The Galata Bridge, Istanbul

In From Russia With Love 1963, Tania walks through Istanbul to the Hagia Sophia, where she is supposed to deliver the blueprints of the Russian consulate to 007. On her way to the Hagia Sophia church she is followed by a Bulgar as she walks past a mosque in Sultanahmet, and she also walks up the stairs on the Galata Bridge. The film team had a lot of problems with crowd control, which becomes apparent when you see the crowd looking down on Tania from the bridge.

The Galata Bridge is perhaps the most famous bridge in Istanbul, which name probably is known to most people thanks to the football club based in Istanbul, Galatasaray. The bridge spans over the Golden Horn from the Eminönü district to Karaköy. The current bridge was completed in 1994 when the bridge seen in the film, originating from 1912, was damaged in a fire. However, the platform Tania walks on, can still be found in the middle of the bridge. The lower part of the bridge is filled with restaurants today, overlooking the Bosporus.

In the film, the Galata Bridge is shown twice. The second time in another establishing shot over Istanbul, seen in the picture below, just before Bond and Tania go on their boat ride on the Bosporus.

The Bosporus ferries are seen docking by the Galata bridge. You find the same view as in the film over Galata in the Beyoğlu district. The camera in the film was most likely placed somewhere on Rıhtım Caddesi to get the view seen in the picture above.

The mosque seen in the background behind Tania in the top picture, is the large Yeni Camii situated on the Golden Horn, right by the southern end of the bridge. Yeni Camii means the new mosque but the mosque was originally named Valide Sultan Mosque and dates back to the 1660's. This is one of the many famous architectural landmarks of Istanbul. The construction of the mosque had began already in 1597 and took more than half a century to complete. Part of the construction and connected to the mosque today is the famous spice market where a visit is highly recommended.