Exploring The World Of James Bond In St James’s

James Bond, also known as Agent 007, is one of the world’s most recognisable cultural creations, spawning a blockbuster film franchise and immortal catchphrases such as ‘Bond, James Bond’ and ‘shaken, not stirred’. Did you know though that many of the stories’ roots can be traced to one corner of London: St James’s?

Below is a map of the locations covered in the post, should you want to take yourself on a self-guided James Bond wander around St James’s. 

Ian Fleming And The Inspiration For Bond

Ian Fleming, the author of the twelve James Bond novels, was born in Mayfair in 1908. Fleming attended Eton and then the Royal Military College at Sandhurst. After leaving college, he tried his hand at a couple of career paths. He became a journalist at Reuters, spending time in Moscow and then later spent time in banking and stockbroking. 

In May 1939 he was recruited into the Naval Intelligence Division as the personal assistant to Rear Admiral John Godfrey. Later that year in July, he was commissioned into the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. 

After the outbreak of World War Two, Fleming helped plan many intelligence operations, such as the famous Operation Mincemeat. Operation Ruthless was another, which involved flying a captured Luftwaffe plane, before intentionally crashing it in the English Channel. When a German U-boat came to pick up the ‘survivors’, the disguised British commandos were to seize the submarine and, crucially, its cipher machines to help break the Enigma code. Operation Goldeneye was a contingency plan designed in case General Franco’s Spain allied with Germany and invaded Gibraltar. Fleming helped outline sabotage and disruption schemes to be executed in this event. He later named his Jamaican estate, where he wrote the James Bond books, ‘Goldeneye’ in honour of this plan. 

After the war he worked again as a journalist. He spent his winters at his Goldeneye estate, where he wrote his twelve James Bond novels, two sets of James Bond short stories as well as the children’s classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, between 1952-64. 

The James Bond films started with Dr. No starring Sean Connery in 1962. There have now been 25 films spanning over six decades. 

116 Pall Mall

At 116 Pall Mall you will find a Grade I-listed Regency building, constructed in the 1820s, designed by John Nash. Today it is the headquarters of the Institute of Directors club and an exclusive events venue, however up until 1978 and throughout World War Two, it was the United Service Club, a gentlemen’s club for senior British Army and Royal Navy officers, nicknamed ‘The Senior’.

Ian Fleming was a regular visitor here in the war and would have been surrounded by the very circles that would go on to inspire Bond. In the Bond novel You Only Live Twice, Fleming describes Bond’s superior, ‘M’, as ‘not a clubbable’ man and if he had had the choice, he would have stuck to ‘The Senior’. 

Boodles 

Ian Fleming was a full member of Boodles, another historic gentleman’s club on St James’s Street.

Boodles was founded in 1762 and in the 20th century became a favourite for the Secret Intelligence Services. Boodles is thought to be the inspiration for the exclusive Blades club in the James Bond novels. It was here that in Moonraker James Bond plays a high-stakes card game against the villain Hugo Drax.

Dukes Bar

Just around the corner from Boodles you have Dukes Hotel and Bar, built in 1908. This was a regular haunt of Ian Fleming and legend has it that this is where he coined the famous ‘Shaken, not stirred’ line, whilst discussing the perfect way to make a martini with the Italian bartenders. 

St James’s Hotel and Club

St James’s Hotel and Club was founded as a gentleman’s club in 1857. In 2008 it became the Althoff St. James’s Hotel & Club.

Fleming joined the St. James’s Club in 1931, so this is also another possible inspiration for the Blades club. During the 1940s, he actually briefly lived there until moving to a more permanent residence in 1946. 

Floris

Floris on Jermyn Street was established in 1730 by Juan Famenias Floris, making it the oldest independent, family-run perfumery in the world. 

Ian Fleming was a regular here and mentions it multiple times in the James Bond novels. For example, in Diamonds Are Forever (1956), when preparing his Chelsea flat for his imminent return, Bond notes that he must have his housekeeper arrange for ‘bath essence from Floris’.

Fleming’s signature scent was Floris No. 89, created in 1951, just a year before he published Casino Royale.

According to their website No. 89 has ‘crisp top notes of bergamot, lavender, and neroli, supported by a heart of rose, geranium, and ylang-ylang, and grounded by warm sandalwood, cedarwood, and oakmoss, No. 89 is a fragrance of depth and distinction, much like Bond himself.’ Find out more here.

Lock and Co Hatters

Lock and Co Hatters was founded in 1676, making it the oldest shop in London and the oldest hat shop in the world. I have previously written a full blog post on its history here. 

They have provided many of the iconic hats in the films, right from the start. They provided the green trilby for Sean Connery’s James Bond in Dr. No (1962), as well as Connery’s Stoke Panama hat in Goldfinger (1964).

The bowler hat worn by Oddjob in Goldfinger (1964) was provided by Lock and Co, and the top hat for Timothy Dalton’s Bond in Licence to Kill (1989). In more recent years, they made the trilby for Vesper Lynd, played by Eva Green, in Casino Royal (2006). 

In 2022, they created a 007 range for the 60th anniversary of the franchise. 

Turnbull & Asser

Turnbull & Asser tailors and shirtmakers were established on their current site on Jermyn Street in 1885. 

Ian Fleming was a customer and they have created many of the Bond looks in the James Bond films. Dr No director Terence Young sent Sean Connery to Turnbull & Asser to establish Bond’s signature on-screen look. They also heavily outfitted Pierce Brosnan in the 1990s and 00s and Daniel Craig in Casino Royal. 

Sunspel 

Finally, when Daniel Craig took over the role of Bond, costume designer Lindy Hemming wanted to shake up the image a bit. She wanted a casual, elegant but rugged and modern style for 007. Lindy approached Sunspel and worked with them to tailor the 1950s Riviera Polo that he wears in Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace. They also, according to their website, provided Daniel Craig’s underwear for Casino Royale, although it was never seen on screen!

Thank you for reading. More of London’s incredible hidden history in previous blog posts below…