Article by Revelator After the narrative slack of Diamonds Are Forever, Fleming decided to better himself with From Russia with Love. Because its story was entirely structured around a deathtrap for one man, it was important for that man to be human enough to hold the audience’s empathy. This demanded a more rounded Bond, and…
No doll’s house is complete without a set of 1st edition James Bond novels! These are handcrafted 1/12th scale complete set of miniature replicas of all fourteen of Ian Fleming’s James Bond books. Each miniature measures a mere 9/16″ x 13/16″ x 1/8″ in size and reproduce the dustjacket cover art of all the original Jonathan…
The life of James Bond’s creator, Ian Fleming, has been celebrated in a set of stamps and limited edition items to be released by Guernsey Post, to celebrate 50 years following his death on August 12, 1964. The stamps will be issued on 30 July. Dawn Gallienne, head of philatelic at Guernsey Post, said: “Our commemorative…
Words by Revelator Here is part 1 of 3 that we’re calling “the three ages of Bond.” Thanks to Daniel Craig (and his underrated predecessor Timothy Dalton) we’ve heard a lot of the phrase “Fleming’s Bond,” as in “Craig comes closest to Fleming’s Bond, the ruthless government assassin” and so on. This phrase has always rang…
Words by Benjamin Welton Who doesn’t love a good conspiracy theory? From the pseudo-science of ancient astronauts to Alex Jones’s favorite hobby horse the Illuminati, conspiracy theories surround us, especially within the cold confines of the internet. Just last year, Jesse Walker, an editor at the libertarian Reason magazine, released The United States of Paranoia:…
We are thrilled to welcome former CIA Inspector General Frederick Hitz, in from the cold to answer a few questions! Mr. Hitz experience in The Great Game is extensive, including leading the CIA in the capture of notorious double agent for the Russians – Aldrich Ames – who compromised the second-largest number of CIA assets—second only to…
If James Bond was on Facebook, you could be sure his relationship status would be set to ‘it’s complicated.’ Of course Ian Fleming famously hadn’t married until he was 43, so putting it off for Bond was easy. Much like his own life, Fleming’s man can count being married once and nearly once prior. In Diamonds Are…
Review by Benjamin Welton Biographers, like translators, often don’t get credit for their work. In the hierarchy of paperbacks and hardcovers, chronicling the life of another is usually placed somewhere below that of a standard history, whether popular or academic. Partially this is a problem of subject, for more often than naught, people buy biographies…
On Ian Fleming’s 104th birthday, he will hopefully be pleased to have got himself into the smart phone app market! Latest intelligence gathered in the field has come up with this lovely little app for James Bond collectors. There are quite a few James Bond apps on the market but very few dedicated to Ian Fleming,…
It is our delight to put some questions to one of the best spy thriller writers working today. Spy novelist Charles Cumming, is the author of 7 books and counting with his latest ‘A Colder War‘ the second installment of the Thomas Kell series. Charles was kind enough to take some time during the busy…
With a flurry of James Bond continuation novels in recent years, literary Bond seems to have picked up some steam in the slipstream of the rejuvenated film franchise. This is good news of course and the quality of the continuation novels is getting better. William Boyd‘s Bond outing – Solo – was a solid thriller…
The Fourth of June is the first novel by David Benedictus. This title was reviewed upon publication by Ian Fleming, who was an Old Etonian with David. In Fleming’s Sunday Times review he described it as ‘One of the most brilliantly written books since the war.‘ Fleming’s review of the book was complimentary of the writer but admittedly seemed out of…
Article by Ben Williams “For me, this is all the world. There is beauty, there is ugliness, and there is death.” – Stromberg, The Spy Who Loved Me. Whilst Stromberg himself was not a Fleming creation, these words sum up the visceral appeal of the dust covers commissioned by him and executed with panache by…
We are delighted to welcome Kate Westbrook a.k.a. Samantha Weinberg, author of the acclaimed series of books – The Moneypenny Diaries. The first diary fills in the gaps between a number of agent 007’s missions including the period between On Her Majesty’s Secret Service and You Only Live Twice, but also includes an entire backstory for Moneypenny. For the…
What to get the James Bond fan who has everything? Here are some gifts the discerning literary Bond fan may not have yet: 10. Ian Fleming’s Stamps by the Guernsey Post Office The life of James Bond’s creator, Ian Fleming, was celebrated in a set of stamps and limited edition items to be released by Guernsey Post, to…
Article by Benjamin Welton As a general rule, I try to refrain from reading the comments on my articles. But, since I am a glutton for punishment, I read ever single comment that was posted to my last piece in The Atlantic (“James Bond’s World War I Origins,” March 12, 2014). One negative comment stood…
We are delighted to interview Robert Caplen, author of Shaken & Stirred: The Feminism of James Bond with a few questions of our own about Bond’s girls. Or is that women? 1. What is your opinion of The Spy Who Loved Me, which was written from the female perspective of Vivian Michel? The Spy Who Loved Me is a unique novel because Fleming…
Thanks to PizGloria.com for this hand-picked selection. 1) “Casino Royale” (334) published by Pan Books in 1955 – (artist Roger Hall). First Bond paperback and first portrayal of Bond on a cover. Often hard to find in great condition. 2) “Moonraker” (392) published by Pan Books in 1956 (artist Josh Kirby). Again an early cover and…
Richard Chopping was educated at Gresham’s in Holt, where Benjamin Britten and the future Cambridge spy Donald Maclean were his contemporaries. His artistic education came afterwards, at Cedric Morris’s East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing, where Lucian Freud was also studying. Chopping was more factotum than pupil but learnt by observing Morris work, although…
The name Goldfinger is probably the most synonymous title in the Bond canon with the most famous Bond girl, Bond villain, Bond film and Bond line: “No Mr. Bond, I expect you to die.” But what about the book as a whole in the collective memory? It stands as one of the longest in the…
Artistic Licence Renewed 