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Press Releases
Radio 4 celebrates centenary of James Bond creator Ian Fleming
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Ian Fleming, renowned author and creator of iconic spy James Bond,
was born 100 years ago and to mark this special anniversary, ±«Óãtv Radio
4 presents a short season of programmes.
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They include an all-star
dramatisation by Hugh Whitemore of Dr No; a documentary following Fleming's niece on a personal journey to find out more about her uncle; and
an exploration of what the
creation of James Bond tells us about post-Empire Britain.
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On Saturday 24 May, Toby Stephens and David Suchet star in the
first ever full radio adaptation of Dr No, Ian Fleming's 1958 James
Bond novel.
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Recovering from the after-effects of his last
assignment, Bond (Toby Stephens) is given what appears to be an easy job on his
next case.
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Sent to Jamaica to investigate the mysterious
disappearance of two of his colleagues, Bond discovers that the
heart of the mystery lies with a sinister recluse on Crab Key, Dr
No (David Suchet).
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Before long Bond comes face to face with this bizarre creature
and soon he is fighting for his life in a murderous game.
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The cast
also includes Samuel West, John Standing, Martin Jarvis, Janie Dee and Peter
Capaldi.
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In The Bond Correspondence, also on Saturday 24 May, Ian Fleming's
niece, Lucy Fleming, sets out to discover more about both her uncle and the
creation of his most famous character, James Bond.
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Her uncle has, until now, been someone Lucy knew as a teenager, but
after she delves into dusty old boxes of letters to see the wealth
of correspondence from readers and his responses, she discovers a
lesser known side of Ian.
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She goes inside the old Naval
Intelligence Unit where her uncle worked in the Second World War, visits
his wartime colleague Joan Bright Astley, and stepdaughter Fionn
Morgan, and, in doing so, brings to life ghosts from the past.
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On Monday 26 May, Professor David Cannadine argues that the Bond
novels are a fantastic response to the moment when Britain lost an
Empire but was still struggling to find a role in the new world.
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In
James Bond, The Last Englishman, Professor Cannadine claims that
Fleming's Bond novels have played a key role in shaping England's
national self-image.
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For Cannadine, Bond is the consolatory fantasy
of Fleming, the nostalgic conservative appalled by Britain's
collapse as a great power.
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There will also be another chance to hear Amis, Amis and Bond on
Sunday 18 May in which Martin Amis explores his father's obsessive
interest with James Bond and the writing of Ian Fleming with fellow
Bond enthusiast Charlie Higson.
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 Amis, Amis and Bond is on Sunday 18 May at 1.30pm
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The Bond Correspondence is on Saturday 24 May at 10.30am Ìý
Dr No is on Saturday 24 May at 2.30pm
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James Bond, The Last Englishman is on Monday 26 May at 8.00pm
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Radio 4 Publicity
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