Desmond Llewelyn
Welsh actor Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (Born: September 12, 1914
- Died: December 19, 1999) featured as gadget master Major Geoffrey
Boothroyd – alias ‘Q’ in 17 of the 19 James Bond
movies , spanning an incredible 36 years.
Desmond has appeared in:
From Russia With Love (1963)
Goldfinger (1964)
Thunderball (1965)
You Only Live Twice (1967)
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
(1969)
Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
The Man With The Golden Gun (1974)
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
Moonraker (1979)
For Your Eyes Only (1981)
Octopussy (1983)
A View To A Kill (1985)
The Living Daylights (1987)
Licence To Kill (1989)
GoldenEye (1995)
Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
The World Is Not Enough (1999)
Desmond Llewelyn did not make an appearance in:
Dr.No (1962)
Live And Let Die (1973)
John Cleese
Cleese was cast as Q's deputy 'R' in The World is Not Enough.
Following the sad death of Desmond Llewelyn in a car accident, Cleese
has taken the title 'Q' for Die Another Day.
Famous for his roles in Monty Python and Fawlty Towers, John should
suit this role perfectly.
Q's best quote from Die Another Day:
James Bond: You know, you're cleverer than you look!
Q: Better than looking cleverer than you are.
“Right now, pay attention!”
gadget (gajit) n. 1. A small specialised mechanical
or electronic device; a contrivance. 2. Any ingenious device, especially
one that is labour-saving.
Little Nellie: this waspish autogyro saves Bond’s
bacon in You Only Live Twice when he’s set upon by a fleet
of SPECTRE bad guys’ helicopters. Literally a flying arsenal
with a lot more than a sting her tail : 2 fixed forward-firing machineguns
synchronised to 100 yards – using incendiaries and high explosives;
2 rocket launchers forward-firing on either side; heat-seeking air-to-air
missiles – 60 a minute; Flame guns – 2 firing astern,
range 80 yards; 2 smoke ejectors; Aerial mines; Cine camera in pilot’s
helmet; Radio tuned to 410 megacycles.
After vanquishing the foe 007 sends this message: “Hello Base
One – Little Nellie got a hot reception. Four big shots made
improper advances towards her – but she defended her honour
with great success.”
Hasselblad Camera Signature Gun: this deadly
gadget really does have a viewfinder to a kill! The film magazine
contains a magazine of .220 high-velocity bullets, while its tripod-like
attachments screw into the body to form the butt and barrel of a
deadly sniper’s rifle. The handle of the gun also contains
an optical palm reader, ensuring only the person programming the
computer sequence can fire the weapon at a later date.
In Licence To Kill, Bond uses the Signature Gun (one of Q’s
most ingenious and lethal gadgets) in an attempt to avenge the murder
of his best friend’s wife. On this rare occasion, 007 misses
his target, South American drug baron Franz Sanchez, when he is
overcome by a group of Ninjas.
Parker Pen Class 4 Grenade: on this occasion,
thanks to Q, the pen is indeed mightier than the sword! 3 clicks
of the pen arms its 4 second fuse, while a further 3 clicks disarms
it. The writing’s on the wall for treacherous ex-British agent
Alec Trevelyan (006), when Bond uses this harmless-looking everyday
object to prevent Trevelyan from using the Goldeneye satellite to
devastating effect.
Snooper: a robot ‘dog’ whose movements
are controlled by remote control. Snooper transmits video images
via its eyes. It also has a telescopic neck for peering over or
around objects obstructing its view.
While searching for 007 with Snooper at the end of his mission in
A View To A Kill, Q is shocked, but hardly surprised, to find Bond
sharing a shower with heroine Stacey Sutton. Oh James!
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