007 Event: San Sebastian Festival with Judi Dench (25 September 2018)

What: San Sebastian Festival
Where: Tabakalera, Centro Internacional de Cultura Contemporánea, Plaza de las Cigarreras, 1, 2ª planta, San Sebastian, Spain
When: 25 September 2018


The British actress Judi Dench will receive the prestigious Donostia Award at the 66th edition of the San Sebastian Festival next month. The Festival’s highest honorary award will be presented on Tuesday, September 25th, prior to the screening of Trevor Nunn’s "Red Joan", in which Dench plays a woman whose tranquil life is suddenly disrupted when she’s arrested by MI5 and accused of providing intelligence to Communist Russia.

This will be Dench’s first visit to San Sebastian.

Judi Dench as M in "Skyfall" (2012)
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Judi Dench played a role of M, the head of MI6, starting from "GoldenEye" (1995). She appeared in all four Pierce Brosnan's Bond movies and three Daniel Craig's 007 films from "Casino Royale" (2006) to "Skyfall" (2012). She was also briefly visible in "SPECTRE" (2015).

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M - The head of MI6

When in "Skyfall" (2012) M (Judi Dench) is tragically killed, Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes) is named as her successor.

In "SPECTRE" (2015), the new M is forced to suspend Bond following his rogue mission in Mexico. He comes under serious pressure from within the intelligence services when the Double-0 section is under threat from a new initiative called Nine Eyes, headed by C. After discovering that the terrorist organisation Spectre is behind Nine Eyes, M and Q succeed in stopping its activation but a subsequent struggle between M and C results in C falling to his death. M then goes on to arrest Spectre villain Blofeld on Westminster Bridge.

Read more here

Source and photos: 007.com

See more "SPECTRE" news here

Diamonds are Forever Charity Fundraising Gala

James Bond Producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have lent their support to the DofE Charity for the ‘Diamonds are Forever’ fundraising gala to be held at Stoke Park in Buckinghamshire on 9th June 2016.

Dame Judi Dench (M) has praised the Duke of Edinburgh's charity work at a James Bond-themed fundraiser.

Source and Photos: Daily Mail

The Duke of Edinburgh and Dame Judi Dench

The Duke was joined by 007 stars, including Sir Roger Moore and Naomie Harris (Miss Moneypenny), for a "Diamonds Are Forever" gala to mark the 60th anniversary of The Duke of Edinburgh's (DofE) Awards.

Sir Roger Moore shakes hands with the Duke of Edinburgh

Among the guest were also for example Jane Seymour (Solitaire in "Live and Let Die", 1973), Joanna Lumley (English Girl in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service", 1969), Maryam d'Abo (Kara Milovy in "The Living Daylights", 1987), Caterina Murino (Solange Dimitrios in "Casino Royale" (2006),  Samantha Bond (Miss Moneypenny in four Bond movies), Colin Salmon (Charles Robinson in three Bond movies), Jenny Hanley (Irish Girl in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service, 1969) and Goldie (Mr. Bullion in "The World Is Not Enough" (1999)

Stoke Park was chosen as the location having featured in the films "Goldfinger" (1964) and "Tomorrow Never Dies" (1997).

Jane Seymour and Joanna Lumley

Naomie Harris

Maryam d'Abo and Caterina Murino

Maryam d'Abo, Producer Michael G. Wilson and Dame Judi Dench

Dame Judi Dench and Samantha Bond

Colin Salmon, Dame Judi Dench and host David Walliams

Producer Barbara Broccoli, Jenny Hanley and Dame Judi Dench

Samantha Bond, Barbara Broccoli and Jane Seymour

Colin Salmon and Goldie

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Judi Dench won the prize for Best Shakespearean Performance

What:The Critics' Circle Theatre Awards
Where: Prince Of Wales Theatre in London´s West End, England
When: 26 January 2016

Dame Judi Dench won the prize for Best Shakespearean Performance for her turn in The Winter's Tale. 

Congratulations!

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007 Travel story: London (ENGLAND) 2014, day 3/3

In order to read our 007 Travel story of London (2014) from the day one, click here.

Thursday 16 October 2014

Thursday's first sightseeing place was the London Eye, where we also had visited before (2010). From there you have excellent views over London and the experience is equally great every time. 

Near the London Eye is also a filming location of the film "Die Another Day" (2002). Behind the South Bank Lion 007 (Pierce Brosnan) goes to secret underground to meet M (Judi Dench). We have visited here earlier also.

Mika / 007 Travelers

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Back to metro and we went to Shanghai, China, or, wait a minute, actually this "Skyfall" (2012) place is located in Virgin Active Canary Riverside Club, West Ferry Circus in Canary Wharf. We went in to hotel Four Seasons Hotel at Canary Wharf and got a private guided tour to their luxurious gym. We got our own access pass and finally we saw the pool itself where Bond (Daniel Craig) is sitting in "Skyfall".

In "Skyfall" pool is on top of a scyscraper in Shanghai, China
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Is it Mr. Bond there?

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

This is what you actually see when you look at the swimming hall window

But in the movie background of Shanghai is done with CGI technique
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

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It was our lunch time then and we went to shore quite close to Four Seasons Hotel, to 28 West Bar & Grill and ate there. The place was very nice and their menu was good! Then back to central and walked past St.James's Park which is mentioned in book "Licence Renewed" (1981).

"Some kind of voice woke in him the next time, and it was impossible to know for how long he had slept. He heard his own voice, a croak, asking to be left alone, and, louder, "Just let me rest for a minute and I'll be okay," before he drifted off again. This time into a real dream - not the nightmare from the torture chamber - with music: the band playing light opera overtures and Lavender close to him among the trees of St. James's park, with a cloudless London sky above them. Then an inbound jet stormed its way overhead, lowering its gear on a final approach to Heathrow; and he woke, clear-headed, with the pain gone."

John Gardner: "Licence Renewed"


Then we found Dukes Bar, where Ian Fleming used to drink Martinis. The bar is said to be the inspiration for the classic line "shaken, not stirred". Also Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan have, reputedly, had Dry Martinis and celebrated here their casting as James Bond!

After Dukes we went back to National Gallery, took some photos at the stairs in front of the entrance, where Bond (Daniel Craig) also climbs the stairs in "Skyfall" before entering the gallery and meets Q (Ben Whishaw) in Room 34 (east wing), also called the Sackler Room.

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Here Q gives him some gadgetry in front of JMW Turner's masterpiece "The Fighting Temeraire". We tried to visit the Sacler Room yesterday, but some rooms including this one was closed due to some strike. After walking around a bit of this beautiful gallery, we bought a couple of refrigerator magnets and some postcards.

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC



Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The Gallery is an exempt charity, and a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Its collection belongs to the public of the United Kingdom and entry to the main collection is free of charge. It is the fourth most visited art museum in the world, after the Musée du Louvre, the British Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

See more information here.

Because we were able to find these masterpiece paintings, we thought that we finally have to see Amy Winehouse statue also at Camden Stables Market, which we tried to find yesterday. So back to Camden and this time we were luckier. There Amy´s statue was and we got some nice pictures of it.

Camden is such a cool and an interesting area! Or what do you think?
Besides, near by the river in Camden has been filmed some parts of "SPECTRE" (2015).
See more here.

Early in the morning it was time to travel towards Stansted Airport. Stansted is also a Bond location. It doubles Hamburg, Germany in "Tomorrow Never Dies" (1997). There in Hangar number 7, Q gives Bond a demonstration how to use his new BMW with remote controlled phone.

There is a Harrods shop in the airport and we found Jack the bulldog (Royal Doulton Bulldog Union Jack) there. He is of course on M's desk in "Skyfall" (2012) and is given to Bond at the end of the film.

"In several scenes, of the movie "Skyfall" from James Bond you can see a Royal Doulton china Bulldog on M’s desk. The figure is not just a movieprop but plays a significant role in the movie plot. In the opening sequence, when M is writing Bond’s obituary, the bulldog is facing outward as if M is watching England. Throughout the rest of the movie, the bulldog is facing M, as if England is watching M. When she wills the bulldog to Bond, she’s giving him responsibility for England. The figure, which dates back to the 1940’s features in the James Bond saga and can be seen in several of the film’s shots. The dog, which sits on M’s desk, survives an explosion and plays a significant role in the film’s final scenes.

The company behind the Bulldog figure is Royal Doulton. A spokesman stated: “Since the 19th Century the Bulldog has symbolised the steely determination of the British character and, given wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s uncanny facial resemblance to the dog, it was inevitable that the 1940’s saw a bulldog-linked propaganda and imagery. Jack has been produced alongside two other bulldogs, Alfie, who sports a trendy London motif, and Patch, who models a map of Great Britain on its coat."

Jack survived a traumatic explosion with little more than a few cracks to his face and some charring to the union Jack flag draped over his back. Bequeathed to Bond by ‘M’, he now makes an appearance in the new James Bond movie "SPECTRE" (2015).

 To mark his role in the film, Jack has the reference number DD 007M.

Source: BaggyBulldogs

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

M (Judi Dench) and Jack the Bulldog
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

This was all folks! London will call again someday. However, stay tuned for our next Bond trip......to The Netherlands!