Bronze statue of Ian Fleming (photo: Wikipedia)
The filmed introduction of James Bond in 'Dr. No' in 1962, western cinema audiences were introduced to a world that stimulated their imagination and took them to exotic places most could only dream of at the time: Jamaica, the Bahamas, Istanbul, Hong Kong and, of course, Thailand.
James Bond's spiritual father, Ian Lancaster Fleming (1908-1964) was no stranger to the Far East. Fleming, apart from a brief stint during World War II as a naval intelligence officer, was first and foremost a full-blooded journalist. First at Reuters and later as foreign manager of Sunday Times. He was a real globetrotter and visited Hong Kong, Macau, Tokyo and Bangkok several times. It is certain that he visited Thailand at least three times in the XNUMXs and XNUMXs, once in the company of the Australian journalist and Asia scholar Richard Hughes. The same Hughes who not only modeled for Dikko Henderson in the Bond story 'You only live twice' but who also provided the inspiration for another writer who regularly spent time in Bangkok, namely John le Carré. The latter showed him up in 'The honorable Schoolboy'.
Fleming always stayed in the luxurious five-star Oriental Hotel in Bangkok, the current Oriental Mandarin Hotel. It is therefore no coincidence and more than appropriate that he is in the Author's Lounge of this establishment is commemorated. However, as is stated in some guides, it is not the case that Ian Fleming wrote some of his popular Bond books in the Oriental language. Most of his fourteen Bond stories were written at his Golden Eye Estate in St. Mary, Jamaica, where Fleming spent an average of three months each year. According to some experts in the Oriental, he would have worked on his non-fiction book 'Thrilling Citiesafter visiting Tokyo, Macau and Hong Kong in 1962.
The Oriental Mandarin hotel in Bangkok
Fleming's last book The Man with the Golden Gun largely takes place in Thailand. It rolled off the press in 1965. It was a posthumous publication because Fleming had died on August 12, 1964 in Canterbury. The book was not very well received by critics and there were rumors that it had not been finalized at the time of Fleming's death. It would have been finished by Christopher Wood, a ghostwriter The Man with the Golden Gunk was made into a film in 1974 by British director Guy Hamilton, who would go on to make four Bond films.
Most of the shooting for this film took place on location in Thailand. 007, played by Roger Moore, hunts down the legendary assassin Francisco Scaramanga, a star role played by Christopher Lee, who had a third nipple fitted especially for this film… The title refers to this assassin's favorite toy, a solid gold gun , which – of course – fires golden bullets. The Man with the Golden Gun was the first Bond film to cast a relative of Bond author Ian Fleming. After all, Christopher Lee was his step-cousin. It was also the first and only film in which Bond was tempted to drink a Black Velvet, an Guinness which was mixed with Moët Chandon –Champagne…
It's also the only time Bond – a snobbish one Bollinger-fan – during a dinner with ex-cop Mary Goodnight (Britt Eckland) is tempted to taste the (in reality fictional) Thai Phuyuck-wine, what with him the predictable reaction 'Phu Yuck?' (Phu yikes?) provoked…
The Thai locations where filmed were Bangkok, Thon Buri, Phuket, Krabi. One of the most beautiful scenes is thebloody tourist' scene filmed in Thon Buri where one, oddly enough, in a Karate Gi cloaked, Bond is thrown into a wild and sensational chase by the Klongs. ln Phang Nga Bay National Park (Krabi) was filmed on it James Bond Island, in reality Ko Tapu and on Khow-Ping-Kan. Ko Tapu, where the historical pistol duel between Bond and Scaramang took place against the backdrop of the bizarre limestone formations, was even renamed James Bond Island and has become one of the most popular tourist attractions in the region.
James Bond Island (Ko Tapu)
In 1997, 007 returned to the Thai capital. This time played by Pierce Brosnan who in 'Tomorrow never dies' with the arms of Wai Lin (Michelle Yeo) firmly wrapped around his torso, he races through the busy streets of Vietnamese Saigon on his motorbike. However, the Saigon scenes were filmed in Bangkok. The spectacular motorcycle chase took place at Tannery Row and Mahogany Wharf in Bangkok, while the breathtaking descent on a banner along the facade of a skyscraper was filmed at the Banyan Tree in Sathorn. For filming in the so-called Ha Long Bay, the familiar Bond location that Phang Nga Bay had become in the meantime was used….
As a James Bond fan, I enjoyed reading this article. Perhaps a small addition: the nameplate has now been replaced. If I remember correctly, the government was not happy with the non-Thai nickname. The new sign can be found on the internet. The name James Bond Island has been omitted. I am unable to upload this photo here.
The skyscraper in Tomorrow never Dies was not the Banyan Tree but the Sinn Sathorn Tower.
Nice piece of nostalgia I like to see those old movies, not everything was better in the past but…