “very good condition”, forms part of Sotheby’s upcoming online sale of “Original Film Posters” on 28 August. This one is valued at between £4,000 and £6,000 – the highest valuation of all the Bond posters on sale (although the original artwork by Joseph Benari of Sean Connery clutching his pistol and space helmet for a French “advance” (ie, teaser) poster for You Only Live Twice is expected to fetch between £30,000 and £40,000).

Other Bond posters in the sale include an American poster of the first Bond film, Dr. No, valued at up to £2,400, Goldfinger (1964, £1,200-£1,800) and Casino Royale (1967, £800-£1,200). The posters, all of which are now on display at Sotheby’s in London, “play an important part in illustrating how Bond has changed since the release of Dr. No in 1962”, Nicolette Tomkinson, posters expert at Tomkinson Churcher Art Consultants, tells the auction house’s online magazine. “The unique combination of cultural significance and visual appeal gives the poster a special place in the eye of a collector.”

Stellar prices

The Sotheby’s sale isn’t all James Bond-related. Two different versions of Star Wars posters from 1977 – one bearing signatures by Harrison Ford, (who played Han Solo), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), and a secretarial signature of Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), by the actress’s mother, Debbie Reynolds – are valued at up to £6,000. A US version of a poster for Return of the Jedi (1983), the third film made in the original trilogy, is expected to fetch up to £2,600. Like the Bond posters, Sotheby’s may well be in for a pleasant surprise as Star Wars posters have set a couple of recent sales records.

First, at the end of June, a rare Cantonese version of the Star Wars poster, used to advertise the sci-fi film to cinemagoers in Hong Kong, fetched £10,455 at Prop Store’s Rare Film Poster & Original Artwork auction in London. Then, at the end of July at Heritage Auctions in Texas, a rare “concept” poster (ie, not the final version) of The Empire Strikes Back (1980) by Roger Kastel sold for $26,400 (£20,700) – a record price for a film poster sold at auction. The pre-sale estimate had been $10,000. All eyes will be on the Sotheby’s sale to see whether Star Wars retains its appeal.

Auctions

Going: A Swiss-made open-face silver-on-brass watch (pictured), with the numerals written in Hebrew letters, is expected to sell for around $12,000 at Heritage Auctions in Texas on 25 August. The watch was recovered from the body of Sinai Kantor, a 34-year-old Russian immigrant, who had been heading to New York aboard the Titanic, when it sank in April 1912. The following May it was handed to his 24-year-old wife, Miriam, who had escaped aboard one of the lifeboats.

The back cover of the rusted and stained watch is embossed with a design showing Moses holding the Ten Commandments. “A piece that was aboard the ship and a documented history from the family makes this a bittersweet and really rare opportunity for collectors,” says Don Ackerman of Heritage Auctions.

Gone: A watch containing the world’s oldest rum sold for £14,674 (including the buyer’s premium) at Fellows in Birmingham on 31 July. The Speake-Marin limited-edition gentleman’s titanium “Rum” watch had been given an estimate of £5,000-£7,000. It contains a capsule at the 11-hour mark containing 1780 Harewood Rum, certified by the Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest rum.

This article was originally published in MoneyWeek

Hundreds of rare classic movie posters will be up for auction in London next month and are expected to sell for more than £250,000 in total.

The 400 sought-after posters will be sold during Prop Store’s inaugural Cinema Poster Live Auction on 28 June, reports Forbes.

Among the items that could fetch the highest prices are a poster for Goldfinger, which is expected to sell for up to £6,000, a poster for Dracula A.D. 1972, which is expected to hit £6,000 to £8,000, and a Star Wars seven-sheet poster that is expected to be sold for up to £15,000.

So could you have an old poster worth thousands of pounds gathering dust in your attic?

Prop Store, which is hoping to make the poster auction a regular event, says it is not interested in “just any posters”, only “rare, high-quality posters and original poster artwork from around the globe”.

According to the blog Poster Collector, the most important factor to ascertain when determining the value of your poster is “the authenticity of the item and whether it was released when the film was originally released to cinemas or on a subsequent re-release later on”.

In order to establish the authenticity, the paper size, texture and National Screen Service (NSS) information are vital. The site adds that after 1940, the NSS distributed most film posters and these are dated with the year of release and the one to four digit code assigned to the film. This information is located at the bottom of the poster.

“The most valuable posters are from the early 1900s through to the 1950s. Some titles from the 1960s and 1970s can also command good prices but the value of titles from the 1980s onwards drop dramatically due to the increase in the print runs,” says Poster Collector.

Originals from the 1930s and 1940s are often the most sought after, including Wizard of Oz, Casablanca or It’s a Wonderful Life, according to Heritage Auctions. However, the site also points out that “horror and science fiction film titles have always generated the highest prices and continue to do so”.

Among the films with a starting bid higher than £1,000 in Prop Store’s auction are the Star Wars movies, Carry On films and The Beatles features.

Danny Boyle appears to have confirmed he will write and direct the next James Bond film, ending months of speculation.

Speaking to Metro US at the red carpet premiere of Trust, the Oscar-winning director said he was working on a script with regular collaborator John Hodge.

“I have got this idea, and John is writing it at the moment,” he said. “It all depends on how it turns out. It would be foolish of me to give any of it away.”

He has also hinted at a possible timeline for the film, revealing he is due to start shooting a Richard Curtis script in six to seven weeks, then will move on to the Bond film at the end of the year.

The as-yet unnamed film, due out in November 2019, will be the 25th in the franchise, and Daniel Craig’s fifth and final outing as the famous British spy.

Boyle will take over from fellow Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes, who was at the helm for Skyfall and Spectre. Many directors have been tipped for the job over the past year, including Christopher Nolan who was in talks to direct but ultimately counted himself out.

Boyle has amassed an eclectic filmography, from 28 Days Later and Slumdog Millionaire, to 127 Hours and Steve Jobs, “and will no doubt take the franchise in a new direction again”, says The Independent.

Not everyone is enthused by the prospect of a Bond film directed by Boyle, however. Scott Mendelson in Forbes says: “Having an esteemed auteur at the helm is no guarantee of a great 007 flick.”

“Most of the examples of esteemed directors taking a crack at 007 resulted in divisive (or outright loathed) instalments,” he argues.

After months of speculation that he was stepping down as James Bond, Daniel Craig has confirmed that he will be back on Her Majesty's secret service for a fifth and final time.

In an interview with the American late night host Stephen Colbert, Craig admitted he had been "quite cagey" about whether or not he planned to make another Bond film.

Colbert put the question to him directly: "We could use some good news here. Daniel Craig, will you return as James Bond?"

"Yes," Craig replied, sending the studio audience wild.

When the as-yet-untitled film, known for now as Bond 25, hits screens in 2019, Craig will have been 007 for 14 years - surpassing Roger Moore's record as the longest-serving Bond on film.

However, the 49-year-old hinted that the upcoming film would be the definitive end to his spying career. "I think this is it," he said. "I just want to go out on a high note and I can't wait."

Nonetheless, fans were excited to see Craig back in the saddle:

The announcement ends more than two years of conflicting reports about whether he would return to the franchise, with Aidan Turner, Jack Huston and Tom Hiddleston among the names reportedly being considered to take over as 007.

Craig is notoriously ambivalent about his most famous role, and has been candid about his mixed feelings.

As far back as 2007, the actor told Interview Magazine of his reservations about becoming too closely embroiled in the high-profile franchise.

"If I wanted to make spy movies for the rest of my life, that would be one thing, but I don't want to just make spy movies," he told interviewer and friend Sam Taylor-Wood

Craig has also been blunt about the difficulties of pulling off the Bond persona, telling Time Out it was a "drag".

"The best acting is when you're not concerned about the surface. And Bond is the opposite of that," he said. "You have to be bothered about how you're looking. It's a struggle."

In a typically outspoken moment in the same interview, Craig said he would rather "slash [his] wrists" than commit to another Bond film "for at least a year or two".

He added: "If I did another Bond movie, it would only be for the money."

Craig reportedly received a salary of $39m (£30.2m) for Spectre, more than ten times the $3.4m (£2.6m) he was paid for his first Bond outing, 2006's Casino Royale.

Daniel Craig is reportedly ready to renew his licence to kill, two years after joking he'd rather "slash his wrists" than play James Bond.

According to the Daily Mirror, the actor has "changed his mind and is set to sign up for his fifth Bond movie".

With Adele tipped to repeat her Oscar-winning performance on the theme song, speculation has now turned to who will direct.

Long-time director Sam Mendes departed the franchise last year, but a new name has emerged – Christopher Nolan.

The British-American director is known for his genre-changing, box-office smash hits such as The Dark Knight trilogy, as well as twisty, high-concept films Memento, Inception and Interstellar. He has also worked on the much-buzzed Dunkirk, an immersive war film based on real events from World War II.

He is also tempted by the idea of tackling 007.

"A Bond movie, definitely," he told Playboy magazine. "I've spoken to the producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson over the years. I deeply love the character and I’m always excited to see what they do with it. Maybe one day that would work out.

"You'd have to be needed, if you know what I mean," he added. "It has to need reinvention; it has to need you."

So how would the director known for labyrinthine plots, non-linear storytelling and spectacular special effects tackle the spy franchise?

Ben Child in The Guardian suggests Nolan might approach Bond the way he approached Batman - "like a psychiatrist with a patient" and realise that to believe in the Dark Knight, "we have to understand where he comes from".

Child says it's also impossible to imagine a Nolan Bond movie without "gadgets, guns and cars", given the director's love of Batman’s techy paraphernalia and Batmobile.

However, adds the journalist, it seems unlikely Nolan would take on the task with Craig as 007, as this would give him less room to reinvent the franchise. A Nolan Bond would probably require a new spy, he says, and the name that springs to mind is Tom Hardy.

The Peaky Blinders star has worked with Nolan before and has even suggested him as potential Bond director. Earlier this year, when Hardy seemed a contender for the next 007, he told the Daily Beast Nolan would be "a fantastic director for a Bond movie".

He was "a very powerful figure to bring into that world", the actor said, and could "bring something new and create something profound - again".

A Nolan Bond might be on the cards, but we may have to wait until Daniel Craig finishes his stint to see it.

Roger Moore, who has died aged 89, will be best remembered for his suave action roles as secret agent James Bond and the playboy crime-fighter Simon Templar in The Saint.

He was also a renowned philanthropist and a Unicef Goodwill Ambassador, but there are many lesser-known aspects of his life.

The spy started out in the army

Roger Moore was born in Stockwell, South London, in 1927, the only child of George Moore, a police constable at Bow Street, and Lily, the daughter of an army sergeant major. He was called up for national service aged 18, shortly after the end of World War II, and posted to Germany, where he became an office in the combined services entertainment section and was responsible for looking after entertainers for the armed forces.

He tried to make a living as a cartoonist

Before joining the army, Moore was apprenticed to be an animator, during which he met his good friend actor David Niven, who was visiting the studio to give technical advice on a film. However, while Moore showed promise as a cartoonist, he was fired for accidentally destroying some animation celluloids.

He found success with a spear

After Moore grew into a strapping young man, friends suggested he try acting and he scored a role as a spear-carrying Roman soldier on Caesar and Cleopatra, where the film’s assistant director, Brian Desmond Hurst, took a shine to him. Hurst encouraged Moore to audition for the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Rada) and even paid his fees.

His nickname was 'The Duchess'

It was while studying at Rada that Moore began to cultivate the urbane persona for which he became known. His immaculate appearance led to him being nicknamed "The Duchess" during his time in the army.

He modelled knitwear

Moore struggled to find well-paying acting roles in the early 1950s and would model for knitting patterns and magazine photo-stories. He also worked as a waiter, dishwasher and street salesman.

He fell in love with an older woman

In 1952, Moore met British pop star Dorothy Squires, who was 12 years his senior. "It started with a squabble, then he carried me off to bed," she said. The couple travelled to the US, where Squires introduced him to stars in the film industry and his English charm and good looks were in demand. He won roles alongside Elizabeth Taylor and Lana Turner. He and Squires were married for 16 years. Moore married fourth wife Kristina Tholstrup in 2002

He directed himself

After regular TV roles in two western series, The Alaskans and Maverick, Moore became a true star playing crime-fighting playboy Simon Templar in The Saint from 1962 until 1969, developing debonair persona that made him seem a natural for the role of Bond. He even directed himself in nine episodes.

He turned down Bond

Moore was not available when he was first offered the role of James Bond due to a scheduling clash with a TV show he was making. He was asked again when Sean Connery stepped down and stepped into the suave spy's shoes for 1973's Live and Let Die. He was also told to lose weight and cut his hair. Ironically, his good friend David Niven was author Ian Fleming’s first choice for the role of Bond.

He had a cigar allowance

In the Bond novels, 007 is a heavy chain-smoker, puffing through more than 70 cigarettes a day. While Sean Connery only lit up occasionally when playing the role, Moore wanted to differentiate himself from his predecessor so instead of cigarettes, he made the spy a cigar smoker. Moore even had a clause added to his contract giving him an unlimited supply of cigars during filming.

He was the busiest Bond

Moore was one of the most prolific actors to have played James Bond and appeared in seven of the spy films, from Live and Let Die (1973) to A View to a Kill (1985). His daughter Deborah also starred in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day.

James Bond star Sir Roger Moore has died at the age of 89 after a "short but brave" battle with cancer.

His children, Deborah, Geoffrey and Christian, posted a message on Moore's Twitter account confirming that their father had died at his home in Switzerland.

The actor played the 007 spy in seven Bond films including Live and Let Die and The Spy Who Loved Me.

He became a tax exile from the UK in 1978 and has since split his time between his Swiss Alpine chalet and other homes in France and Monte Carlo.

The actor leaves behind a legacy for film fans as "the suavest Bond", says The Guardian. He also enjoyed a varied eight-decade career in film and on television.

Born in 1927 in Stockwell, south London, to a policeman father, Moore grew up in Battersea and then Devon, where he was evacuated during the war.

Accepted into the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Moore studied for two terms before being called up for national service in 1946 aged 18.

During a posting in Germany, the young officer became involved in organising army entertainment. On leaving the army, he began working as a model, taking bit-part acting roles.

Moore first became a household name for British audiences when he played Simon Templar – the "Robin Hood of crime" – in the smash hit series The Saint from 1962 to 1969.

He then starred in odd couple detective series The Persuaders as aristocrat Lord Brett Sinclair.

In 1972, Moore was approached to replace Sean Connery as James Bond. The resulting film, Live and Let Die, proved a box office success on both sides of the Atlantic. It led to Moore remaining in the role for six more films, making him the longest-serving Bond to date.

Moore also starred in many Hollywood films, including The Wild Geese in 1978 and the 1980 screwball comedy The Cannonball Run.

In 2003, he was knighted in the Queen's birthday honours for his work with the children's charities Unicef and Kiwanis International.

Married four times, Moore leaves behind his wife of 15 years, Kristina Tholstrup, and three adult children from his second and longest marriage to the Italian actress Luisa Mattioli.

James Bond author Ian Fleming scattered clues about top-secret Second World War codebreaking in his novels, it has been claimed.

Sinclair McKay, who has written several books about Bletchley Park, where codebreakers such as Alan Turing cracked German ciphers, told the Daily Telegraph the spy novels are littered with references to the project.

Fleming worked in the Naval Intelligence Unit during the war and drew on his experiences in the world of international espionage for 007.

Some of the references are innocuous nods to the work of the codebreakers, such as the inclusion of a character called Le Chiffre (The Cipher) in Casino Royale, the first Bond novel.

Other hints are more overt, such as a fictional Japanese coding system described in You Only Live Twice that is "remarkably close to the real life one", said McKay.

Fleming's 1957 novel From Russia with Love depicts an encryption machine called the Lektor that appears to be similar to the Enigma machine. The plot also features a chess match McKay claims is based on a real-life game between Bletchley codebreaker Conel Hugh O'Donel Alexander and Soviet grandmaster David Bronstein.

Fleming "got away" with dropping hints about activities not made public until the 1970s because they would sound improbable to the average reader, says McKay.

"It is a double bluff," he told the Telegraph. "We would never look at a James Bond film and say, ‘That must be what's going on.'"

Fleming's risky literary game would have been in "wild contravention" of the Official Secrets Act, McKay said, but hardly a surprising one. "Bletchley was full of ludicrously intelligent people that could afford to have these nudges and winks at each other," said the author.

An ultra-rare Aston Martin DB10 from the latest James Bond film, Spectre, has raised almost £2.5m in a charity auction.

The car, one of the film's two remaining DB10s from the ten that were made, went under the hammer at Christie's in London, with an estimate of £1.5m.

However, it quickly smashed the reserve price and, once buyers' fees are taken into account, raised £2,434,500 for the international doctors' charity Medecins Sans Frontieres.

Bond's iconic vehicle was the star lot of ten items from the film, says Autocar. Other items sold included Daniel Craig's Day of the Dead costume, which went for £98,500, and a signed copy of the sheet music together with a seven-inch vinyl single of Sam Smith's Writing on the Wall theme song, which raised £9,375, says the BBC. A watch worn by Craig as Bond sold for £92,500.

Built on a Vantage platform, the DB10 is an all carbon fibre-bodied coupe with a 4.7-litre V8 mated to a manual gearbox driving the rear wheels. Top speed should be around 190mph and Top Gear says it is arguably "one of the finest Aston Martin designs" in the company's 103-year history. They had previously said the car represents "pretty decent value", considering how rare the DB10 is.

Aston Martin never intended to put the DB10 into production, saying it would be purely a car for the big screen. The next instalment is the DB11 – soon to be with us at the Geneva Motor Show.

Pinewood Group, the owner of the studio most famous as the home of the James Bond franchise, has launched a review of its capital structure that could lead to a sale of the business.

The production facilities company, which owns the eponymous film and television studio as well as a number of others in the UK and overseas, in countries including Canada and Malaysia, has appointed investment bank Rothschild to advise on the process. Options under consideration include measures to help achieve a main stock market listing or a sale that would be worth as much as £350m.

Pinewood, which has been listed on the London Stock Exchange's small-cap alternative investment market since 2004, has for some time now been seeking a move onto the main market to help it raise funds for a £200m expansion, The Guardian says. It raised £30m through a share issuance last year, but this failed to expand its capital base sufficiently to meet the main market minimum, Sky News adds.

To list on the London Stock Exchange, a company must have at least 25 per cent of its shares in "free float" - that is, available for investors to buy and sell on the open market. At the moment, Pinewood is effectively controlled by three shareholders - property group Peel Holdings, which owns 39 per cent; jewellery chain Warren James, at 26 per cent, and Aviva, with 16 per cent – who have been reluctant to dilute their holdings.

One city source told The Guardian that the ideal outcome for Pinewood would be to encourage new investment at a valuation that would enable these principal shareholders to sell down without compromising the value of their holding. The paper also quotes another broker as saying the sale of such a "trophy asset" could be at "somewhere between £315m and £350m", a substantial premium to its pre-announcement market capitalisation of £260m.

Pinewood announced the review as it published results for the first half of the financial year showing operating profits had trebled to £7m on revenues of £38.2m. In the past year, it has been home to the latest films in both the Bond and the Star Wars franchises, while its investment arm has backed Amazon’s first UK original drama, the period fashion drama The Collection.

James Bond fans will be shaken and stirred at the news that Aston Martin are auctioning off one of the iconic DB10 cars featured in last year's hit film Spectre.

Ten versions of the DB10 were created for 007 to drive, but only two have been left in their original "show car" state. The one being auctioned has extra significance – it carried the film's star Daniel Craig to Spectre world premiere in London.

The DB10 uses 4.7-litre V8 mated to a six-speed manual gearbox, housed within an all-carbon fibre body. Aston estimates it is capable of 190mph.

Much of its underpinnings are taken from the current V8 vantage, but it’s the look of this car that makes it important. It hints heavily at Aston's future design language and many lines and cues will translate on to the production DB11, set to be revealed later this year.

Being the only example of an unmodified DB10, the estimate is not cheap. The car is expected to reach around £1.5m when it goes up for auction in London, along with other Spectre props.

However, the price is worth it, say some. "Call us mad, but surely that represents decent value?" argues Top Gear, flagging up similarly priced Astons such as the One-77, of which just 77 were made, not one featuring in any of 007's adventures.

"Hey, no one said living out your James Bond fantasy would be cheap," adds US magazin Road and Track.

Living out that fantast could prove difficult, though. "The car is not homologated, certified or approved for use on any public roads and has not undergone the testing processes used for production cars," says the Aston Martin disclaimer.

The James Bond Spectre: Online auction takes place on 18th February at Christie's in London, with proceeds going to Medecins Sans Frontieres and other charities.

The most famous of Bond girls, Pussy Galore, is set to return in a new 007 novel by Anthony Horowitz. The sultry female character will make her return in Trigger Mortis – a book based on an original Fleming idea.

Horowitz, the creator of Foyle's War and Midsomer Murders, unveiled the title and a plot outline for the forthcoming Bond thriller today to mark what would have been Fleming's 107th birthday, The Guardian reports.

The new novel, due out in September, is set in 1957, two weeks after the end of Fleming's original novel Goldfinger. Trigger Mortis uses the backdrop of the Soviet-American space race and begins with an idea Fleming wrote for an unmade TV series, Murder on Wheels, in which Bond gets involved in a Formula One race in Nurburgring in Germany.

For Horowitz, the story was an opportunity to reintroduce Pussy Galore, the violet-eyed lesbian gangster who ran a troupe of female acrobats turned cat burglars in Goldfinger. Pussy was played by Honor Blackman in the film adaptation of the novel and is thought to have been based on Blanche Blackwell, a Jamaican of Anglo-Jewish descent, who was reportedly the love of Fleming's later life.

In Horowitz's new novel, Pussy returns to kick up trouble for Bond on the eve of a historic US rocket launch. Bond will not only reunite with Pussy in the story, he will encounter another Bond girl, Jeopardy Lane, as well as a "sadistic, scheming Korean adversary hell-bent on vengeance" named Jai Seung Sin.

Horowitz is the latest contemporary novelist to be officially commissioned by the Fleming estate to write a Bond novel.

The Fleming family describes the new novel as "nail-biting", saying it could have "come from Ian's own typewriter", reports the Daily Telegraph.

Horowitz said: "It was always my intention to go back to the true Bond, which is to say, the Bond that Fleming created – and it was a fantastic bonus having some original, unseen material from the master to launch my story."

He added: "I was so glad that I was allowed to set the book two weeks after my favourite Bond novel, Goldfinger, and I'm delighted that Pussy Galore is back! It was great fun revisiting the most famous Bond girl of all – although she is by no means the only dangerous lady in Trigger Mortis."

The book will be published on September 8 by Orion Publishing.

Matthew Vaughn's new spy thriller Kingsman: The Secret Service, just released in UK cinemas, pays homage to the tradition of the very British spy, but with a twist.

The film is based on a comic book and directed by Vaughn, best known as the director of Kickass and producer of Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. It tells the story of a veteran agent Harry Hart (Colin Firth) who recruits a street kid Eggsy (Taron Eggerton) for a covert spy operation called the Kingsman, just as a new global threat to humanity emerges in the form of an evil software plutocrat played by Samuel L Jackson.

Kingsman tries to mark out some new territory with a tough-talking estate hoodlum as a new breed of spy, but it also clearly tips its lid to the history of the British spy drama.

James Bond

Bond is an obvious inspiration for Kingsman. Vaughn's film is "Bond with the stabilisers taken off", says Chris Hewitt in Empire. Hewitt says that the recent Bournification of the James Bond franchise seems to have robbed 007, the suave, sophisticated ladies man, of his sense of fun. "These days, the upper lip is so stiff that it's impossible for the old man to raise his eyebrow." But Kingsman, which has got ingenious gadgets, suave heroes with the ability to identify a rare brand of Scotch from smell alone, megalomaniacal villains and deadly henchwomen is "the most fun 007 has been in years".

The Avengers

Not the Marvel comic franchise, but the 1960s British spy-fi television series, The Avengers (and 1990s movie remake), is another inspiration for Kingsman. The Avengers focused on the escapades of dapper spy John Steed, always dressed in a suit and carrying an umbrella, and his stylish sassy assistant Emma Peel. In Kingsman, well-dressed super-spy Harry Hart brandishes a deadly John Steed style umbrella.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

John Le Carre's classic novel was turned into a 1970s TV series and a recent movie starring Gary Oldman. The central spy in the story, George Smiley, a phlegmatic, privately educated, chess-playing intelligence officer working for "the Circus" is a clear antecedent of Firth's Harry Hart. Firth even played a role in the recent screen adaptation of Tinker Tailor, as the ambiguous spy Bill Haydon, as did Mark Strong who also appears in Kingsman.

The Ipcress File

The gritty mid-1960s spy film based on a Len Deighton novel starred Michael Caine as Harry Palmer. Palmer was supposed to be an anti-Bond, the opposite of the upper-class swashbuckling glamour, he was a working class man with a Cockney twang, who lived in a seedy back street flat and wanted a pay rise. Caine's Harry Palmer is an early prototype of the working class British spy, and an understated predecessor for the Kingsman's Eggsy.

Johnny English

The British comedy film starring Rowan Atkinson set out to deliberately parody James Bond in no subtle way. Atkinson starred as the bug-eyed, inept British agent known as 'Agent One', who, despite being rubbish at just about everything, though sheer dumb luck still manages to save the day and get the girl. The film grossed over £100m worldwide and spawned the sequel Johnny English Reborn. It bodes well for Kingsman that the public seem to have a healthy appetite for British spies, even at their most ridiculous.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Release date: December 2015

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The forthcoming Star Wars 7 film promises to be one of the biggest releases of the year, if not the decade. Director JJ Abrams won plaudits for having breathed new life into the Star Trek franchise with his 2009 series reboot. Now he has been handed the reigns of what is arguably an even bigger sci-fi series. The new film brings together original cast members Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher with newcomers John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o. The movie is believed to be set 30 years after the events of Return of the Jedi, but despite almost unprecedented fan scrutiny and speculation, very few plot details are known.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron

Release date: April, 2015

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It's being billed as "the epic follow-up to the biggest Super Hero movie of all time" by Marvel Studios. According to the official synopsis, "when Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth's Mightiest Heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, are put to the ultimate test as the fate of the planet hangs in the balance."

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part II

Release date: November, 2015

In the highly anticipated final instalment of the Hunger Games franchise, Katniss leads District 13 to battle with the capital in a long overdue revolution. She also has to deal with an unpredictable Peeta and President Coin whose motives she is forced to question. "Knowing what's to come from the remainder of the third book [the film] is bound to be one incredibly explosive grand finale," writes Collider's Perri Nemiroff.

Spectre

Release date: November, 2015

The 24th instalment of the James Bond franchise sees Bond (Daniel Craig) receive a cryptic message from his past which leads him on a trail to uncover the terrible truth behind the sinister organisation Spectre while M (Ralph Fiennes) battles home-grown political forces to keep MI6 alive. The latest film's Bond girls will be played by actresses Lea Seydoux and Monica Bellucci.

Mad Max: Fury Road

Release date: May, 2015

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The post-apocalyptic action film sequel stars Tom Hardy as Mad Max Rockatansky and Charlize Theron as Furiosa in the furthest reaches of the planet where "humanity is broken, and almost everyone is crazed fighting for the necessities of life. Within this world exist two rebels on the run who just might be able to restore order." The above trailer was voted the best of 2014 by movie fans across the globe.

Tomorrowland

Release date: May 2015

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"What if there was a place... a secret place, where nothing was impossible, where you could change the world? You wanna go?"

Named after a futuristic park at Disneyland, this rare original screenplay tells the story of a young science-obsessed girl (Britt Robertson) and her father (George Clooney) who both embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of an imaginative world. Also starring Hugh Laurie, Kathryn Hahn, Judy Greer, and Keegan-Michael Key.

The Hateful Eight

Release date: TBC

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Quentin's Tarantino delivers back to back westerns following on from the cult success of Django Unchained. Set in post-Civil War Wyoming, The Hateful Eight stars Samuel L. Jackson and Channing Tatum as bounty hunters trying to find shelter during a blizzard; cue the usual Tarantino betrayal, deception and violence.

Chappie

Release date: March, 2015

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Chappie is an affable, talented child. He is also the first robot with the ability to think and feel emotions. District 9 director Neill Blomkamp returns to his native South Africa in this touching story. The film is "powered by the vital thing that Elysium was sorely missing," writes Nemiroff: "A genuine, human connection to the main character." Features Hugh Jackman and Yo-Landi Vi$$er, the quirky lead vocalist from South African rap-rave group Die Antwoord.

Black Mass

Release date: September 2015

Adapted from the best-selling book of the same name and based on a true story, Black Mass stars Johnny Depp stars as Whitey Bulger, the FBI's most wanted crime boss and the brother of a US senator. Also stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Sienna Miller.

Inside out

Release date: June, 2015

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From the creators of Finding Nemo and Up, Pixar's latest animation is set inside a young girl's mind. Like all of us, Riley is steered by her emotions – Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). "It's the kind of Sigmund-Freud-on-a-massive-sugar-high premise that only Pixar can come with and truly pull off," according to Empire.

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Audiences will get to see Daniel Craig’s final performance as James Bond after the long-awaited No Time To Die hit the silver screen this week.

With the reviews published and Craig’s tuxedo relegated to the back of the wardrobe, the question of who will take up the iconic role remains as disputed as ever. And “a new flurry of bets has pushed the frontrunners in the odds down”, reported the Daily Express.

Craig’s fifth Bond film sees him hand in his MI6 badge with his fellow agent Nomi, played by Lashana Lynch, inheriting the 007 title. But “despite misleading headlines”, the British actor “will not be playing the character of James Bond”, Harper’s Bazaar reported. The red-herring is just a “bit of confusion between a job title and a character”, said Esquire. Even so, the bookmakers’ are putting Lynch as a forerunner in the contest.

Since the film’s original April 2020 release date, the list of contenders has seen somewhat of a shake-up. Find out in whose corner the odds are now stacked:

James Norton: 10/3

Two years ago James Norton was, according to Esquire magazine, the “dark-horse candidate for the job”. Best known for his roles in TV dramas McMafia and Grantchester, the 35-year-old had attempted to dismiss rumours that he could be the next Bond, The Sun reported, telling his fans “not to bet on him” to be picked for the role.

But last night his odds were “slashed drastically”, the Express said.

Rege-Jean Page: 2/1

Bridgerton’s leading man “is keeping tight-lipped” about his prospects of playing Bond, but he dropped a “huge hint” when appearing on The Graham Norton Show in February, The Sun said. The actor “awkardly” swerved the question, and said the Netflix period drama was “the only ‘B’ word I am allowed to say”.

Rege-Jean Page won’t be returning to the second series of the hit show, stirring up further speculation about what other project may be tying up his schedule. The 31-year-old may in fact be “the perfect fit”, said GQ, with a “plausible 20-year period as Bond” ahead. Page would bring “gravitas and cynicism” to the role, and he would also “be the first black Bond”, said the magazine.

“That would be great”, it added, if only to “give Idris Elba some peace and space to talk about literally anything else in interviews”.

Jack Lowden: 6/1

One of the other younger candidates is 31-year-old Jack Lowden, who came to prominence in the 2016 BBC mini-series War and Peace. He went on to star in Christopher Nolan’s 2017 epic Dunkirk and 2018’s Mary Queen of Scots.

The Daily Express described the Scottish star as an “accomplished stage actor” too, but the Gentleman’s Journal sees Lowden as “a long shot”. The actor “hasn’t yet built up the type of previous role experience the producers clearly look for”. He may also see “some unwarranted criticism” as the first ginger Bond, the magazine continued.

Tom Hiddleston: 9/2

Tom Hiddleston came into favour after issuing a “come and get me” plea following his Bond-esque portrayal of a spy with a taste for violence in The Night Manager. In a Times interview Hiddleston even talked up his physical prowess in relation to the role saying: “I’m very aware of the physicality of the [Bond] job. I would not take it lightly.”

Speaking to Empire magazine on the subject earlier this year, Hiddleston said “what can I say that you don’t already know?”. And anything he has said on the matter in the past has only “generated more questions”.

Lashana Lynch: 6/1

She’s officially the new 007, but would Lashana Lynch ever be the next Bond? “Nooo! You don’t want me,” she told The Guardian. And the new cast member has not given much away in terms of who could be in the running.

The industry, Lynch told the paper, is no longer giving the audience “what it thinks the audience wants”. Instead, it’s “giving the audience what they want to give the audience”. As such, the winning candidate “could be a man or a woman. They could be white, black, Asian, mixed race. They could be young or old.”

But Bond boss Barbara Broccoli has told PA news agency that while she hopes “there will be many, many films made with women, for women, by women, about women,” she doesn’t think “we have to take a male character and have a woman portrayal”. Ultimately, she said: “I see [Bond] as male.”

Sam Heughan: 9/2

Possible contender Sam Heughan, who was once the favourite to replace Craig, has seen his odds drift.

Heughan, who is best known for playing Jamie Fraser in the time-travelling drama series Outlander, addressed rumours he could be taking over as the new Bond during a 2019 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “I can reveal, right now, that I…” he said. “Am not James Bond, no.”

The rumour-mill was stirred again this year, however, when Heughan retweeted a Twitter poll on the most likely actor to next play Bond with a winking emoji. The “cheeky tweet” roused speculation among fans “that he may be following in Sean Connery’s footsteps”, said the Daily Record.

Richard Madden: 6/1

Broccoli has taken the Game of Thrones and The Bodyguard star Richard Madden seriously as a candidate, according to the Mail on Sunday. One source told the newspaper late in 2018: “It’s seriously looking like he [Madden] is going to get the job. Not only is he on top of Barbara’s list, but she is preparing to offer the role.”

A producer from The Bodyguard “let slip” to the paper months later that Madden was not yet confirmed for series two of the BBC show, saying: “It depends what happens with James Bond.” But Digital Spy now thinks it’s a “safe bet” Madden will again be taking up the role of protagonist David Budd, putting the brakes on Bond speculation.

Michael Fassbender: 5/1

The Telegraph said that “early on in negotiations” the German-Irish actor was “frequently listed” to take over from Craig, but his odds have lengthened somewhat recently.

And back in 2016, when Michael Fassbender was asked in an interview with GQ magazine if he would be up for the part, he said: “To be honest, no.” The franchise, he said, “needs something new”.

Idris Elba: 7/1

Steven Spielberg threw his weight behind Luther star Elba to be the next James Bond, but it seems the actor himself is not so keen on the idea.

He has repeatedly said the studio has not been in touch, describing rumours to the contrary as the “wildest in the world”. Now 49, Elba has suggested his age might hold him back. “I think I’m too old for that - running around in cars and ladies and martinis,” he told Good Morning America in 2018.

His attention, it seems, may be more focused on a familiar character’s footing. Speaking on Capital XTRA in April, Elba said he’s “very excited” for the Luther film, which “is definitely coming.”

Aidan Turner: 11/1

Another Irish actor, Turner, who has previously been at the top of the list, is best known for his role as Ross Poldark. His predecessor in the role, Robin Ellis, who starred in the 1970s BBC version, backed him as the next Bond.

“I think he’d be an excellent Bond. Aidan is a good actor, and the first 007, Sean Connery, was a very good actor. Aidan is quite capable of doing that part. Good luck to him if he gets it. I’ll be very pleased for him,” said Ellis.

Tom Hardy: 5/2

Hardy is a mainstay of the list, first boosted by the “big splash” he made in Mad Max: Road Fury, said Vanity Fair. Though his Mad Max character was a “grunting road warrior” he can do suave when called upon, said the magazine, with roles in This Means War and Inception proving his range.

In 2020, The Sun reported on claims from a Star Trek blog that Hardy had been offered the role, but “will have to keep his secret a while longer” due to the pandemic pushing back No Time To Die’s release date. However, the report was never substantiated.

Cillian Murphy: 7/1

Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy was once among the most high-profile names on the list, having appeared in Hollywood films dating back to the early 2000s, but appears to have a low opinion of his chances of taking the role.

“There’s two things I’ll say about that,” he has previously told The Guardian. “Firstly, there’s a whole other industry which is completely separate from the film side of things, and that’s the bookies. The second thing I’d say is that I think it should be a woman, which rules me out.”

James Bond odds: will Richard Madden be the next 007?

15 October 2018

The latest actor tipped to be the next James Bond when Daniel Craig steps down is The Bodyguard’s Richard Madden.

Barbara Broccoli, 007’s executive producer, is taking him seriously as a candidate, according to the Mail on Sunday.

Madden played Robb Stark in Game of Thrones and the Prince in Cinderella, but it was this year's starring role in Jed Mercurio’s Bodyguard series that apparently put him in the running for one of the most sought-after roles in Hollywood.

“Madden’s portrayal of a steely diplomatic protection officer in the BBC drama and his bedroom antics with Home Secretary Julia Montague, played by Keeley Hawes, made him the bookies’ favourite to be the next 007,” says the Mail.

A source told the newspaper: “It’s seriously looking like he [Madden] is going to get the job. Not only is he on top of Barbara’s list, but she is preparing to offer the role.”

Broccoli recently ruled out the prospect of a female Bond, saying: “Bond is male. He’s a male character. He was written as a male and I think he’ll probably stay as a male.”

However, she is reportedly open to casting a non-white actor in the role.

Craig, who has played James Bond in four films over 11 years, finally ended speculation last autumn by signing up for one final outing as 007 before permanently handing in his licence to kill.

Charlie Hunnam in the frame to play 007

14 May

Daniel Craig hasn't fully ruled himself out of reprising his role as the world's favourite spy James Bond, but it hasn't stopped speculation about who could next step into his shoes.

This week, the rumour mill is turning about British actor Charlie Hunnam, who is best known for his roles in the long-running drama series Sons of Anarchy and the 2013 sci-fi film Pacific Rim.

Currently doing press for Guy Ritchie's King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, the actor said he had heard rumours about him becoming the next 007 - and it would be right up his alley, writes Screen Rant.

"I can say two things," he told US chat-show host Conan O'Brien. "I'm English and I look devilishly handsome in a suit."

However, he added that as yet, he hadn't heard anything from the producers. "Nobody has called me about playing James Bond, so I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen," he said.

"If you [O'Brien] decide not to do it, you can just throw your ole pal Charlie's name in the hat."

Hunnam joins Orlando Bloom, Michael Fassbender, Tom Hardy, Idris Elba, Tom Hiddleston and Aidan Turner in being linked with the covetable role.

The 25th Bond film script is already in the works, but producer Barbara Broccoli told industry players last week she is still not sure when it will shoot, reports Page Six.

Orlando Bloom: The new James Bond?

04 May

Pirates of the Caribbean star Orlando Bloom has thrown his hat into the ring to be the next James Bond.

"I grew up loving those [Bond] films. Who didn't?" Orlando told BBC News. "I'm sure they'll probably do more with Daniel [Craig], and who knows where they'll go with that?

"That franchise is a part of the fabric of our society, isn't it? It's something that people really relate, and laugh and enjoy… That little wink and twinkling behind the eyes is what I always saw in Sean Connery and Roger Moore."

Digital Spy notes Bloom has even thought out exactly how he'd play Bond, if he ever received the green light from producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson.

"I think it'd be very English, but that sort of twinkle with the muscular dynamic," Bloom explained. "Who knows? They could do a woman, the world that we live in today.

"Who knows where they'll go with it? I don't know, but I do love that [James Bond] world."

But not everyone is such a big fan of the idea. Esquire's Finlay Renwick urges Bloom to "stay in your lane," saying: "Like Coke and Mentos and ammonia and bleach, Orlando Bloom and James Bond should never be mixed... ever."

Although it is not yet known whether current Bond Daniel Craig will return for a fifth movie, talks between the actor and Bond producers "are going in the right direction", according to a source speaking to Page Six. The website added Craig has been persuaded to return after his experience working with Barbara Broccoli on his acclaimed off-Broadway production of Othello.

"They have a script – screenwriting duo Neal Purvis and Robert Wade are writing and they'll go into production as soon as Daniel is ready to commit," added the source.

Daniel Craig 'in talks to play James Bond once more'

5 April

Reports are growing that far from handing in his licence to kill, Daniel Craig could be back as James Bond in the next film in the franchise.

Talks between Craig and Bond producers "are going in the right direction", a source told Page Six, which says Craig was convinced to continue as the spy after working with Bond producer Barbara Broccoli on his off-Broadway production of Othello.

"They have a script - screenwriting duo Neal Purvis and Robert Wade are writing and they'll go into production as soon as Daniel is ready to commit," added the source.

Back in 2015, Craig, who has played 007 in four films so far, said he would rather "slash his own wrists" than step into the spy's shoes again.

"We're done. All I want to do is move on," he said following the release of Spectre.

Bookies are still taking bets on who could replace him, with Vicky McClure, Idris Elba, James Norton and Jamie Bell all rumoured to be in the running.

However, Page Six also says former favourite Tom Hiddleston is apparently out of the contest because Broccoli is not a fan.

Their source said: "Barbara Broccoli doesn't like Tom Hiddleston - he's a bit too smug and not tough enough to play James Bond."

The source also adds that Hiddleston's high-profile, short-lived romance with pop star Taylor Swift, followed by his much-criticised acceptance speech at the Golden Globes, did not win him any favours with the producer.

Will Line of Duty's Vicky McClure be the next James Bond?

28 March

Line of Duty star Vicky McClure has been touted to take over as James Bond when Daniel Craig gives up the role – and she says the idea of is "genius".

The actor told The Sun she has been lapping up the idea.

She said: "The rumour is a very funny thing to have happened. A Nottingham girl playing Bond is never going to happen in a million years – but it would be genius if it did, wouldn't it?"

McClure has played DS Kate Fleming in the BBC's hit police corruption drama since 2012. She also won a Bafta in 2011 for her role as Lol in the Channel 4 drama This is England '86 and recently starred in the acclaimed three-part psychological drama The Replacement.

Although Craig hasn't officially given up his licence to kill, it is widely believed that he has made his last 007 film. But while fans think McClure would make an excellent Jane Bond, the bookmakers expect the super-spy to stay "James" for now.

Grantchester star James Norton remains the favourite, with Aiden Turner, Idris Elba and Tom Hardy also in the frame.

McClure is not the first woman to be tipped for the role, however.

Gillian Anderson, best known as Agent Scully in 1990s sci-fi series The X-Files, has also been suggested. She tweeted a mocked-up picture of herself as 'Jane Bond' last year.

And it was a woman who almost beat Sean Connery to the role of Bond in the 1960s, says the Sun.

Before making the first Bond film with Connery, producers considered casting US actor Susan Hayward in the role and changing the gender.

Producer Lorenzo Semple Jr told Variety: "Frankly, we thought that James Bond was kind of unbelievable and, as I recall, even kind of stupid. So Gregory thought the solution was to make Bond a woman – Jane Bond, if you will…"

Next James Bond: Who is 'absolutely the first choice'?

30 September

Despite the bevy of actors ready to take on the role, the makers of the James Bond films are desperate for Daniel Craig to return, according to one executive producer.

Aidan Turner, Idris Elba and Tom Hiddleston have all been rumoured to be in contention for the role, but Callum McDougall, who has worked on nine Bonds, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme Craig was "absolutely" the first choice.

"We would love Daniel to return as Bond," he told presenter Nick Robinson.

"Without any question he is absolutely Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson's first choice and I know they are hoping for him to come back.”

Robinson then asked: "If he signs you'll welcome him back?", to which McDougall replied: "Absolutely."

Robinson also tweeted the news, posting: "Drumroll. Fanfare. The next Bond is... Daniel Craig if he still wants the job, Bond's executive producer Callum McDougall tells."

Craig who has appeared in four Bond films since his debut in 2006's Casino Royale, has garnered numerous plaudits for his gritty reboot of the character.

But last year the actor said he would rather "slash my wrists" than reprise the role, while this year, he was reported to have turned down £68m to take on two more Bond films, plunging the internet into overdrive searching for his replacement.

Many commentators, though, would prefer the actor to hang on in there. "We're pretty sure Sony don't want any of Craig's rumoured replacements to reprise the role any time soon and for that Sony we salute you," says the Back to the Movies website.

Time Out agrees. Craig is the "growliest, punchiest Bond since Sean Connery, and a damn fine actor to boot", it says.

Next James Bond: Will it be Poldark or The Night Manager?

27 September

Frontrunner Aidan Turner has been backed to become the next Bond by his Poldark predecessor.

Robin Ellis had "women swooning" in the role of Ross Poldark in the 1970s version of the BBC series, reports the Daily Mirror. Now Ellis believes his Irish successor has all the qualities needed to take over from Daniel Craig as the world's favourite spy.

Ellis, who also plays the Reverend Halse in the BBC's new Poldark remake, said: "I like Aidan. I think he's doing a wonderful job as Ross. He looks great and has a brooding presence. He's registered enormously with the public, and that's terrific.

"I think he'd be an excellent Bond. Aidan is a good actor, and the first 007, Sean Connery, was a very good actor. Aidan is quite capable of doing that part. Good luck to him if he gets it. I'll be very pleased for him."

But Turner's boost hasn't deterred some from championing the cause of Tom Hiddleston.

The Night Manager star has gained the backing of Susanne Bier, who has been tipped to direct the next Bond film.

"I think Tom could do anything. If he wants to Bond he would great at it," said the director, who won an Emmy for her work on the BBC spy series, said:

"Tom is a very special actor. He is very physical and he can do anything with his body and yet is so incredibly skilled at lines.

"He is a natural spy because 70 per cent of what he is thinking remains a secret. That makes it so interesting to watch him, as you what to know what is he feeling and that make him captivating on screen."

Her support could be vital in helping Hiddleston land the biggest role in cinema, says The Sun.

MGM and production firm Eon executives are said to have earmarked Bier as one of the favourites to take over from current Bond director Sam Mendes.

Bier herself has not been shy about the idea of directing the next spy film – the 25th in the franchise.

"I think I would do an amazing job," she said. "I do not think I would do a different movie because I'm a woman."

But Priyanka Chopra, the star of US television series Quantico, believes the next iteration of James Bond should almost certainly be a woman. Chopra, who had previously made comments that she would be interested in taking on the role, told Refinery 29: "I know everything is about diversity right now. But I think it should be about humanity. It's 2016. It's so easy to separate ourselves and become smaller and smaller pieces of humanity. ... It would be a big win for women, period."

The actress went on to say that there was one change they should not make to the character. If they're going to cast James Bond, then it needs to be James Bond. "And not Jane. She should be James Bond, and she should be able to sell it. Why not?" she added.

Cinema Blend's Dirk Libbey agrees, saying: "While James Bond is the world's most famous spy character, in the end, it's just a character, and it can be rewritten to allow a woman to play the part.

"James is a good name, let's not limit its use based strictly on gender."

The concept of a woman playing 007 is not new.

Gillian Anderson sent the Twittersphere ablaze when she posted a mock-up of herself as the spy with the caption: "Its Bond, Jane Bond."

Many were fully on board with the idea, notes Metro, but the actor has since said she doesn't feel Bond has to be a woman.

Asked whether a Jane Bond was due during an interview with Buzzfeed about the next series of her TV show The Fall, Anderson replied: "Not necessarily. I think maybe we can reinvent what Bond is. Maybe he doesn't have to fit into that paradigm."

Of the positive response from fans, she added: "It was flattering. It was a fun little thing that ran for a little while."

Her The Fall co-star, Jamie Dornan, told her: "I put a bet on. You can bet on you, though. I looked into it."

The news that Craig had reportedly been offered £150m to continue playing the spy was then put to the actress and she joked: "I wasn't offered £150m to play James Bond."

Next James Bond: Will Daniel Craig be replaced?

13 September

Sony is reportedly offering British actor Daniel Craig £113m to play James Bond in two more feature films.

"The studio is desperate to secure the actor's services while they phase in a younger long-term successor," according to a source quoted on entertainment website Radar. "The idea of losing him at such a crucial time in the franchise isn't an option as far as all the studio honchos are concerned."

Last year Craig said he would rather "slash my wrists" than reprise the role and earlier this year he was reported to have turned down £68m to take on two more Bond movies.

The Flickering Myth film website notes that the new offer is "considerably more", while Time Out concludes that "surely enough money to buy a small Caribbean island is a tempting excuse".

With speculation rife as to who might replace Craig, the film industry website IndieWire cautions that the news "has to be taken with a grain of Himalayan sea salt".

In fact, Drew McWeeny at HitFix calls the whole thing "nonsense", explaining that Sony might not even have anything to do with the next James Bond film – leaving fans of the franchise even further in the dark.

"When I reached out to someone close to the Bond franchise about what’s really going on with Daniel Craig and the future of the series, what became clear immediately is that there is no big story at the moment," says McWeeny.

Before Craig or anyone else signs on for the new films, the first announcement will be about who EON, the production company, chooses to do the distribution, he says.

"Will they re-sign with Sony? Unlikely, but possible... It’s far more likely that they’ll jump to a new studio, and Warner Bros has been particularly aggressive about trying to make sure they’re the new home for the enduring super-spy," says McWeeny.

He doesn't buy that Sony has "some ongoing stake in the future of the character", when "they don’t even have the rights to release one film".

Most commentators, though, would prefer the current Bond to hang on in there. "We're pretty sure Sony don't want any of Craig's rumoured replacements to reprise the role any time soon and for that Sony we salute you," says the Back to the Movies website.

Time Out agrees. Craig is the "growliest, punchiest Bond since Sean Connery, and a damn fine actor to boot", it says.

New James Bond: Studio bosses 'considering Idris Elba'

2 September

Film executives working on the next James Bond film have apparently drawn up a shortlist of candidates to replace Daniel Craig if he follows through on hints to quit the franchise – and attention has once again turned back to Idris Elba.

A source at MGM reportedly told The Sun the actor had particularly impressed studio bigwigs with his charismatic turn in Luther.

"There will be a lot of trepidation about a new Bond, but Idris's talent and proven appeal gives executives a lot of heart," the unnamed source said.

Elba has previously denied he has been sounded out as a potential 007, saying he is too old for the role. At 43, he would be the oldest debuting Bond since Roger Moore, who was 46 when he took over from Sean Connery in Live and Let Die. Moore, though, went on to front the franchise until 1985's A View To A Kill, when he was positively grandfatherly at 57, proving that a mature Bond isn't necessarily a deal-breaker.

Other names on the list include X-Men's Michael Fassbender, Luke Evans from Fast & Furious and Sons of Anarchy actor Charlie Hunnam.

Next James Bond: Chris Hemsworth 'perfect for the role'

30 August

Thor star Chris Hemsworth should be the next James Bond, according to a former 007 stuntman.

Bobby Holland Hanton said the 33-year-old Australian actor was "head and shoulders" above the competition, reports the Daily Mirror.

He added that Hemsworth, who is currently filming a new project alongside fellow Bond-hopefuls Idris Elba and Tom Hiddleston, was the perfect fit to play the suave spy.

"The buzz, and in my opinion, is that it's Chris Hemsworth for Bond. He would be perfect. I am not being biased in any way," said the award-winning stuntman, who appeared in three Bond films alongside outgoing 007 Daniel Craig.

"I think he would be perfect for it, and he has got a fantastic English accent as everyone knows from his performance in Rush.

"He has obviously got the physical shape. Tom [Hiddleston] is also training and hard at it in his own gym, but Chris is in a league of his own when it comes to physique.”

The Australian was recently asked about the prospect of taking on the job.

"I don't know many who wouldn't jump at that. Would it be scary and daunting? Of course. But what isn't?" he replied.

If Hemsworth were cast as the next Bond, he would officially be the second Aussie to play the role, after George Lazenby starred in the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

The actor's rise to the top of the pile comes as bosses of the franchise have reportedly given up hopes of tempting Craig into another outing. According to the Mirror, he has opted to switch his focus to new projects, saying: "We're done. All I want to do is move on."

Next James Bond: Bookies take bets on Jeremy Corbyn becoming new 007

25 August

One of the UK's biggest bookmakers is taking bets on Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn becoming the next James Bond.

Admittedly, they are quite long odds at 1000-1, but it should be remembered that at the beginning of the last football season, Leicester City were 5000-1 to win the Premier League.

So who else is Corbyn up against at the bottom of the list?

"Perennial bookies' favourite for every football manager's job Alan Curbishley" is a contender, Mental Floss says, "as is Jose Mourinho, pundit Robbie Savage, disgraced former Fifa president Sepp Blatter (which if rumours about corruption are true might not be such a silly bet), and TV gang botherer Ross Kemp."

Corbyn, of course, is still "the least likely man on the planet to be James Bond", the site adds, and only Ladbrokes is offering any kind of odds on him becoming Bond at all.

Counting against him, presumably, is his pacifism, his reluctance to wear a suit and the fact he is said rarely to drink alcohol.

Next James Bond: Could Daniel Craig return?

16 August

It had been widely assumed that Daniel Craig's time was up as James Bond, but the lack of a concrete announcement – despite months of speculation on his successor – has led some to believe that news of his demise has been greatly exaggerated.

Craig's schedule appeared to rule out a Bond film as he had recently signed up for the US drama Purity, a show based on the book of the same name by Jonathan Franzen which tells a series of interconnected modern-day stories.

The 20-episode first season did suggest the actor would struggle to fit in his Bond commitments. However, Craig's publicists – quick to avert the rumours – suggested at the time that Purity would not rule him out of playing Bond in any future instalments. Now David Nevins, the CEO of the US network Showtime, has also confirmed that Craig would have time to do Bond.

"It depends when they do the next James Bond movie, but I don't think it precludes him is the answer," he said. "[Purity] will largely be completed during the course of 2017."

He added that production for the show will be "fairly continuous" but there might be "some breaks somewhere".

It has previously been confirmed that the next Bond film wouldn't be showing in cinemas until at least 2018, but with director Sam Mendes having jumped ship "it seems we could even be waiting until 2019 for another instalment", says The Independent.

Next James Bond: War and Peace's James Norton new favourite

8 July

Tom Hiddleston's highly publicised love life has given British actor James Norton a leg-up in the race to play James Bond.

Ever since Daniel Craig announced his intention to surrender his licence to kill last year, pundits and fans have speculated wildly about who would step into the role. Until recently, The Night Manger star Hiddleston topped the list of bookmakers' favourites.

However, says The Sun, while the actor's new romance with singer Taylor Swift may have upped his number of Twitter followers, his "stock has never been lower for becoming the new James Bond".

The paper quotes a film source as saying the much-publicised affair has made Hiddleston "too high profile" to play Bond and he is now out of the running.

That should make fellow 007 favourite Aidan Turner the frontrunner - but Norton has emerged out of nowhere to become the bookies' choice.

The 30-year-old won fans as the swoon-worthy Prince Andrei Nikolayevich Bolkonsky in the BBC's adaptation of War and Peace, but has also showed his dark side as chilling, violent criminal Tommy Lee Royce in police drama Happy Valley.

BBC Newsbeat thinks Norton has all the right credentials to play Bond. A Cambridge graduate with honours, he's smart, has "mastered the brooding moody look", is a thrill-seeker who once jumped off Mount Everest with skis and a parachute – and importantly, "women love him".

Indeed, female fans have been rallying around Norton ever since the rumour emerged that he was likely to play the role, notes the Daily Mail.

They took to Twitter "in their droves", adds the paper, and could "barely contain their excitement" at the prospect of Norton taking over. They've even created a new hashtag - #JamesNortonForBond.

"If James Norton is the new James Bond I'll cry with joy," said one fan, while others made enquiries about how to become Bond girls.

Such is the interest that bookies were briefly forced to suspend betting after an "unprecedented run of bets on James Norton, who was backed into favouritism from 20/1 in a matter of hours", a Ladbrokes spokesperson said. Betting reopened with Norton as the odds-on favourite at 4/7.

Expectations of Turner becoming the next 007 appeared to be dashed when he announced he would be appearing in a third series of BBC drama Poldark, which would seemingly make him unavailable for filming.

The sudden flurry of interest in Norton has raised suspicions that someone has insider knowledge about film negotiations, but the saga's not over until Bond producer Barbara Broccoli makes her final decision.

One possibility who does seems unlikely to raise his stakes, however, is Nigel Farage.

Despite recently announcing his departure from the Ukip leadership, his odds for the Bond role remain a dismal 500/1 with Paddy Power.

Aidan Turner pips Tom Hiddleston as new Bond favourite

20 June

Poldark star Aidan Turner is the new bookies' favourite to be the next James Bond, reports the London Evening Standard.

Boyle Sports suspended betting on the actor on Tuesday, after a spike in interest, including at least one four-figure wager. It reopened betting this morning – and promptly shortened the odds on him replacing Daniel Craig to 1/5.

"We have opened back up the market this morning but cut Turner into the red hot 1/5 favourite to be drinking his Martinis 'Shaken Not Stirred'," said a spokesman.

"There is no smoke without a fire and it certainly looks like Turner has been in negotiations with the Bond producers and it will be interesting to see how long we will be able to keep the market open for."

Rival bookmaker Coral suspended betting on Tom Hiddleston last month after he was spotted with Spectre director Sam Mendes and Bond producer Barbara Broccoli, causing a spike in betting on him to be the next 007.

However, the Night Manager star played down the rumours last week at Wizard World Comic Con in Philadelphia. "I don't think that announcement is coming," he told fans.

Despite Hiddleston consistently downplaying the rumours of his imminent appointment, The Guardian describes the actor as "waging an unprecedentedly aggressive campaign to become the next James Bond" in an article about the Night Manager star's budding romance with Taylor Swift.

Craig is believed to be leaving the role after four outings, despite offered a reported £68m to stay on. Jamie Bell, James Norton and Damian Lewis have all been touted as replacements.

Several commentators have suggested it is time for a black Bond on film (David Oyelowo and Hugh Quarshie have both played the role in audio versions), with Idris Elba mooted as the best man for the job.

The best woman, meanwhile, appears to be Gillian Anderson - the X-Files star signalled her willingness to be the first female Bond by retweeting a mocked-up poster of her as the secret agent last month, reported the Daily Telegraph.

"There is no reason why we couldn't have a gay Bond, female Bond, black Bond, disabled Bond, or any other kind of Bond we can imagine," Christoph Lindner, a professor of Media Studies who edited the 2003 essay collection The James Bond Phenomenon: A Critical Reader, told GQ.

"But we won't get a new or different version of Bond until we truly, genuinely want one. Hollywood tends to give the public what it wants, and the fact that Bond has remained male, white, straight, and British speaks volumes."

In terms of colour and gender, Turner is a conventional choice and, says the Standard, is now the "red-hot favourite" with his saturnine good looks and evident talent, despite having little track record on the big screen.

Turner has numerous positives, says The Guardian, including being "taller than Craig" and offering "even more shirt-off moments per episode than the current 007 in his starring role in Poldark". If the producers want sexy and suave, they could do little wrong in choosing him – and he's young enough to play Bond in a half-dozen or more films over the next decade and a half, the paper adds.

Next James Bond: Hiddleston plays down rumours

8 June

Bookmakers may have been rather hasty by suspending betting on Tom Hiddleston to be the next James Bond. That's according to the man himself, who has finally addressed the increasing speculation that he is to replace Daniel Craig as the illustrious spy.

"I don't think that announcement is coming," Hiddleston told an excitable crowd at the Wizard World Comic Con in Philadelphia, where he was promoting his role as Loki in The Avengers film franchise.

"I am very gratified to hear the enthusiasm. Your guess is as good as mine, to be honest," The Night Manager star added.

The news will come as something of a surprise to Bond fans, particularly considering how far Hiddleston's stock has risen in recent months.

But the actor, "while expressing enthusiasm about the prospect, has repeatedly shot down rumours that he has signed on", says The Guardian.

In May, Hiddleston told the Graham Norton Show: "The thing is, the position isn't vacant, as far as I am aware. No one has talked to me about it."

His comments have led to attention shifting back to former favourite Aidan Turner. In fact, Metro have claimed the Poldark star will be announced as the new 007 "probably within two weeks".

But to confuse things even further, Night Manager director Susanne Bier is reportedly the frontrunner to be at the helm for the next Bond.

Her successful BBC show, in which Hiddleston played an MI5 operative who wears a tux and orders martinis, was warmly received by critics and viewers alike.

Bier, who would be the film franchise's first female director, has previously said of Hiddleston: "There's a certain incredibly enigmatic quality to his eyes. You aren't sure you can trust him, but you are sure there is a pain there that he doesn't show."

Next James Bond will be a surprise, says Mendes

31 May

Sam Mendes, the British film-maker behind Skyfall and Spectre, has done his best to quash rumours that the race to be the next 007 is done and dusted.

Earlier this month most bookmakers suspended betting on the candidates, following a series of large bets on Night Manager star Tom Hiddleston.

But Mendes believes that fans may well be surprised when the new Bond is announced.

"It's not a democracy," he told an audience at the Hay Festival, according to the Daily Telegraph. "It's not The X Factor, it's not the EU referendum, it's not a public vote. Barbara Broccoli chooses who's going to be the next Bond: end of story. I can guarantee whatever happens with it, it will not be what you expect. That's what she's been brilliant at and that's how it'll survive."

Speaking about Daniel Craig's relative anonymity before his casting, Mendes added: "Public support for Daniel was zero. It was Barbara saying, 'That man over there is going to change the whole thing, I'm going to cast him.'"

Mendes, who has been widely credited with revitalising the franchise following his stint at the helm of the past two blockbusters, also confirmed that Spectre was officially his last James Bond film. "It was an incredible adventure, I loved every second of it, but I think it's time for somebody else," he said.

It was reported last week that Craig has turned down £68m to star in a further two films. "Daniel is done – pure and simple – he told top brass at MGM after Spectre. They threw huge amounts of money at him, but it just wasn't what he wanted," one "LA film source" told the Daily Mail.

Hiddleston remains in pole position for the new role, with Ladbrokes and Betfair, the only companies still offering odds, making him favourite at 2/5. In a recent interview with Graham Norton, Hiddleston appeared flustered when trying to quell speculation, but did admit there were similarities between his role in the Night Manager and James Bond.

Flurry of wagers placed on Tom Hiddleston

16 May

Bookmakers have suspended bets on the next James Bond after a flurry of wagers on Tom Hiddleston sent his odds plummeting to 1-2.

The actor, who recently starred in the BBC adaptation of John Le Carré's spy thriller The Night Manager, has described himself as a "huge fan" of the 007 film franchise.

"Coral suspended betting after a particularly large bet was placed, sending his odds plummeting to 1-2," reports the Daily Telegraph.

A spokeswoman for the bookmakers told the newspaper: "There is no smoke without fire, and following the big gamble on Tom Hiddleston in the last 24 hours, we've had no choice but to pull the plug on the market."

Hiddleston has played down speculation, recently telling the Graham Norton Show: "The position isn't vacant as far as I'm aware. No one has talked to me about it.

"I think the rumours have come about because in The Night Manager I play a spy and people have made the link."

But a week later he was reportedly spotted meeting with Bond director Sam Mendes and producer Barbara Broccoli.

Ladbrokes and Paddy Power are still offering bets on the next 007, with Hiddleston firmly in the lead. Poldark's Aidan Turner, Mad Max star Tom Hardy, Luther actor Idris Elba and Homeland's Damian Lewis are also in the top five.

After a decade as Bond, Daniel Craig appears to be less than enthusiastic about returning to the role, telling Time Out he would rather "slash my wrists" than play 007 again straight after filming Spectre last year.

Next James Bond: 'Easy on the eye' Tom Hiddleston leads the pack

27 April

Tom Hiddleston remains the bookmaker's favourite to become the next James Bond if Daniel Craig decides to hang up his tuxedo.

The actor's schedule looks decidedly freer after he ruled out a second series of his hit BBC drama The Night Manager, telling fans: "I know the rumours about it extending, but none of that is real."

One person who has been impressed by his stint in the series was co-star Olivia Colman, who told This Morning she was rooting for Hiddleston to become the next 007.

"He is very easy on the eye. He'd be a great Bond," she said.

For his part, Hiddleston has done nothing to quash the rumours, even showing off his superspy animal-taming abilities on James Corden's US chat show, much to the delight of the internet.

While there has been no official word from the current 007, news he had signed up for a US television series prompted the press to declare Craig's "James Bond future was in doubt".

Asked last year if he could see himself tackling the role one more time, the actor told Esquire magazine: "At this moment, no. I have a life and I've got to get on with it a bit. But we'll see."

So who might take over? Here are the top six contenders:

1. Tom Hiddleston, 35

No longer a left-field choice, Hiddleston has come into favour after issuing his "come and get me" plea in The Sunday Times. Following his Bondesque portrayal of a spy with a taste for violence in The Night Manager, he talked up his ambitions in relation to the role, telling the newspaper: "I'm very aware of the physicality of the [Bond] job. I would not take it lightly." He's even played a caricature of the smooth spy in a series of Jaguar adverts.[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"content_original","fid":"92008","attributes":{"class":"media-image"}}]]

2.Tom Hardy, 38

London-born Hardy is second in the list and with two of 2015's biggest films under his belt - Mad Max: Fury Road and The Revenant - his star has never shone brighter. Though his Mad Max character was a "grunting road warrior", the actor can do suave when called upon, says Vanity Fair, with roles in This Means War and Inception proving his range. His "you mustn't be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling" line in Inception was "classic Bond", says the magazine.

3. Idris Elba, 43

Long been seen as a Bond-in-waiting, Elba has recently been making all the right noises that his time might be now. The British star, who made his name with a thick Boston accent as Stringer Bell in The Wire, would be the first black actor to play the role on film. However, odds lengthened when Anthony Horowitz, who writes Bond novels for Ian Fleming's estate, said Elba was "too street" for the part, although the author has since apologised and says he can see other black actors in the role.

4. Aidan Turner, 32

Turner could be the surprise choice to follow in the footsteps of fellow Irishman Pierce Brosnan. He has numerous positives, says The Guardian, including being "taller than Craig" and offering "even more shirt-off moments per episode than the current 007 in his starring role in Poldark". If the producers want sexy and suave, they could do little wrong in choosing him – and he's young enough to play Bond in a half-dozen or more films over the next decade and a half, the paper adds.

5. Damian Lewis, 45

At a time when prospective Bonds are staking their claim, the Eton-educated star of Homeland has seen his odds lengthen. Last year's frontrunner saw a sudden flurry of bets placed on him "for no apparent reason", causing bookies to slash his odds in case the punters knew something they didn't, says the Daily Telegraph. Bond producer Barbara Broccoli worked with Lewis on The Silent Storm and is said to be a fan. There's one problem with the actor though, according to New York Post critic Reed Tucker: "We will never accept a ginger James Bond."

6: Henry Cavill, 32

Cavill is still in the running despite signing on to play Superman in several Justice League films for Warner Bros over the next five years. His performances as the Man of Steel have gained rave reviews and his brooding mystique has shown he's as happy alongside superhero A-listers in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as he is winning female affection in The Man from UNCLE.

The best of the rest

Others linked for the role include Irishman Michael Fassbender, Star Wars actor John Boyega, British stalwart Orlando Bloom, Spooks star David Oyelowo and actor and model Oliver Jackson-Cohen.

Spectre: stars rub shoulders with royals at world premiere

27 October

The world premiere of the new James Bond film was a star-studded affair, with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry joining celebrities on the red carpet in London.

"It's just fantastic to see everybody out tonight," said Daniel Craig as he arrived at the premiere." I love playing Bond," he told the BBC. "It's changed my life and I've loved every second of it."

But he remained tight-lipped about whether he would retain his role as agent 007. Producer Barbara Broccoli said: "I'm pretty determined to keep him!"

Craig was joined on the red carpet by fellow cast members Naomie Harris, who plays Eve Moneypenny, new villain Christoph Waltz and "Bond girls" Lea Seydoux and Monica Bellucci.

This is the fourth Bond film starring Craig and the second instalment directed by Sam Mendes, with a scriptwriting team made up of John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and the award-winning British playwright Jez Butterworth.

A cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on the trail of a sinister organisation known as Spectre. While the new M battles political forces to keep the MI6 in action, Bond travels the globe in an attempt to discover the truth behind his true enemy.

What do the critics make of it?

The film has seduced most critics with its slick mix of spectacular action and ghosts of 007s past, but some feel it can't top Skyfall for emotional depth and drama.

In The Times, Kate Muir calls Spectre "achingly cool, and as sleek and powerful as the silver Aston Martin DB10 that races through the movie". Muir says director Mendes and Craig are now so comfortable with the late-007 action genre that a relaxed wit percolates almost every scene and their recipe seems "bulletproof".

It's "a swaggering show of confidence", says Robbie Collin in the Daily Telegraph. The film starts in Mexico City with "a hold-your-breath tracking shot" that follows Bond through a surging street parade, into a hotel, up three floors, into a suite, out of the window, and much further, without a single observable cut – "an instant all-time greatest moment in the franchise".

Spectre blends flinty modernity and some shiveringly sadistic moments with sly references to the ghosts of Bond's past, says Collin. And it pulls it off in "the grand old Fleming style".

Indeed, it's a "terrifically exciting, spectacular, almost operatically delirious 007 adventure", says Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian. Spectre is "pure action mayhem with a real sense of style". And not only does this Bond endorse intelligence work as "old-fashioned derring-do", says Bradshaw, it also takes a pro-Snowden line against "the creepy voyeur surveillance that undermines the rights of a free individual".

But a few critics had reservations about the new Bond film.

In pure action-adventure terms, "Spectre delivers the goods", says Stephen Dalton in the Hollywood Reporter. But plot-wise, "it feels like the filmmakers have been bluffing a great poker hand for two hours before throwing down a pair of threes". There is "enough dazzle and derring-do to keep the Bond brand afloat", he adds, but not enough to make it a game-changer like Skyfall.

Wendy Ide on The Wrap agrees, saying Spectre is a "frustratingly unsatisfying experience". Whereas Skyfall explored the emotional back story of the world's most famous secret agent and served up unexpected pathos along with the action, says Ide, "Spectre is all about the set pieces", where character development and dialogue come a distant second place.

Spectre opens in the UK on Monday 26 October.

Spectre: is Max Denbigh actually Blofeld?

16 October

Spectre will finally premiere in the UK in just over a week and – with the rumour mill in overdrive – some fans are wondering if there will be a "villain switcheroo".

The 24th James Bond film stars Christopher Waltz as the villainous Franz Oberhauser opposite Daniel Craig's 007. However, it has long been rumoured that Oberhauser will actually turn out to be one of the most famous Bond baddies of all time: Blofeld.

In previous films, Blofeld headed the global criminal organisation Spectre (Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion), although the character has not been seen on the big screen since 1983's Never Say Never Again. Waltz has explicitly denied that his character will turn out to be Blofeld, and now the mystery surrounding another character – Max Denbigh played by Andrew Scott – has prompted rumours that Waltz might be a decoy.

Details about Denbigh, the head of the "Centre for National Security", are thin. Irish actor Scott, who is best known for playing Sherlock Holmes's arch-nemesis Moriarty, has said only that his Spectre character is "a member of the intelligence world". According to a short synopsis of the plot, he "questions Bond's actions and challenges the relevance of MI6".

One trailer also shows him staring menacingly at the screen and seemingly fighting the new M (Ralph Fiennes).

Yes, the old "villain switcheroo" is still unexpected enough to work, says WhatCulture. "While everyone is happily floating along on the assumption that Oberhauser is Blofeld, despite Christoph Waltz's adamant defiance, the film might be about to throw the curve-ball that Scott's Denbigh is actually the real big bad."

There is also a theory that it is Scott saying a line in the trailer that was initially assumed to be Waltz: "you came across me so many times, yet you never saw me". If it is Scott, says WhatCulture, it would be "pretty damning evidence that he is in fact the real puppeteer behind Spectre".

• Spectre is due for release on 26 October 2015.

Spectre: is Sam Smith's James Bond song 'epic' or 'whiny'?

Sam Smith's James Bond theme song for the upcoming film Spectre has left fans and critics divided, with some saying it is too emotional for 007.

Writing's On the Wall, written by Smith and Jimmy Nape, was released on iTunes and Spotify today, marking the first Bond theme song to be recorded by a British male solo artist for 40 years.

Smith described it as one of the highlights of his career, but fans weren't so sure.

One tweeter described it as "bland and whiny", while others said it was "the worst Bond theme ever". Many people pointed out its similarities to parts of Michael Jackson's Earth Song.

The Guardian's Alexis Petridis says it is nowhere near as striking as Adele's Skyfall. "That may be because it's essentially offering more of the same, while Skyfall felt like a break with the recent past, or it may be because it just isn't as good a song," he says. You keep expecting it to arrive at a "showstopping chorus", but that never comes, says Petridis.

"Perhaps there's something telling about Smith's boast that it took him 20 minutes to write: the result feels less like a Bond theme song than a latter-day pop ballad – the kind of thing that X Factor contestants have a crack at – with big strings and 007 references bolted on."

Digital Spy thinks it's too emotional for 007. "Unless we're about to meet a Bond crying over a girl he met on Tinder in Spectre, the heart of Writing's On The Wall is too tender for the newly-brutal spy," it says.

But other critics have been much more forthcoming with praise.

The Wall Street Journal says it has "all the makings of a classic Bond theme song" with "sweeping orchestration harkening back to signature 007 compositions like Goldfinger, and Smith's pristine vocals".

Neil McCormick at the Daily Telegraph says the "intimate and epic" track may be the greatest vocal of Smith's short career.

"After 53 years and 23 official themes, it is not easy to create a Bond song without venturing into musical pastiche," says McCormick, "but you would have to say Smith has pulled it off with aplomb."

Spectre: next James Bond will be a white man, says Brosnan

24 September 2015

James Bond star Pierce Brosnan has seemingly ruled out Idris Elba as the next star of the hit franchise.

With Spectre expected to be the final appearance from Daniel Craig in the starring role, there were rumours that the new Bond might be non-white, or even female.

Elba, best known for playing Nelson Mandela, Luther and Stringer Bell in The Wire, has been a popular suggestion. But his name has also been the focus of controversy, after Anthony Horowitz, who writes Bond novels for Ian Fleming's estate, contentiously declared Elba "too rough" for the part.

Brosnan, who played Bond between 1994 and 2005 in chapters such as The World Is Not Enough, told the Press Association: "Anything is possible for sure, but I think he'll be male and he'll be white."

He added: "There's wonderful black actors out there who could be James Bond, and there's no reason why you cannot have a black James Bond.

"But a female James Bond, no, I think it has to be male. James Bond is a guy, he's all male. His name is James, his name is James Bond."

This is not the first time that Brosnan has weighed in on the debate over who will succeed Craig. Last month, he told Details magazine there could be a gay James Bond, but that the current director would not allow it.

In March, another former Bond, Sir Roger Moore, was accused of racism. Asked by Paris Match about Elba succeeding Craig, he said the role must be "English-English". As a storm erupted, Sir Roger said the quotes were "lost in translation".

Spectre: Daniel Craig's 007 is booziest Bond ever

22 September

Daniel Craig is the booziest James Bond ever, drinking an average of 20 units per film, according to a new study.

The spy has been played by six actors spanning more than five decades but only Pierce Brosnan, Craig's immediate predecessor, comes anywhere close to matching the current 007's penchant for alcohol.

The analysis, brought out ahead of the new film Spectre, shows Timothy Dalton was the most austere spy, only drinking between four and five units per film.

The researchers believe that much of this could be down to the increasing muscle of the franchise's sponsors. Luxury Vodka brand Belvedere will be sponsoring the upcoming movie.

Rob Brown, from the Grocer Magazine, which compiled the research, explains: "A partnership with 007 can pay big for brands, as booze brands as diverse as Bollinger, Jim Beam, Red Stripe and Heineken will attest. Belvedere's decision to jump into bed with Bond is a landmark moment for the brand."

Despite playing the booziest Bond on camera, Daniel Craig has previously lamented his inability to drink in public since taking on the role.

"You talk to people in the movie business who have been doing this 40 years and they all say the difference is that, back in the day, you could go and have a drink in the bar, get drunk, fall over, have a good time, relax, whatever, and no one would know about it," he told lifestyle magazine Vanity Fair in 2012.

The actor complained: "But now everyone's got a camera. So you can't live a normal life anymore. Because it will become public knowledge that you've whatever – gotten drunk in a bar or skinny-dipped on a beach or something."

In other Bond news, the new film's theme song is to be released on 25 September and singer Sam Smith has released a quick snippet of the new track on his twitter account.

Unfortunately for the 23-year-old singer early reviews haven't all been positive.

Best Bond songs: how will Sam Smith's Spectre song compare?

8 September

Sam Smith has confirmed that he will soon join the long list of artists who have lent their voice to a James Bond theme song.

His contribution, Writing's On The Wall, will be unveiled on 25 September, ahead of the new 007 movie Spectre, which is due to be released in the UK on 26 October.

The British singer said it was one of the highlights of his career. "I am so excited to be a part of this iconic British legacy and join an incredible line-up of some of my biggest musical inspirations," he said. "I hope you all enjoy the song as much as I enjoyed making it."

He has co-written it with Grammy-winner Jimmy Napes, who also helped write Smith's Stay With Me and I'm Not The Only One.

Spectre producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli said it would "surely be considered one of the greatest Bond songs of all time". But can it compete with these?

Skyfall, Adele (2012)

Adele's Skyfall became the first Bond theme song to win a Golden Globe and Academy Award. It topped the iTunes chart within hours of its release in October 2012, although only reached number two in the UK's official singles chart.

Goldfinger, Shirley Bassey (1964)

Shirley Bassey holds the record for singing the most James Bond themes, including Diamonds Are Forever in 1971 and Moonraker in 1979. But it was Goldfinger that became one of the star's signature songs and stood the test of time like few other Bond themes, says Wales Online.

Live and Let Die, Paul McCartney (1973)

Rolling Stone named Live and Let Die the greatest James Bond theme song three years ago. Guns N' Roses gave it a second lease of life in 1991 with their own "even more over-the-top cover", says the magazine.

Duran Duran, A View To A Kill (1985)

It was the only Bond song to reach the top of the Billboard charts and was named best of the Bond themes by Digital Spy earlier this summer. "Duran Duran's tune brilliantly straddles the line between being a great 'Bond theme' and a cracking song in its own right," says the website.

01 September

Daniel Craig has claimed that his version of James Bond is "not as sexist and misogynistic" as his predecessors'.

The actor, who has been the face of Bond for nearly a decade, will star in the next 007 film Spectre, due out next month.

Ahead of the release, he told Esquire magazine: "Hopefully, my Bond is not as sexist and misogynistic as [earlier incarnations]. The world has changed. I am certainly not that person. But he is, and so what does that mean? It means you cast great actresses and make the parts as good as you can for the women in the movies."

In what The Guardian describes as "an unlikely twist" the leading woman in the new film Spectre will be Monica Bellucci, an actress three years Craig's senior. As the newspaper remarks: "Bond has traditionally romanced younger women – in Skyfall, Bérénice Marlohe was 11 years his junior."

Craig also opened up in the interview about how he views 007. "He's very f****** lonely," he said. "There's a great sadness. He's f****** these beautiful women but then they leave and it's … sad."

Describing his incarnation of Bond, one that has gained countless plaudits from critics, Craig explained: "He has to be affected by what happens to him. It's not just that he has to kill the bad guy, there has to be a reason for it."

The 47-year-old hinted that Spectre will be "Skyfall times ten" and a "celebration of all that's Bond", but he was less certain about continuing on in the role. Despite rumours that he had signed on for one more film, he told the magazine: "I really don't know. I'm not trying to be coy. At the moment I can't even conceive it."

When pushed as to whether he would like to do another one, the actor said: "At this moment, no. I have a life and I've got to get on with it a bit. But we'll see."

The news that Craig may not continue in the role is likely to reignite the debate as to who will play the character next and whether the role should go to a black actor. New James Bond author Anthony Horowitz recently told the Daily Mail that he thought frontrunner Idris Elba was "too street" to play the role and that there were "other black actors that would do it better".

The new film Spectre will be released in cinemas on 6 October.

Spectre theme tune: Ellie Goulding or Radiohead?

29 July

After the release of the trailer of the new Bond movie, Spectre, scheduled to open in UK cinemas later this year, fans are keen to find out who will be singing the film's theme song.

Early reports indicated that pop starlet Ellie Goulding was the favourite to follow in the footsteps of musical luminaries such as Shirley Bassey, Madonna and Carly Simon. She seemed to acknowledge the rumours with a tweet earlier this month that read "Live and let die", apparently a reference to the title of the 1973 Bond film starring Roger Moore.

Showbiz 411 has also "exclusively" revealed that Goulding has a song registered with BMI Music called Spy. "Is it the theme from 'Spectre', the new James Bond movie?" it asks. "All signs indicate yes."

Goulding went on to fuel the fire by posting an Instagram picture of herself leaving the Abbey Road studios, where the Bond soundtracks are known to be recorded, with the caption: "That's a wrap."

However, Waltz has said that his character is "definitely not" Blofeld, "in any form – at all", says The Independent. "There is neither a bald pate nor a white pussycat in sight," says the newspaper, "but rumours that Christoph Waltz's villain in Spectre is actually Ernst Stavro Blofeld in disguise refuse to die in the face of blatant denial."

Empire is less certain on the matter, pointing to Waltz's Nehru jacket in the trailer, which is very similar to Blofeld's. The magazine asks: "Is that a clever bluff to make him look like Blofeld and stir up the rumour pot, before the film confirms that he isn't at all?"

The reaction from some critics to the trailer itself has been mixed, with BBC Newsbeat praising the intriguing mysteries in the trailer, but admitting the film still seems to have "plenty of clichés".

Director Sam Mendes appears to be going for "absolute broke", says Wired, adding that "the interiors, the exteriors, the wide shots, the tight ones – every frame of this new Spectre trailer is rich and beautiful and art directed within an inch of its ever-loving life".

Fans on Twitter have been overwhelmingly positive, with many wondering whether this could be the best Bond yet.

However, one criticised the trailer for not leaving more to the imagination:

Spectre is due for release on 26 October 2015.

Spectre director Mendes says no more Bond films - probably

James Bond director Sam Mendes has said that Spectre, due out later this year, will be his last encounter with 007.

Mendes, who also directed 2012's Skyfall, says he is finished with 007 – probably.

Speaking to the BBC's Jonathan Agnew on Radio 5's Test Match Special on the weekend, Mendes said the two films took a total of five years to make.

"It feels almost, even though we've just finished shooting it, like one big experience, and it was a fantastic life-changing thing," he said. But he does not want to go through it again. "It really is more a lifestyle choice than a job."

Spectre stars Daniel Craig as M16 agent 007 and co-stars Christoph Waltz, Lea Seydoux, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Monica Bellucci and Ralph Fiennes.

It was filmed in London, Italy, Mexico and Morocco with a cast and crew of over 1,000 people, Mendes said. "And you really do feel it…It's been an enormous undertaking."

Mendes, went on to say: "I don't think I could go down that road again" because "you do have to put everything else on hold".

However, Mendes admitted that it wasn't the first time he'd said no to Bond. "I said 'No' to the last one and then ended up doing it and was pilloried by all my friends," he said. "But I do think this is probably it."

Not everyone was convinced by Mendes' declaration. In the Radio Times, Emma Daly writes: "'Almost', 'probably', 'think'… He doesn't sound quite sure, does he?"

Mendes, 49, made his name in theatre, and managed to direct a new stage production of Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in between making the Bond films. The production is still running on London's West End. He said he was keen to return to working on stage productions.

In the interview, he explained: "I'm happiest rehearsing a play or editing a movie, and I think that when I've finished a movie I generally want to be back in a theatre environment again."

But he added: "It won't be long before I want to do another film, and I'm very, very fortunate to be able to go back and forth between the two."

Mendes also revealed that the theme song has been recorded for Spectre, but he wasn't prepared to disclose who performs it. "It's fantastic and I'm very excited about it," he said. "You won't have to wait long."

Spectre, the 24th instalment in the Bond franchise, will get its world premiere in London on 26 October.

Spectre: James Bond spotted during Thames stunt

18 May

Most of his fans will have to wait until 15 December to see James Bond's next outing, but a handful of bystanders were given a glimpse of the fictional spy in London this weekend.

Several bridges were closed while the cast performed stunts during filming for Spectre, the 24th James Bond film.

The production team told passers-by that Daniel Craig was performing a scene involving speedboats racing along the Thames in central London.

The actor was photographed alongside French actress Lea Seydoux at the helm of a twin-engined grey boat. Craig, who returns as the British spy for the fourth time, could be seen pointing a gun as the boat sped beneath a bridge.

Spectre is the follow-up to the 2012 Bond film Skyfall, which set a record for the series with takings of £700m worldwide. It was also the highest-grossing film of all time at the UK box office, knocking James Cameron’s 3D sci fi film Avatar off top spot, The Independent reports.

The film also stars Monica Bellucci as a new Bond girl named Lucia Sciarra, and Ralph Fiennes will take over from Judy Dench as M. Naomie Harris will reprise her role as Moneypenny, while Ben Whishaw returns as Q, the quartermaster behind James Bond's weaponry and gadgets.

According to producers, the plot of Spectre will see "a cryptic message from Bond's past send him on a trail to uncover a sinister organisation".

Spectre stands for Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion and is an international crime syndicate that featured prominently in the early days of the long-running spy film series.

The organisation was overseen by criminal mastermind Ernst Stavro Blofeld, who ruled the terror group with an iron fist.

Spectre featured in several James Bond films in the 1960s, but disappeared due to a "tussle with rival film producers", the BBC reports. That dispute has now been resolved, paving the way for the return of Bond's arch-nemesis.

Spectre: Day of Dead opening sequence to outdo past Bonds

8 April

The opening sequence of the new James Bond film Spectre is set to be the "biggest" the franchise has ever produced.

Set in Mexico City during the national Day of the Dead festival, the first scenes involve exploding buildings, a chase through the parade, a fight inside a helicopter and "one of the most spectacular stunts in Bond history", according to Empire.

Producer Michael G Wilson told the film magazine it may be "the biggest opening sequence we've ever done, maybe the biggest sequence we've ever done".

He said: "We've got 1,500 extras in Day of the Dead costumes and make-up and we've occupied the centre of Mexico City for days. The only thing that's come close to it was putting on the carnival in Rio in Moonraker, and I think this is a much bigger operation."

Newly released stills also show a rooftop gun battle and the recently-cast Stephanie Sigman wearing a Day of the Dead mask as "Estrella". According to The Independent, Mexico's government reportedly paid up to $20m for the film-makers to portray the country in a positive light.

Meanwhile, Daniel Craig has been forced to undergo knee surgery for an injury sustained during a fight scene.

His break from filming came as a panel of medical experts assessing Skyfall on behalf of Total Film concluded that Bond would have been dead after the first seven minutes of the film. He was hit with fragments of a depleted uranium shell that would have "turned his lungs inside out and killed him", they said.

Naomie Harris, who starred as Moneypenny in Skyfall, will return to Bond's side in Spectre, as will Ralph Fiennes as M and Ben Whishaw as Q.

Christoph Waltz will also join the cast, but has denied rumours that he will be playing the classic super-villain Blofeld.

James Bond Spectre trailer: a preview to a kill

March 28

James Bond fans have been given their first glimpse of the next 007 film, Spectre, with the launch of a teaser trailer – and intriguing plot details – for the 24th film in the spy series.

It may be more than half a century since Ian Fleming conjured up the Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion – otherwise known as Spectre – but film executives are banking on the old enemy to give the venerable secret agent another new lease of life.

"A cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organisation," the publicists say. "While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind Spectre".

After the success of Skyfall, which took in $1.1 billion worldwide, the cast and crew for its successor will have a familiar feel.

Daniel Craig has a fourth outing as James Bond, while Naomie Harris reprises the role of Moneypenny, Ralph Fiennes will again call the shots as M and the much-lauded Ben Whishaw returns as Q. Monica Bellucci, Christoph Waltz and Stephanie Signman will join the cast.

Sam Mendes, who directed Skyfall, and screenwriter John Logan take up similar roles on Spectre, which is scheduled for release in October.

James Bond: Welsh Assembly bars 007 from Senedd

13 March

Producers of the forthcoming James Bond movie, Spectre, have been refused permission to film scenes at the Senedd chamber in Cardiff Bay by the National Assembly for Wales.

The film, directed by Sam Mendes and starring Daniel Craig, is currently in production in Pinewood Studios, and locations including London, Mexico City and Rome.

The BBC reports that Welsh Assembly officials were approached by the makers of Spectre for permission to film scenes in the Senedd's debating chamber, the Siambr, in late 2014. But the Assembly rejected the request, saying the political building was "not a drama studio".

In a statement, it said: "The Senedd's Siambr [chamber] is the home of Welsh democracy and seat of government for Wales. Some media activity is allowed in the Siambr when it relates to the work of the Assembly or reflects the Siambr's status as the focal point of Welsh civic life."

But the statement added that decisions are made on a case-by-case basis, and noted that the Assembly was "proud to have collaborated with many television and film companies on drama productions such as Sherlock and Dr Who".

The Assembly reportedly offered Bond producers alternative locations on the estate but these were turned down.

The news prompted some Bond fans to take to Twitter to express their disappointment. One user tweeted: "So the Queen said yes to Bond in 2012 but the Senedd in late 2014 said no. Can't help thinking this is a big missed opportunity for Wales." Another commented: "Oh well, thank God the Assembly doesn't have any public awareness problems..."

Others were sceptical about the Assembly's reasoning, with one writing: "Request for Bond filming in Senedd rejected. Officials state building is not a drama venue. Could have fooled me."

Even BBC presenter Huw Edwards, who had a small role reading the news in the last Bond film Skyfall, spoke up about the issue, tweeting: "Speaking as a hugely successful Bond star, I am saddened."

Spectre will be the 24th James Bond film, and is due to be released in cinemas in November this year.

Spectre: Stephanie Sigman named as third Bond girl

11 March

The team behind the latest James Bond film Spectre has welcomed its latest member: new girl Stephanie Sigman.

The Mexican actress will play Estrella, a character predicted by fans to be killed off before the final credits roll.

Sigman appeared in 2013 television series The Bridge, as well as the Oscar-nominated film Miss Bala in 2011.

"As if Monica Bellucci and Léa Seydoux weren't enough, Daniel Craig is going to have another Bond girl to try his best one-liners on in the next 007 film," says Hollywood Reporter, although fans have been given no clues as to whether Estrella will be Bond's friend or enemy.

The Guardian says: "James Bond movies typically feature three female actors who are romanced by 007, with at least one killed off during the events of the film. As the lesser-known of the three stars, speculation has already begun that Sigman will get the sacrificial-lamb role."

Craig will return as the British spy for the fourth time, along with director Sam Mendes, who last month revealed some clues about the plot of the new Bond movie, the 24th in the series.

In a video clip showing behind-the-scenes footage, Mendes says Bond is on the hunt for somebody, but the audience does not immediately know why. According to the Ian Fleming novels, Spectre stands for Special Executive for Counter-Intelligence, Terrorism Revenge and Extortion, headed by super-villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

The plot also looks at the story of Bond's childhood, and develops the characters of M (Ralph Fiennes), Q (Ben Whishaw) and Miss Moneypenny (Naomie Harris).

Mendes says all three characters risk their careers and livelihoods in different ways to help Bond, who is considering "whether or not to pursue the life he has always pursued".

Spectre: first look at James Bond behind-the-scenes video

12 February

Sony Pictures has released behind-the-scenes footage from the new James Bond film Spectre, showing Daniel Craig fighting on top of an Austrian mountain.

Director Sam Mendes and his team are still filming, with the movie's opening date set for 6 November 2015.

French actress Lea Seydoux, who plays femme fatale Madeleine Swann, can be seen in Solden, an area in Tyrol popular with skiers.

Gregg Wilson, associate producer, reveals that this will be the location for "one of the major action sequences of the movie – the jewel in the crown so to speak".

Footage shows the crew filming on the Gaislachkogl mountain, in front of the resort's modern Ice Q restaurant, with its gondola lift and suspension bridge to the peak.

The 1.53-minute featurette finishes off with Craig, dressed in black, fending off an attacker and firing a shot on a snowy mountaintop.

Other filming locations are said to include London, Rome, Mexico, Morocco and Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire.

The Jaguar C-X75, Range Rover Sport SVR and bespoke Defender Big Foots are also set to feature in the film.

Skyfall actors Naomie Harris (Eve Moneypenny), Ben Whishaw (Q) and Ralph Fiennes (M) will be returning for Spectre, as well as newcomers Dave Bautista, Andrew Scott and Monica Bellucci.

Christoph Waltz, who starred alongside Seydoux in Inglourious Basterds, has also been cast.

Spectre: James Bond 24 title and cast announced

14 December

The new James Bond movie will be called Spectre, the filmmakers have announced. The film will be shot in London, Rome, Mexico, Morocco and the Austrian Alps. The iconic secret agent will drive an Aston Martin DB10.

The details were revealed at a press conference held at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire this morning, home to the espionage franchise since 1962's Dr. No.

The cast and crew will have a familiar feel. Daniel Craig will make his fourth outing as James Bond in the film, which will be the 24th official episode in the series. Sam Mendes, who directed Skyfall, and screenwriter John Logan will also return.

Naomie Harris will reprise her role of Moneypenny, Ralph Fiennes will be calling the shots as M and the much-lauded Ben Whishaw will return as Q. Monica Bellucci and Christoph Waltz will join the cast.

Principal photography for the film, which is set for UK release on October 23 2015, is due to begin on Monday.

It will be a stiff challenge for the new movie to better the success of previous instalment Skyfall, which was the highest grossing film of all time in the UK. The final Hunger Games chapter and the hotly awaited Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens are due for release around the same time.

If Daniel Craig fulfils his contract he will become the third longest serving Bond actor, behind Sean Connery and Roger Moore. After Skyfall, the 46-year-old is signed on for two more outings as 007, which would mean five in total. He is the sixth actor to star in the role.

The Bond movie series has been in production since 1962 when Sean Connery starred in Dr No. The spy's gadgets, which include everything from spike umbrellas to the flying Wallis autogyro, have become a popular feature of the movies. So have the Bond girls, with their bawdy names such as Pussy Galore and Holly Goodhead. They have been portrayed by a galaxy of stars including Ursula Andress, Honor Blackman and Halle Berry.

The actor, Richard Kiel, famous for playing the steel-toothed James Bond villain Jaws, has died at the age of 74.

A spokesman at Saint Agnes medical centre in Fresno, California, confirmed that Kiel had died but declined to give any further information.

The 7ft 2in actor found worldwide fame opposite Roger Moore's 007 in The Spy Who Loved Me in 1979, and then reprised the role two years later in Moonraker.

Steve Stevens, Kiel's agent, said: "He was a very loyal friend and client for over 35 years, a terrific husband and father, and was not only a giant actor but a giant man." So what else is known about one of the Bond franchise's greatest and most-loved villains?

Cemetery salesman and maths tutor

According to his IMDb entry, before he became an actor he worked as a bouncer at a Los Angeles nightclub. He had also held jobs as a cemetery plot salesman and night school maths tutor.

Fear of heights

Kiel suffered from acrophobia. In The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker, Roger Moore's stuntman stood in for him for some of the more vertiginous scenes.

Not so Chewy

Kiel turned down the role of Chewbacca in the Star Wars films. In an interview with The Times in 2012, he said that he was offered a lot of monster parts due to his height. He said he decided not to take the role of Chewbacca because he was afraid of being type cast and because it is "always so hot inside those suits". After turning the role down, Kiel was cast as Jaws.

More than just colleagues

Roger Moore and Richard Kiel remained friends long after they finished shooting together. According to Kiel, Moore was a "great team player, he just wanted the movies to be a success. He didn't care whether I stole scenes. Most movie stars wouldn't have put up with that."

According to Kiel, Moore was incredibly funny on the set, often improvising lines that ended up in the final cut. "For example, when Roger and Lois Chiles jump off the cable car and she says, 'Who is that? Do you know him?' and Roger says 'Not socially. His name's Jaws, he kills people.' Fantastic."

Truck accident

Kiel withdrew from acting in later life after he was involved in a truck accident. He remained "active on the autograph circuit" for avid Bond fans, The Guardian says, but the accident forced him to walk with a cane. In his later years he used a motorised wheelchair.

Like James Bond, Doctor Who has been played by many different actors over the years. Unlike Bond, though, there is an explicable reason for the casting change: the Doctor is an alien, capable of regenerating and taking different forms when mortally wounded.

Over the years, Doctor Who has been variously sombre, clownish, happy-go-lucky and – often – more than a little odd. The new Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi promises to be "less user-friendly" than his immediate predecessors. "I was keen he be a little darker," Capaldi told the BBC's Lizo Mzimba at a preview of the new series in London yesterday. "He's struggling with himself and who he is".

So how will Capaldi's Doctor fit in among the motley crew he succeeds? Most Doctors have ended up touching the hearts of their own generation of fans, but some have been less immediately lovable than others. Here are five of the least fuzzy.

The sixth Doctor, played by Colin Baker

Some Doctors have been kindly, others not so much. Colin Baker's incarnation of the Doctor could be "arrogant, mean and even violent at times", IGN notes. Baker's not altogether charming reinterpretation of the character is sometimes held responsible for the show's gradual decline that led to its cancellation in 1989.

The first Doctor, played by William Hartnell

William Hartnell's Doctor could be "selfish, haughty and prickly", and even long-time fans of the series "have trouble reconciling some of the words, actions and attitudes of this first incarnation with the later versions of the Doctor", IGN says. Still, the Edwardian coat-wearing time traveller saw the show through its critical early years, and brought the Doctor into contact with his long-time foes, the Daleks and the Cybermen.

The second Doctor, played by Patrick Troughton

Doctor Who co-creator Sydney Newman suggested that after his first regeneration, the Doctor could be played as a "cosmic hobo", fan website Tardis Data Core says. Troughton, a veteran television and radio actor was the man to do it, although he reportedly hated publicity. As he said to one interviewer, "I think acting is magic. If I tell you all about myself it will spoil it". The actor embodied the role as a "father figure", said Doctor Who producer Peter Lloyd, and his stern appearance was offset by a tendency towards wit, and playfulness.

The ninth Doctor, played by Christopher Ecclestone

The actor credited with reinventing Doctor Who for today's television audience, gave the role a new steely edge. But in spite of the plaudits, he didn't last long on the show and left after just one series admitting that he "didn't enjoy the environment and the culture" of the production, and wanted to be his "own man".

The seventh Doctor, played by Sylvester McCoy

Though on the surface he appeared to be something of a buffoon, the seventh Doctor gradually developed into "a mysterious, cunning manipulator" and "a Machiavellian genius of frightful calibre," Tardis Data Core says. Though he had many fans during his short run at the Doctor, McCoy was rated as the fourth least popular actor in a poll of 20,000 Doctor Who fans, conducted by Entertainment Weekly last year. Baker, Hartnell and Paul McGann came below him.

IF IAN FLEMING were writing the James Bond books today, his hero would be working for MI5, not Universal Exports or MI6, whose role after the long withdrawing roar of British influence in the world, particularly in the last decade, is increasingly one of liaison.

As the front line against Islamist terror has moved from the Middle East to the Midlands and the Home Counties, MI5 has become the key intelligence service.

How it is supervised is therefore a matter of personal importance to us all. And it doesn’t seem to be working as it should. It’s beginning to look as though MI5 should have been able to intercept Fusilier Lee Rigby’s brutal killers before they struck in May last year.

This is apparently the view expressed by the parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) in its report on his murder currently circulating in draft in Whitehall, and due to be published before the parliamentary recess starts in July. It suggests that two opportunities were missed to head-off or apprehend Rigby’s brutal killers Adebolajo and Adebowale.

Having identified both men as a potential threat, the agency allowed them to slip off the surveillance radar in 2012. I am not sure this is entirely fair criticism. Physical surveillance is in short supply and costly in manpower. No intelligence agency is ever going to have enough at its disposal. And it’s getting more difficult to mount operations successfully - especially now as anyone who watches American television is surveillance-aware these days.

But curiously MI5 does not seem to have kept the pair under any form of electronic surveillance - monitoring their emails and social media habits – a simpler and cheaper alternative that often acts as a safety tripwire.

In the six months leading up to Rigby’s murder there were “a number of incidents” where one of the pair, Adebolajo, signalled his intent on the internet and in social media. When quizzed by the committee as to why MI5 failed to spot this, security officials replied that they could not obtain the computer data in advance because the internet service providers (ISPs) were based in the United States and the US legal system made it difficult and time-consuming for British agencies to get hold of private data of this kind – telephone calls, text messages, emails and postings on other social media.

I find this hard to believe. It is true that the American agencies and legal system were never particularly co-operative in hunting down IRA men who took refuge in the US; that they would be obstructive in keeping tabs on Islamists well down the route to radicalisation seems unthinkable.

Also, the relationship between MI5 and the FBI is very close – both agencies maintain full time liaison staff in each other’s capitals. In any case, Edward Snowden’s revelations make clear that if anything there are too few legal protections in the United States against wire-tapping, an activity undertaken promiscuously by the National Security Agency (NSA).

That MI5 should offer up such an explanation to a parliamentary committee is depressing. It suggests they don’t take the ISC seriously and that their own internal review of the case, if they bothered to do one at all, lacked rigour.

The issue at stake here is operational efficiency. No one is suggesting for a moment that MI5 is going to get everything right every time. They have a good record and do a difficult job. But the public has a right to expect them to properly audit their procedures and learn from their mistakes quickly. Not as a result of a report produced nearly a year after the event.

Hindsight judgments rarely have a sympathetic quality – trying to understand what it was like to make decisions against the clock and almost always with incomplete information. But a proper “intelligence audit” where key decisions are measured against both other options and the background operational environment at the time is necessary for efficiency.

Every landing by a US Navy pilot on a carrier is observed and critiqued by his commanding officer. It has to be. Landing on a carrier is risky. The pilot’s aim is to catch one of four arresting wires stretched across the deck with the hook attached to the underside of the aircraft.

As soon as the plane hits the deck the pilot applies full throttle – if he misses the arresting wires at least he has a chance of getting his aircraft airborne again. An F18 Hornet weighs 14,500kg – the arresting wire will take it from its landing speed of 150 mph to stationary in less than two seconds.

These pilots are almost Maoist in accepting criticism and criticising their own skills. They have to get it right every time – or they die. As well stationing liaison officers with the FBI in Washington, perhaps MI5 should have someone at the US Navy air station at Miramar, the airfield where they filmed Top Gun and the spiritual home of US naval aviation.

When US Navy pilots fall short, they want to know why - immediately. They have to be like that - and so does MI5.