The Watches of James Bond
“He could not just wear a watch”, wrote Fleming in his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, “it had to be a Rolex”.
It seems appropriate, shortly after the release of Spectre, the twenty-forth and most recent James Bond film, to take a look at some of the watches that feature in the world of 007
Ian Fleming was renowned for wearing his Rolex Oyster Perpetual Explorer on the film sets of the Bond films. Like the wearer, this model is smart and elegant with high attention to detail. Rolex is the only brand specifically referred to by name in the Bond novels, although Fleming never specifies the particular model.
When creating the character of James Bond, Fleming gave him personality traits based on himself, as well as taking inspiration from people he met during his time in the Naval Intelligence Division during World War II. Interestingly, prisoners of war could write to Rolex and receive a watch free of charge, delivered directly to their prison camp, and perhaps this influenced his choice of watch brand.
In Doctor No, the first Bond film which was released in 1962, Sean Connery wears a Rolex Submariner and, over the next decade, Connery and the Submariner featured in nine more Bond films. On the Rolex website, this watch is described as, “Probably the only divers’ watch you can wear with a tuxedo”, which perfectly sums up both the versatility of both the aesthetics and functionality of the model. Despite their generosity to prisoners of war, Rolex refused to supply a watch for the production of the films so Cubby Broccoli, the producer for Dr No, used his very own Submariner. For this reason, the early “shoulderless” Submariner models, without crown guards, have become known as “The James Bond Submariner Watch” to many vintage watch collectors.
Fleming’s taste in watches was modest and, although he owned and wore a number of different watches throughout his Bond era, it was clear that he favoured uncomplicated styles. In contrast, the character of James Bond wore a number of extravagant watches with fictitious functionalities.
In Thunderball, which was released in 1965, the Rolex worn by Connery had a built in Geiger Counter which measured radioactivity levels. In 1973, the Submariner in Live and Let Die featured a saw and magnet for diverting bullets. In 1995 the seventeenth Bond film was released, Goldeneye; as this was the year that Omega won the bid to become the official watch supplier for the James Bond films, this was the first time that none of their models were featured. Lindy Heming, the costume designer responsible for selecting the watch for the film, explained, “I was convinced that Commander Bond, a naval man, a diver and a discreet gentleman of the world would wear the Seamaster with the blue dial.” The watch was integral to the plot and the remote bomb detonator and laser beam certainly came in handy when Bond needed to escape from an armoured train
The Omega watch used in Thunderball was the Seamaster Professional. The Omega Seamaster was originally produced in 1948 but this particular model was released two years before Goldeneye appeared on screens, in 1993. Outside the world of James Bond, this watch is still incredibly hardwearing and is even water resistant up to 300m.
Jumping ahead to 2015 and the release of Spectre, Omega is releasing a limited-edition Seamaster 300, described by Omega as “an iconic timepiece, updated with a new edge of innovation and attitude”. This is the first time in history that the exact model worn by 007 is being released as a limited edition piece. The watch has a bold arrow-shaped hour hand, also a feature of the Seamaster 300, and also has some elegant subtle touches such as the 007 logo on the strap and the Spectre film title on the caseback. Not only does the Omega Seamaster 300 look superb, but with resistance to magnetic fields up to 15,000 gaus, it’s hard to believe that this isn’t a fictional feature.
Who knows what the future holds for Rolex and Omega watches, both real and fictional. Why not pop in to either our Ramsgate or Margate branches to browse our range of luxury watches to find your own signature timepiece?