Ian Fleming

A proof copy of You Only Live Twice, first published in 1964, was auctioned earlier this month for £43,250, double the estimate. The same copy, which has been marked up for serialisation in Playboy, was last sold in 2003 for $17,925 at Christies in New York according to an article on MI6. Via: MI6

A manuscript of Diamonds Are Forever with hand marked corrections by Ian Fleming that we reported on earlier this month went under the hammer on December 12th at Sotheby’s, where it raised £97,250, according The Book Bond. Until 2008 the manuscript had remained in the family of Fleming’s typist, Ulrica Knowles, but the identities of […]

While Ian Fleming is best known for writing James Bond, as well as the children’s book Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, he also published a couple of non-fiction books. Both Thrilling Cities, Fleming’s exploration of fourteen cities that was commissioned by the Sunday Times, and The Diamond Smugglers, his investigation of an African diamond smuggling operation, […]

A manuscript of Diamonds Are Forever with Ian Fleming’s hand written corrections is expected to raise £80,000 when it comes up for auction at Sotherby’s later this month, according to an article in the Telegraph. The manuscript was typed by Fleming’s secretary, Ulrica Knowles, and includes substantial hand written corrections on nearly every page, including the […]

British newspaper The Guardian ran an interesting story on Friday regarding The Spy Who Loved Me, which saw Ian Fleming abandon his tried and tested formula for the James Bond novels in favour of writing a story from the point of view of the heroine. The article argues that the book demonstrates some of Fleming […]

The Guardian published a Bond related piece yesterday linking to an article from its archives (when it was the Manchester Guardian), which criticised Ian Fleming’s writing; it also linked to Fleming’s response, which makes interesting reading, as he refers to what must be the Vesper, saying: I proceeded to invent a cocktail for Bond (which I sampled several months later and […]

There is a scene in the book Casino Royale when Bond is about to place a bet that has the potential, if luck favours him, to wipe out Le Chiffre at baccarat, the reason he’s been sent by M to Royale-les-Eaux. Changes are always made when bringing a book to the big screen, and Casino Royale was no […]

Ian Fleming Publications has announced on their website the launch of the new Vintage Classics paperback series covering all 14 of Ian Fleming’s James Bond books as well as the 12 audiobooks released by AudioGo. The Vintage Classics series features all new, rather minimalist, covers and introductions from a number of high profile authors. Read the […]

One of the issues I have with the more recent James bond films, say since Goldeneye onwards, is now rather than 007 operating as a lone agent out on his mission – just like in the books – he instead has come to rely upon his boss, M, much too often.

Ian Fleming Publications has today revealed the covers of the first seven books in the forthcoming Vintage paperback series, due to be published on 2nd August. The paperbacks are said to “tap into the deeper and more human side of our hero, including his isolation and vulnerability”, a side well know by fans of Fleming’s […]