Corfu Casino / Achilleion Palace, Corfu

In For your eyes only 1981, Bond meets with Kristatos at the Corfu casino. After a game of Chemin de fer (Baccarat) where Bond wins a few hundred thousand Drachma from the sweating Lord Bunky, Bond and Kristatos have dinner at the casino restaurant. Theses scenes were filmed at what was then the real Corfu casino, housed in the Achilleion Palace in Gastouri.

The Achiellon Palace was built in 1890 by the Empress of Austria, Elisabeth of Bavaria. It was originally built as a summer recidence, designed with the hero Achilles as its central theme. Several statues of Achilles can be found in the palace garden. Elisabeth visited the palace until her passing in Geneva 1898. After her death, the German Kaiser Wilhelm II purchased Achilleon in 1907 and used it as a summer residence. During this time a lot of diplomatic activity took place in Achilleon and it became a hub of European diplomacy.

The restaurant scene was filmed at the back of the Palace. The locations has not changed much and you can still recognize the black and white tiles covering the back of the palace. The small statues filmed in the foreground are still here. In the lower part of the garden, two large statues of Achilles can be found, in accordance with the palace theme.

Kaiser Wilhelm visited the palace until 1914 and the beginning of World War I. During the war the palace was used as a military hospital and after the war it became the propery of the Greek state according to the treaty of Versailles. It was then used to house various government services and during World War II the axis powers used the palace as military headquarters.

In 1962 the palace was leased to a private company that converted the upper level to a casino and the ground floor to a museum. The lease was terminated in 1983 and the property was returned to the Hellenic tourist organisation. Thus, only a few years after the film, the casino closed down.

"-Aperitif please?
          -Ouzo for me please. 
    -Ena ouzo, ena whisky jorispago parakalo!" 
        -Bond and Kristatos to the head waiter- 

Bond orders an ouzo and Kristatos orders a whisky and specifies "no ice". Behind Bond and the head waiter you can see the large statues in front of the pillars still in place. On the other side of the courtyard you can sit and enjoy this wonderful location and you should really take your time.  The Achilleion Palace has a spectacular view over the coast. It is sad that the casino has moved to the Corfu Hilton and that the guests from the restaurant are gone. This would probably be one of the best places in the world for a restaurant.

"My father loved the view from here...
I can see why. Was Corfu your home?"
              -Melina and Bond-

Another beautiful location from the movie can also be found here. In the garden at the back of the Palace, you can find the view point where Melina becomes emotional when talking to Bond about her dead parents. From here you have a view over Corfu town and the coast. Unfortunately the palace and the garden is popular by tourists so you can't count on spending time here alone.

In the film this scene is not supposed to take place at the Achilleon palace but in Corfu town, since Bond and Melina are walking thru the centre of the town, ending up here. You get the feeling that this is located in the town centre, but is is easy to understand why the filmmakers wanted to use this location since it is the best view point on the island. Over the water you can see the Albanian coast.

Eastern funeral - Hong Kong Island

"Our man in Hong Kong is working on it now..."

In  the pre-title sequence of You only live twice 1967, Bond, working on a case in Hong Kong is suddenly "killed" in bed by two gunmen. The first scene after the main title is an establishing shot over Hong Kong. The camera pans over Hong Kong Island and the Victoria Harbour, where Bond is buried from a British warship, the HMS Tenby.

It is not an understatement to say that Hong Kong has changed for the past 45 years. The biggest change of course being that Hong Kong no longer is a Crown Colony under British rule. The lack of space has also caused demand for denser constructions and that is why Hong Kong today has the famous skyline that was not apparent in 1967. I think it is rather safe to say that not a single house can be identified from the film. It is only the mountain that gives away the location. The backlight in the picture above does not make the magnificent view justice, but the viewpoint can be found when walking along the avenue of stars in the Tsim Tsa Tsui district in Kowloon.

The British warships lie just off the pier on the Kowloon side. It is not clear, whether one of the ships visible in the first shot is suppose to be the one where Bond is buried from, even though it would seem natural since an enemy agent can watch the funeral from land.

"At least he died on the job..."

"We therefore commit his body to the deep"

An enemy agent watches the funeral from the Hong Kong Yacht Club, with a newspaper about James Bond's death on the table. However, the funeral itself was not at all filmed in Hong Kong. It was filmed on the British warship HMS Tenby off the coast of Gibraltar. It is apparent that this is not Hong Kong when you see the open seas in the last picture. The real location for the funeral is impossible to determine.

"Present! FIRE!"

From Britain, with love - British Caledonian airways

Bond lands at Nice, Côte d'azur

The next post in the travel section will cover British Caledonian airways (BCal), which was Bond's choice of airline in Never say never again 1983. Bond traveled from Nassau to Côte d'azur and landed at Nice airport with a McDonnell Douglas DC-10 from British Caledonian. This was a private, independent British airline that operated between 1970 and 1988. It was formed in 1970 when the Scottish airline, Caledonian Airways took over British United Airways (BUA), the largest independent airline at the time. The takeover eventually turned British Caledonian into Britain's foremost independent international scheduled airline.

original picture website
A similar DC-10 that featured in the film

British Caledonian airways fits well together with the Bond character. Their commercial strategy was to promote themselves with their stewardesses, known as the "Caledonian girls", as the cutest girls in the world. When you chose Caledonian, you chose the Caledonian girls. No wonder why Bond wanted to fly Caledonian! One can imagine that it would have attracted Connery and helped to persuade him into returning to the role of 007, 12 years after his last Bond film Diamonds are forever. The airline receives a thank you at the end credits but is never mentioned, and has never been seen in another Bond film.

Sadly, a number of setbacks during the 70's and 80's led to financial difficulties and in December 1987 British Caledonian was taken over by British Airways. They ceased operations in 1988.

Photo from ba.com - history and heritage 1980-1989

British Caledonian was the first British airline to introduce the DC-10 and had one of the largest DC-10 fleets in Europe. It was introduced with BCal in March 1977 and operated until they ceased operations in 1988.

The British Caledonian TV adverts are a fantastic piece of commercial history that should be watched!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8q9zOUMdtg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BdTloD_NhU&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDyhYVuTBgM

Duel on the beach - James Bond Island, Thailand

Probably the most famous Bond location in the world is the island of Ko Tapu, or nail island in Thailand, today known as "James Bond island".
Because of the fame, it is also one of the most commercially ruined locations you can visit. But nonetheless, when in Thailand it is well worth a visit. The island is situated in a beautiful part of Thailand, namely Phang Nga bay. It was here that Scaramanga's secret lair was located in The man with the golden gun and the famous duel between Scaramanga and Bond took place on the beach here in 1974.    
                    
                "Watch that mushroom shaped rock!"
     

Since 1981 the island is part of the Ao Phang Nga National Park and since 1998 it is forbidden for tourist boats to approach Ko Tapu, which aims to stop erosion of the limestone rocks that might eventually result in a collapse. Despite that, the beach is not protected and therefore ruined by both the locals and the tourists.
         

Scaramanga has built a luxurious hideout inside the mountain and has a view over the "mushroom shaped rock". When Bond arrives, he lands on the water and stops his sea plane on the beach. Nick Nack greets him  with a bottle of Dom Perignon 1964, which Scaramanga then opens by shooting off the cork.

                                    "-Six bullets to your one?
                                      -I only need one..."
                                                     -Bond to Scaramanga-

From the beach Bond and Scaramanga reach the entrance to the lair. Of course it is a fake as you can see from the left picture. Another example of excellent production and set design. Obviously all the interior scenes were shot in studio. The cast have left their autographs on some metal plates that can be found on the rock wall.



The original beach is covered with stalls and vendors selling sea shells with the 007 logo and other trinkets, so sadly the original untouched setting is gone forever. But the beach where Scaramanga and Miss Anders are served drinks by Nick Nack, seen in the pre-title sequence, are not the same as the one used in the duel scene. Instead you can find that beach on the other side of the big rock to the right. Fortunately this beach is not as well known and therefore free from both tourists and vendors.

Scaramanga's private beach to the right

The easiest way to get to James Bond island is probably taking a daylong sightseeing trip where the visit is included together with lunch, elephant trek, speedboat trip and various visits etc. You can almost certainly find at least one tour including James Bond island at every travel agent in Phuket. But the best way to get there would be charter a boat by yourself and leave early in the morning to avoid the tourists and the people selling kitsch. That is probably the only way you can truly enjoy this classic location in peace.

Phang Nga Bay was also used in the final scenes of Tomorrow never dies, 23 years later. The famous "James Bond Island" is not visible however but the surrounding rocks and beautiful scenery is very recognizable indeed. In Tomorrow the location is supposed to be in the south China sea, namely Ha Long bay.

Universal Exports Ltd. / The Malaysia house, London

-Famous Russian General defects!

After that the Russian General Koskov has been taken back by Necros from the British safehouse, Bond is back in London trying to track Koskov down through the woman cellist in Bratislava. We find him at his office. In The Living Daylights 1987, not the usual Whitehall exterior was used for the establishing shot of Bond's office. Instead we see a brief glimpse of Charing Cross tube station before the camera turns to the entrance with the name Universal Exports. The sign hangs above the door to the Malaysia house in Trafalgar square. Universal exports was used already in the books by Ian Fleming, as the cover name for Mi6. The name has been used since Dr No and was last seen on Bond's fake business card in Quantum of solace.

In the two previous films, Octopussy and A view to a kill, the old war office building in Whitehall had been used and it would also feature in Dalton's last film, Licence to Kill. Why the Malaysia tourist office was used is unknown. The building seen in the background is the Canada house, which is part of the High Commission of Canada in London. It hosts the consular and cultural sections of the High Commission.

The building is situated right next to Charing Cross tube station, on Cockspur street in Trafalgar square. In the film there is a man selling newspapers in the corner. He is shouting out the top story, something that is rarely heard today.

Villefranche-sur-mer, côte d'azur - part 1

In Never say never again Bond follows Largo's yacht to the south of France. After being picked up at the airport in Nice, Nicole (agent 326), takes him and Leiter to a villa with a magnificent view over the Mediterranean. This villa is situated just above the bay in Villefranche-sur-mer, on the French Riviera.

Villefranche-sur-mer is a beautiful village conveniently located approx. 15-25 min. from Monaco and Nice in either direction. The bay over which Bond is looking is one of the deepest natural harbours of any ports in the Mediterranean sea. That is why some of the largest cruise ships that can be found in the Mediterranean choose to stop here.




"I found the villa for us, just where you wanted, it's perfect. The Flying saucer has anchored in the bay below..."  -Nicole-

During the film Largo's yacht is anchored in the bay in Villefranche and a lot of scenes were filmed in the village. These scenes will be covered later and it includes Domino arriving at the old harbour, the end of the motorbike chase and some of the scenes at Palmyra.

In one of the first scenes in Villefranche, Bond follows domino to "la centre de la Santé" where he later gives her a massage. This scene was filmed at avenue Sadi Carnot in the touristic center of the village, just above the old harbor. You can see the red harbor house in the background. Very close by is Promenade des Marinières. On this street along the quay you can find a great number of restaurants.

Villefranche-sur-mer is a wonderful village and well worth a visit when on the Riviera. Within walking distance from the center of the village is a beach overlooking the bay. The best time for a visit to the Riviera is definitely early summer (May) or late summer (September-October) since there are less tourists and the climate is as good as in the summer. Perhaps even better, since it is slightly cooler you can wear a blazer without sweating.

The exterior of Largo's house Palmyra was filmed at two different castles, one being the famous Citadelle just behind the old port in Villefranche. The interior scenes was filmed at Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild across the bay. Both these locations will be covered later.

The village has also featured in both The Persuaders (The gold Napoleon) with Sir Roger and Tony Curtis, and the action film Ronin with Robert de Niro and Jean Reno.

Lufthansa to L.A.

Lufthansa Boeing 707

Today it is time for another post in the travel section, this time covering Lufthansa, the German airline founded in 1926. Bond, posing as diamond smuggler Peter Franks, travels to L.A. along with Tiffany Case in Diamonds are forever. Bond and Tiffany chose Lufthansa Business class for their trip from Amsterdam across the pond. Mr Wint and Mr Kidd are also on the same plane, but unlike Bond and Tiffany they fly economy class. The flight number called out onboard by the stewardess is LH450 to Los Angeles. Thanks to one of the readers on this blog we know that the airplane seen in the film is a Lufthansa Boeing 707-330B with the tail number D-ABUL, named "Duisburg". All Lufthansa jets are named after large German towns.

Bond is arriving at LAX and the famous theme building, the landmark of Los Angeles international airport is visible in the background. The plane featured in the film is a Boeing 707-320 or 420, an airplane that was normally used for long-haul flights at the time.

"-You wanna sit in the front Mr Franks?
         -It's a lot smoother ride in the front Mr Franks!
-Yes I believe I'll sit in front..."

Despite the fact that Bond meets with Leiter in the US customs building the Lufthansa Cargo logo is visible on several places both in- and outside when Bond picks up the coffin with the real Peter Franks. Lufthansa does not receive any recognition in the end credits but imdb.com lists Lufthansa as one of the product placements or movie tie-ins for the film, even though I have never seen any commercials or ads connecting Bond with the airline.

Why Lufthansa was Bond's choice of airline is unknown. It would have been more appropriate for Bond to fly with the Dutch airline, KLM, or Pan Am which had already been used two times before. However, apparently neither KLM nor Pan Am flew to Los Angeles from Amsterdam in 1971, but Lufthansa did. That flight originated in Frankfurt and made a stop in Amsterdam before continuing across the pond. It is not possible, even today, to fly with Lufthansa from Amsterdam to L.A. The only non-stop Lufthansa flight from Europe to L.A. departs from Frankfurt.

A Lufthansa catering truck at Amsterdam (Frankfurt?) airport

The scenes were Franks' coffin is put in the airplane was shot at Frankfurt Airport since this airport is listed at imdb.com as a filming location. A Lufthansa catering truck is visible in the background.

The airline has never been seen or mentioned again in the series.


Nu tar vi helg och firar en avslutad femte termin!
Hear hear!

Bangkok car chase

Probably two of the least important locations in the world, from a Bond perspective, can be found in Bangkok. They featured only for a few seconds in the background during the car chase in The man with the golden gun and is interesting only from a documentary point of view. I am talking about the "Democracy monument" and the "Gigant Swing", both located in the heart of Bangkok.

Bond is chasing Scaramanga in a red AMC Hornet, previously stolen from a car show room, with the Louisiana state sheriff J.W. Pepper in the other seat. Scaramanga is driving a golden AMC with agent Mary Goodnight locked in the boot. A few different Bangkok sights can probably be recognized in the film but a lot of things have changed since 1974 so it is hard to find locations still untouched. 

"Who are you after this time boy, commis?! Let's go get 'em, I'm with you all the way!"

The democracy monument was commissioned in 1939 to honor the "Siamese Revolution of 1932" which led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy in the Kingdom of Siam. In June 1939 the name Siam was changed to Thailand. (Bond's only other connection with Siam was that he unintentionally drank Siamese vodka in You only live twice 1967.)

Another monument briefly seen during the car chase is the "Gigant Swing" in front of Wat Suthat temple. The swing can only be recognized by the lowest part and is never seen in its full heigth in the movie. The Wat Suthat temple in the background is more obvious and they probably chose to film the sequence here because it was a distinct Thai location. 

The Gigant Swing was originally constructed in 1784 and is a religious structure used in various ceremonies. It was renovated and moved to its current location in 1920 and a major reconstruction took place between 2005 and 2007. I visited both of these locations in 2005 unaware of their significance to the Bond history, something that I discovered years later. 

The car chase is one of the least interesting chases in the entire Bond series and is probably remembered only for the finale when Bond jumps with the car over a river and flips it 360 degrees. A stunt that became world famous after the Bond film. 

The film itself qualifies in the bottom five list despite Christofer Lee and the fact that there are two Swedish ladies in the lead. The plot is poorly written and Scaramanga is no actual threat to Bond or anyone else. The film has little action and takes almost no advantage of the exotic locations in Hong Kong and Macao. That said, it is one of Sir Roger's better efforts as Bond, before he became to tired of doing his own fight sequences. It is also the film where Bond has the most number of suits in the series.


Ha en fortsatt trevlig söndag!

Circus Circus - Las Vegas

"When was the last time you visited a circus?"

In Diamonds are forever Bond sends Tiffany Case to pick up the diamonds at Circus Circus, the hotel and casino on Las Vegas Boulevard. Tiffany is being watched by the CIA when she arrives. She gets a signal from an agent at the black jack table to go and play the water balloons (where she is suppose to find the diamonds).

This scene was filmed inside the casino and the water balloons can still be found on location, on the second floor at the famous midway in the casino. Some of the clowns have been replaced and today all the clowns look like the one Tiffany is shooting at. It is still very recognizable and the price per game is only $1.

The fact that you still can play the game and recognize the clowns from the film makes this one of the best Bond locations in Las Vegas since most of the other locations that were used in the movie have been altered or demolished since 1971. Sadly the jolly old balloon man has been replaced by an older woman without a funny costume. A few performances at the circus stage inside the casino was also featured in the film and here you can still see high class circus acts and shows today. The exterior of the hotel, with a big circus tent in front, is not visible in the film.

The Circus Circus started in 1968 as a circus, complete with midway games and rides. A hotel was added in 1972, therefore it was not possible to stay at the Circus Circus at the time of the film. Bond is staying at the Hotel Tropicana, even though the interior hotel scenes were filmed at the Riviera. Circus Circus was the first hotel on the strip to actively seek families. Not really the kind of hotel that Bond would choose today.