007 Event: Return of the Drax girls (20-21 October 2018)

What: Return of the Drax girls
Where: Vaux-le-Vicomte, Maincy, France
When: 20-21 October 2018

Return of the Drax girls: two days dedicated to 007

THE WEEKEND OF OCTOBER 20 AND 21, the members of the “James Bond Club – France” propose free guided visits to discover the very spots where shooting the film took place (inside and outside). (Places are limited; please sign up at the château.)

All weekend, the château is organizing a unique opportunity to meet the James Bond girls and the Drax girls from the film "Moonraker" (1979)! Visitors will be able to have a photograph taken with them or to get an autograph from Corinne Clery (Corinne Dufour), Blanche Ravalec (Dolly - Jaws' Girlfriend), Irka Bochenko (Blonde Beauty / Venini Glass Receptionist), Chichinou Kaeppler (Signorina Del Mateo), Beatrice Libert (Mademoiselle Deladier), Anne Lonnberg (Venini Glass Tourguide / Museum Guide) or Catherine Serre (Countess Labinsky)! (Charge not included in entrance fee.)
The château will also propose screenings of the film documenting the making of the film, Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning.


007 Travelers have visited this beautiful filming location. You can read more about the filming locations of the chateau here:

Drax´s château in California / Maincy (FRANCE)

Drax's château in California - lobby / Maincy (FRANCE)

Mika / 007 Travelers

Bond and Drax shooting pheasants / Maincy (FRANCE)

A brand new exhibition!

An exhibition of posters, archival materials and objects from the shoot, and homage to Roger Moore, who died in 2017, will allow you to plunge into the world of James Bond, thanks to the cooperation of the “James Bond Club – France” (first floor of the château).
The same helicopter from the 1979 film, a Bell 206, will be on display in the Cour d’honneur of the château.

WIN a first-time helicopter flight!

In 1978, James Bond arrived at the Drax estate by helicopter, flying over the gardens of the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte! Each Saturday, we propose that you relive this mythical scene by winning a flight in an Alouette II helicopter.

When? There are 2 flights each Saturday at 3 P.M. and 3:30 P.M., with 2 winners for each flight. First-time flight of 30 minutes includes: meeting the pilot, briefing, getting your equipment, the 10-minutes flight, and then debriefing.


How? Play on Vaux-Le-Vicomte's official Facebook page (@chateauVLV) or try to be an “instant winner” during your visit to the estate. 4 winners will be selected at random each week.

Source and helicopter photo: Vaux-Le-Vicomte
Poster: James Bond Club France
Location photos: 007 Travelers


Read more here


See more OTHER 007 RELATED NEWS here

007 Event: James Bond symposium in Cineways Film Festival 2018 (1 September 2018)

What: James Bond symposium in Cineways Film Festival 2018
Where: IT Campus Westbahnhof, Westbahnhof 11, Braunschweig, Germany
When: 1 September 2018

Special Bond star appearance:

Corinne Cléry
Corinne Dufour in "Moonraker" (1979)



A special day for Bond fans: from 10.00 am to 3.30 pm, the IT Campus Westbahnhof in Braunschweig awaits you with an exciting program. 

In addition to an exclusive film about the opening of the 007 Elements cinema installation in Sölden and then there will be interesting lecture by Bond expert Danny Morgenstern. 

The highlight of the day will be the large panel talk with guest star Corinne Cléry, who will tell detailed information about her career as well as the shooting of "Moonraker" (1979). Of course, Corinne is also available for photos and autographs.



The big JAMES BOND EVENING starts this year already at 17:30 with the world premiere of our in-house documentary, "For Our Eyes Only: John Glen". At 20:00, Roger Moore spectacularly saves the world in "Moonraker". Guest star of the evening Corinne Cléry will give an introduction to the film and will receive the Cineways James Bond Award. Afterwards there is an evening party  - of course shaken, not stirred!

Read more here



See more 007 EVENTS here

In Memoriam: Lewis Gilbert (1920 - 2018)

Lewis Gilbert, the director of three Bond movies ("You Only Live Twice", 1967, "The Spy Who Loved Me", 1977 and "Moonraker", 1979) has passed away at the age of 97.

007 Travelers sends condolences to his family and friends.

Born: 6 March 1920, London, England.
Died: 23 February 2018, Monaco

Photo: 007.com

Sir Roger Moore would have been 90 years today (14 October 2017)

Remembering Sir Roger Moore

Born: 14 October 1927, London, England
Died: 23 May 2017, Switzerland

Roger Moore´s Bond films:

Live and Let Die (1973)
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)

Roger Moore in 1955
Photo © Getty Images

Roger Moore as The Saint
Photo © YouTube

Roger Moore as James Bond in "Live And Let Die" (1973)
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Roger Moore in 2012
Photo © Getty Images

See more BOND ACTOR NEWS HERE

007 Food: Fish soup made with plenty of lemon-juice, and half a dozen each of the admirable little quail-sized birds

Food: Fish soup made with plenty of lemon-juice, and half a dozen each of the admirable little quail-sized birds
Bond book appearance: Colonel Sun (1967)
Experience of 007 Travelers: Self-made

"They had a late lunch of fish soup made with plenty of lemon-juice, and half a dozen each of the admirable little quail-sized birds that fall to the gun all over Greece at this time of the year, accompanied by a sensible modicum of retsina. Litsas refused coffee and took himself off, explaining he must visit the harbourmaster's office, not merely to stay within the law by presenting the Altair's papers there, but to keep his ears open and drop a few carefully-framed questions in that centre of island gossip."

Robert Markham: "Colonel Sun" (1967)

Ingredients for fish soup: onion, carrots, salmon, potato and dill

Half a dozen quail-sized birds; pheasants in our case

Fish soup ready to be eaten and Retsina white wine

Pheasant shot by Drax...? :)

Dialogue in "Moonraker" (1979):

Hugo Drax (Michael Lonsdale): A pity you leave us. Such good sport.

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

James Bond (Roger Moore): Unless you're a pheasant. 

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Hugo Drax: Oh, really, Mr Bond! Take my gun - a stray bird may fly over. 

James Bond: I only stopped to thank you for your hospitality. Fraser will get you to the airport. Come now.

James Bond: I doubt if I'm in your class.

Hugo Drax: You're too modest. Over there. You missed. 

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

James Bond: Did I? (Bond shoots Drax's henchman) As you said, such good sport.

See more 007 FOODS here

Moonraker's Airborne fight and soft landing - is it possible?

Leading scientists and engineers have studied stunts in James Bond films.

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Bond (Roger Moore) and iconic baddie Jaws (Richard Kiel) tussle in mid-air for a single parachute in the film "Moonraker" (1979). Bond wins, skydiving to safety, and Jaws plummets to what looks like certain death. 

Luckily for the villain, he lands on a huge circus tent and walks away with just a few bruises.

'We've calculated this and it definitely is possible,' says Professor Tolan.

Bond uses his air resistance and changes speed by adjusting his body position to become more streamlined.

He would also have enough time to fight Jaws for the parachute, put it on and open it, if they both jumped out of the aircraft at a height of 16,404 feet (5,000 metres).

'We also calculated that when Jaws hits the circus tent, he would survive, Profesor Tolin explains.

'Jaws's speed falling without a parachute would be 93 to 112mph (150 to 180km/h). If you are decelerated by a tent approximately 10m high, then it is still a heavy fall and you will be hurt, but not killed.'

Jaws appears indestructible. He survives when a statue falls on his head, he's hit by a van, thrown from a train off a cliff and even goes over a waterfall.

According to Professor Tolan, though, there's no way Jaws could survive the cable car crash in "The Spy Who Loved Me" (1977).

'That's completely ridiculous, even the strongest person would be smashed to pieces by the force,' he says.

Source: James Bond 007: 7 Bond stunts - E & T Magazine

Moonraker's Airborne fight and soft landing: POSSIBLE 

007 Travel video: Paris (FRANCE)

See more 007 TRAVEL VIDEOS here

007 Book location: Sloane Square, London, England

Bond book: Moonraker (1955)
Place and location in the book: Sloane Square, London, England
Actual place and location: Sloane Square, London, England
What happens here in the book:  Bond gets out of his car to see what is in the big skysign
Visited by 007 Travelers: 2014

"He was not even disturbed by a curious portent he encountered while he was driving along King's Road into Sloane Square with half his mind on the traffic and the other half exploring the evening ahead.

It was a few minutes to six and there was thunder about. The sky threatened and it had become suddenly dark. Across the square from him, high up in the air, a bold electric sign started to flash on and off. The fading light-waves had caused the cathode tube to start the mechanism which would keep the sign flashing through the dark hours until, around six in the morning, the early light of the day would again sensitize the tube and cause the circuit to close.

Startled at the great crimson words, Bond pulled in to the curb, got out of the car and crossed to the other side of the street to get better view of the big skysign.

Ah! That was it. Some of the letters had been hidden by a neighbouring building. It was only one of those Shell advertisements. 'SUMMER SHELL IS HERE' was what it said.

Bond smiled to himself and walked back to his car and drove on.

When he had first seen the sign, half-hidden by the building, great crimson letters across the evening sky had flashed a different message.

They had said: 'HELL IS HERE...HELL IS HERE...HELL IS HERE.'"

Ian Fleming: "Moonraker" (1955)


In Gary Giblin's excellent filming location book "James Bond's London" Giblin writes: 

"Unfortunately, the author doesn't specify the precise location of the sign. Presumably, it would have been mounted on one of the buildings behind, and therefore partially obstructed by, the Royal Court Theatre, then newly rebuilt, and/or the tube station."

Royal Court Theatre

See the 007 Travel story of London 2014, day 1 here


See more 007 BOOK LOCATIONS here

VIDEO: Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith

James Bond and Madeleine Swann get a lift to Blofeld’s lair in a Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith. Silver Wraiths have appeared in "From Russia with Love" (1963), "Moonraker" (1979), 
"For Your Eyes Only" (1981) and "SPECTRE" (2015).

Video: 007.com





See more "SPECTRE" news here

007 Item: Seiko M354 Memory - Bank Calendar clock from Moonraker

007 Item: Seiko M354 Memory - Bank Calendar clock from Moonraker

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

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In Memoriam: Christopher Wood

Photo: Shatterhand007.com

007 Travelers is saddened to hear that Christopher Wood has passed away.

Who: Christopher Hovelle Wood
Born: 5 November 1935, London, England
Died: 17 October 2015


Christopher Hovelle Wood was an English screenwriter and novelist best known for the Confessions series of novels and films which he wrote as 'Timothy Lea'. Under his own name, he adapted two James Bond novels for the screen: The Spy Who Loved Me (1977 with Richard Maibaum) and Moonraker (1979).

Wood was the first author to write novelisations of Bond films. His novelisation of The Spy Who Loved Me, renamed James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me to avoid confusion with Ian Fleming's original novel, has nothing in common with the Fleming book. Similarly, the plot of Moonraker, renamed James Bond and Moonraker, is almost entirely written by Wood, although it does share some similarities with Fleming's original novel, in particular the villain Hugo Drax. Bond fans generally rate Wood's novelisations highly. Kingsley Amis wrote in The New Statesman that, despite several reservations, "Mr Wood has bravely tackled his formidable task, that of turning a typical late Bond film, which must be basically facetious, into a novel after Ian Fleming, which must be basically serious. ... the descriptions are adequate and the action writing excellent.


Christopher Wood´s 007 production as a writer (books):

• James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me: James Bond novelisation and screenplay (1977)
• James Bond and Moonraker: James Bond novelisation and screenplay (1979)

Christopher Wood's 007 production as a writer (movies):

• The Spy Who Loved Me: screenplay (1977)
• Moonraker: screenplay (1979)
• James Bond Jr. (TV series): character: Jaws, uncredited (1991)

Others:

• James Bond, the Spy I loved: Memoirs (2006)
• How to Write the Perfect Bond Film: Article in SFX magazine (2012)

See more information here