The Fifty Years of Bond Cars Special was an episode of Top Gear which aired on the 29th of October, 2012, between Series 18 and Series 19, that was solo-hosted by Richard Hammond and commemorated the 50th anniversary of the James Bond film series, as well as the release of Skyfall, by examining the cars famously featured in the movies. It was the 148th episode overall.
Included were behind-the-scenes looks at Skyfall during filming, interviews with Bond actors and directors and stories of how the various cars were chosen, outfitted and then filmed – including delving into the original Ian Fleming novels.
Synopsis[]
Tonight...[]
Although there was no voiceover during the introductory sequence, this special featured an alternate title sequence where scenes from the James Bond franchise were interspersed with footage from the upcoming episode, before a special title card displays "Fifty Years of Bond Cars" in the same font and colour as the 1995 film GoldenEye.
For over 50 years, the character of James Bond has ruled the world of big-screen action. Throughout its 23 installments, over a quarter of the world's population has seen what the super-spy gets up to in his day job. And no-one does watches, sharks or villains better than his film series. However, when it comes to cars, Bond is in a league of his own. Various car-centric scenes from each of the movies then alternate with childrens' recreations of these iconic scenes from the series, such as the climactic car-based fight in Die Another Day between Bond in a Vanquish and Zao in a Jaguar XKR, or the jump from the end of a pier into the ocean in The Spy Who Loved Me before the episode begins with arguably the most iconic car featured in James Bond; the Aston Martin DB5.
Guests[]
- Daniel Craig (James Bond 2006-2021: Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, Spectre, No Time to Die)
- Sir Roger Moore (James Bond 1973-1985: Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View to a Kill)
- Guy Hamilton (Bond director 1964, 1971-1974: Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun)
- Roger Becker (Lotus engineer and Bond stunt driver in The Spy Who Loved Me)
- Michael G. Wilson (Bond producer, screenwriter and executive producer 1979-present)
- Ola Rapace (Patrice in Skyfall)
- Ben Collins (The Stig 2003-2010, also Craig's driving instructor and a Bond stunt driver in Quantum of Solace and Skyfall)
The Bond Cars[]
In relative order of appearance during the special. A car in bold indicates Richard drives it, while a car in italics indicates its name is not directly mentioned in the special.
| Movies/Books | Car | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Goldfinger Goldeneye Skyfall |
Aston Martin DB5 | |
| Dr. No | Sunbeam Alpine | |
| Casino Royale (book) Live and Let Die (book) Moonraker (book) |
Bentley 4.5 Litre | |
| You Only Live Twice | Toyota 2000GT | Daniel Craig's favorite Bond car. |
| Diamonds Are Forever | Ford Mustang Mach 1 | |
| Live And Let Die | AEC Regent III | |
| The Man with the Golden Gun | AMC Hornet | |
| The Spy Who Loved Me | Lotus Esprit S1 | Richard recreates its submarine function in the episode's finale with a specially equipped Lotus Excel. |
| For Your Eyes Only | Citroën 2CV | Sir Roger Moore's favorite Bond car. |
| A View to a Kill | Renault 11 | |
| Octopussy | Alfa Romeo GTV6 | |
| The Living Daylights | Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante | |
| Goldeneye | BMW Z3 | |
| The World is Not Enough | BMW Z8 | |
| Tomorrow Never Dies | BMW 750iL | |
| Die Another Day | Aston Martin V12 Vanquish | Richard attempts duplicating its camouflage feature with a Ford Transit with side-mounted TVs. |
| Casino Royale | Aston Martin DBS |
Richard also discusses the AVE Mizar, a roadable aircraft utilizing a Ford Pinto, which was originally planned to appear in The Man with the Golden Gun as Scaramanga's flying car before it was involved in a fatal crash.
Segments[]
The Beginning[]
Or it would if it was the first car to be used in the series. For the franchise's first film, Dr. No, released in 1962, a Sunbeam Alpine convertible was the weapon of choice for Mr. Bond, played by Sean Connery in his debut outing. Chased by a hearse on a dusty mountain road, the hearse tips over the side of a cliff, explodes, and the chase is over in a matter of seconds. On its comparatively-shoestring budget of £350,000, the Alpine had to be rented at a cost of 12 shillings per day as the production team were unable to secure an example with the Rootes Group of Jamaica, a figure that was deemed a "considerable sum" in a letter wrote to the group following the film's production, a copy of which is read out by Hammond.
The Aston Martin DB5[]
However, Dr. No was massive hit upon its release, as was its sequel, From Russia With Love, which allowed the producers to really push the boat out for the series' third installment; Goldfinger. With Auric Goldfinger, the film's primary villain, threatening to destroy the United States' gold supply, Bond needed a tool that could help him win the day. This tool was an Aston Martin DB5, outfitted by Q to feature bulletproof windows, revolving number plates, and an ejector seat.
Richard Hammond interviewed Guy Hamilton, the film's director, who revealed the individuals who contributed each of these gadgets to the DB5. It transpires that it was Hamilton himself who came up with the idea of the revolving number plates, citing its potential usefulness in the situation of a parking ticket, and it was Hamilton's stepson who was inspired by the ejection system on fighter jets when it came to the latter.
With the gadgets planned out, the production team naturally had one car in mind; the DB5. Unfortunately, Aston Martin were not willing to lend them a car for the movie. Harry Saltzman then asked their contact at the manufacturer if they'd watched either of the James Bond movies up to that point, and were told no, but that they could buy a DB5 for the movie at the full price if they wanted; £4,500. Indignant, Saltzman then considered a Jaguar E-Type, Jensen CV8, or a Chevrolet (presumably a Corvette), but remained insistent on the DB5 until they were begrudgingly given a development car, which then cost the production team a further £25,000 to fully kit out with gadgets.
These expenses and difficulties suffered by the crew during the production of Goldfinger were well-rewarded, however, as the third entry in the franchise became a runaway hit, and the DB5 went on a world tour, opening the character of Bond up to a whole new audience. However, this brings up an important question; why was the DB5 chosen, above anything else, to be the definitive car for James Bond?
The Bentley 4½ Litre[]
Back at Dunsfold, Richard Hammond is driving a 1930s Bentley 4½ Litre, which was James Bond writer Ian Fleming's original concept for the car that was to be driven by his super-spy. As a young reporter for Reuters, it is revealed that Fleming covered the 24 Hours of Le Mans where the supercharged Bentleys dominated the competition, proving its power. Off the track, it served as a perfect cover for Bond's moonlighting as a wealthy bachelor. The supercharged Bentley was Bond's car from Casino Royale to Moonraker, where it is destroyed in a frantic chase. Fleming was then sent a letter from a Dr. G Gibson, just as he was preparing to write Goldfinger, where the doctor wishes for Bond to return driving an Aston Martin DB3.
The Toyota 2000GT[]
Richard Hammond interviewed Daniel Craig, who (at the time) plays James Bond, asking him what his favourite Bond car. Daniel, with help from Richard, says it is the Toyota 2000GT, and Daniel admits that he loved the car. The car in question, appeared in You Only Live Twice, as the film is set in Japan, the star car needed to be Japanese.
Production[]
The special was produced to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the James Bond franchise, in addition to coinciding with the release of Skyfall, which came out three days prior. Around May 2012, Richard Hammond went to Istanbul, the location where the film's climactic chase was being filmed, and reunited with Ben Collins, the previous iteration of The Stig, as well as meeting up with several members of the cast and crew, including male lead Daniel Craig. Hammond also interviews Sir Roger Moore and classic Bond director Guy Hamilton, among others.
On the 26th of June, 2012, Hammond was spotted by Martin Bamford in the "invisible" Ford Transit driving in and around Cranleigh, Surrey, who then posted a brief 12 second clip of the Transit approaching him on YouTube the very same day. Bamford himself is visible in the finished episode, capturing this footage.
Filming locations[]
Fifty Years of Bond Cars was filmed at the following locations:
- Istanbul, Turkey
- Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, England
- Col de Vence, France
- Matlock, Derbyshire, England
- Cranleigh, Surrey, England
Airing History[]
Fifty Years of Bond Cars originally aired on the 29th of October, 2012, on BBC Two and BBC HD. It was then re-aired on the 18th of November at 8:00 PM on BBC HD, in the show's usual timeslot, on the 25th of December at 6:25 PM on BBC Two, and then aired a fourth and final time on the 2nd of January, 2013, on BBC Three. The episode would eventually make its way to Dave, where it has regularly re-aired since, albeit in a cut format, and has appeared on various streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, in addition to the BBC's own iPlayer. It was part of the series purchased by MotorTrend in April 2019.
Ratings[]
Original airing[]
- BBC1: New Tricks (7.96 million viewers)
- BBC2/BBC HD: Top Gear (5.50 million viewers)
- ITV1: Monroe (3.24 million viewers)
- Channel 4: 999: What's Your Emergency? (2.39 million viewers)
- Other programming (<0.72 million viewers)
Top Gear would easily claim the #1 spot for its channel, topping the list of BBC2's Top 30 programs for the week comprising the 29th October - 4th November, 2012. Of its timeslot, the show would finish second, beaten only by BBC1's New Tricks, and making up approximately 27.8% of the primetime audience. During this original airing, 4.73 million people would watch the program in standard definition on BBC Two, with an additional 770,000 people watching it in high definition on BBC HD. The SD/HD split for this episode was precisely 86/14.
During its later three airings, the programme would not enjoy as much success, falling outside the Top 30 on each occasion.
Home releases[]
On the 12th of February, 2013, Fifty Years of Bond Cars was released on DVD in the US. Six days later, it was released in the UK, with a different cover and rear synopsis.
Trivia[]
- Although it wasn't acknowledged at any point in the episode, Fifty Years of Bond Cars also commemorates the 10th anniversary of the Top Gear reboot, airing 3,662 days (10 years and 9 days) after Series 1, Episode 1.
- The Top Gear "cog" logo used in the title card is noticeably larger, shinier and in a deeper shade of blue than the usual logo. This is possibly due to the fact that when Top Gear returned in early 2013, the introduction sequence was given a HD makeover with a brand new logo, which would not have been finished at the time of this special.
- Apart from Series 1, as a solo effort from presenter Richard Hammond, this episode marks the first of only nine occasions where the first 186 episodes of Top Gear were presented by less than the renowned trio of himself, Jeremy Clarkson and James May:
- Top Gear: Festival Sydney, the 162nd episode, featured just Clarkson and May alongside two former Top Gear Australia presenters.
- James May's Cars of the People, a sub-series which contained six episodes (170 - 172 and 184 - 186) produced between 2014 and 2016, were presented by May as solo efforts (although Jeremy Clarkson did appear in archive footage in the second episode).
- The final episode of the show's 22nd series was presented by Hammond and May in an empty studio, owing to Jeremy Clarkson's Dismissal three months earlier. However, Clarkson did appear in the episode's films and provided voiceover work.
References[]
- Richard Hammond and Ben Collins heavily allude to the latter's past as The Stig.
- The Lotus Excel Submarine is of course, almost a direct reference to the Lotus Esprit at the end of The Spy Who Loved Me.
Links[]
Trailer[]
Top Gear - Fifty Years of Bond Cars Trailer