Daniel Craig’s James Bond clearly loves a good lock-up garage to store his various Aston Martins and vehicular co-stars. Since March 2014, the best automotive exhibition space in London has been Covent Garden’s Bond in Motion. Housing an ever-updated array of 007’s cars, bikes, jets, tuk-tuks, submersible crocodiles, missiles, Little Nellies, boats, helicopters, planes, submarines, underwater Lotus cars and even some trains, the dedicated London home of all things Bond has always showcased the newest additions to EON Productions official archive. Curated by EON’s chief archivist Meg Simmonds, Bond In Motion also presents the newest costumes, gadgets, ephemera and bullet ridden metalwork of the latest 007 movie to fire at the world’s movie screens.
With April 2020 marking the grand return of Bond in his twenty-fifth spin of the wheel No Time to Die, Bond in Motion is now proud to announce a collection of location-warm additions that add intriguing insight and tantalising promise as to the action, costumes and vehicles accompanying our man James on his newest opus.
James Bond (Daniel Craig) drives the Land Rover Series III in Jamaica.
James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 stunt replica with damage and bullet hits
James Bond’s Aston Martin V8
James Bond’s Land Rover Series III from Jamaica
Ash’s New Land Rover Defender 110 with continuity damage from the Norway sequence
Primo’s Triumph Scrambler 1200 XE as seen in Matera, Italy
Nomi’s Royal Alloy GT125 scooter from Jamaicaand more…
Bond in Motion spoke to some of the visual effects and vehicular captains responsible for No Time to Die. “Initial talks with Aston Martin and Jaguar Land Rover commenced in October 2018, and many detailed conversations were held to discuss the film’s requirements’, says Visual Effects supervisor, Chris Corbould. “Aston Martin built eight bespoke DB5s along with an extensive spares package capable of completing the rapidly evolving action sequence in Matera. They also supplied three Aston Martin V8’s as used in The Living Daylights and two of the latest DBS Superleggera. At the same time discussions were being held with Jaguar Land Rover to produce the first batch of eight New Land Rover Defenders, a mission shrouded in secrecy as the world had no idea at this stage of the design.”
Corbould is a familiar face at Bond in Motion with No Time to Die marking his fifteenth Bond movie and his ninth as supervisor. He continues – “a number of the DB5s and the Defenders were fitted out with complete roll cages, safety fuel cells, fire extinguisher systems, hydraulic hand brakes, battery isolators, rally seats and five-point harnesses. Q Branch gadgets on the DB5 include revolving M134 mini-guns appearing from the drop-down headlights, traditional smoke screen, mines dropping from under the rear bumper and an LED number plate creating a modern take on the Goldfinger (1964) revolving version”.
Primo steers the Triumph Scrambler 1200 XE in Matera, Italy
Other vehicles that played special roles in the film include Bond’s Land Rover Series 111, a Royal Alloy GT125 scooter used in Jamaica, and a Triumph Scrambler motorbike used in Matera as driven by new character Primo. “I think the audience will be thrilled to see the DB5 in full battle mode driving at speed through the streets of historic Matera in Italy”, suggest Corbould. “As the city is built on the side of a hillside, the balconies, roofs and gardens created a natural amphitheatre, and the public clapped and applauded whenever the iconic Bond car was in action.”
Lee Morrison is No Time to Die‘s stunt co-ordinator. Working on his fifth Bond outing, he is well aware how the stunts get bigger and more elaborate on each new film. “All the vehicles we used in the film performed brilliantly,” remarks Morrison. “We knew we wanted to achieve something off-road and the New Defender didn’t disappoint. We put the vehicles through the most extreme conditions in a chase sequence, and they were unstoppable. The three Triumph scramblers and the Tiger 900 we used were specially modified to handle the rigours of the action sequences in Norway and Italy, part of which can be seen in the first trailer. I’m really proud of the stunts we created, and I’m excited to see the audience reaction when the film is released.”
The New Land Rover Defender in action.
One of the film’s stunt drivers is Mark Higgins. Working on his fourth Bond film, he was tasked with driving the various Aston Martin DB5s in No Time to Die. He notes how “eight stunt replica cars were designed and built for the film and they all had a role to play in different configurations and were fantastic and rewarding to drive, it’s a very special car. We filmed in Italy for seven weeks in the summer. Matera is an incredible city, but a challenging environment for a car chase with its narrow cobbled streets, low grip and lots of people around.
The No Time to Die vehicles are now on display at Bond in Motion and what represents a great holiday afternoon idea. Located in the heart of London’s Covent Garden, tickets are available online and the presence of the seriously great 007 Store is another reason to get your Bond motors running to London.
The Aston Martin DB5 sets to spin in Matera, Italy.
The London Film Museum’s Bond in Motion and 007 Store are located at 45 Wellington Street, Covent Garden, and open seven days a week. Tickets are available at the box office daily or in advance.
Thanks to Meg Simmonds, Bond in Motion and EON Productions.
www.londonfilmmuseum.com
www.ticketmaster.co.uk
