Water skiing in Nassau Harbour - Never Say Never Again

In Never Say Never Again Bond travels to the Bahamas to find Maximilian Largo, who Bond believes have stolen the nuclear missiles from NATO. Bond is having a Vodka Martini in the beach bar at his hotel when he notices Fatima Blush who is water-skiing in the harbour.

The bar was located at the same hotel where Bond also is staying in the film - the British Colonial Hotel - near Nassau Harbour. The bar used in the film was part of the British Colonial Hotel until 1999 when it supposedly was destroyed in a hurricane. The hotel is located on the only private beach in Nassau, on the site of the Old Fort of Nassau. The present hotel building was built in 1924 on the location of the former Old Fort of Nassau which had been built to protect the western entrance to Nassau Harbour.

Seen in the background are the cruise ships in Nassau Harbour

Cruise ships still arrive daily in Nassau harbour as seen in the film

"-How reckless of me, I've made you all wet!
         -Yes, but my Martini is still dry... "

The pier where the bar was located can still be found on location. According to some sources, the pier and the bar was built for the film and was then kept by the hotel. I have not yet found confirmation for this information.

A very brief glimpse of part of the British Colonial Hotel, its garden and the beach can be seen behind Bond through the bar

The long house which is seen through the bar, behind Bond in the picture above, is still part of the hotel and can be found on location today. 

The footage in Never is uninspiring and not even Nassau looks exotic or colorful in the film. The film itself is a rush job and one of the few favourable things about the film is the casting of Barbara Carrera as Fatima Blush, the Spectre agent number 12. Blush is water-skiing in Nassau Harbour and then skis up on a ramp into the arms of Bond.

Across the water is Paradise Island visible

The British Colonial Hotel - today known as the British Colonial Hilton Hotel has sadly lost its former glory and is not something that Bond would stay at today. Of course we know that he rather chooses The One and Only Ocean Club when in the Bahamas. However, the hotel has a long history and has been an important institution in Nassau described as "the most elegant and most expensive hotel in town".

The location of the original bar before being destroyed and Paradise Island seen in the background.