The Imperial War Museum James Bond Exhibition

scaramanga1

This is where you guys can comment on the Ehibition that is being held at the Imperial War Museum which starts on the 17th of April this year and goes on until March 1st next year.

bondaholic007

will there be any special guests there to see?
Honour Blackman is opening the event.

Golrush007

I spent two years in the UK, but sadly this exhibition has only come along just after I left. What a pity!! I always enjoyed looking at the Bond memorabilia in the espionage section at IWM in London.

scaramanga1

I'm hoping to arrange a visit to this exhibition either in May or June - so will gladly give my views on it when I return - but obviously those of you who get to see it before I do -it will be great to hear your thoughts on the exhibition. :007)

bondaholic007

an offical site has been set up, i cant remember link ?:)

scaramanga1

bondaholic007 wrote:

an offical site has been set up, i cant remember link ?:)

The link is at the bottom of the news article:

http://www.ajb007.co.uk/articles/details-on-the-forthcoming-exhibition-in-london/

Napoleon Plural

There are screenings of the first three films there, too:

http://www.mi6.co.uk/news/index.php?itemid=6121


Not sure just how good the screening facilities are there, however...

scaramanga1

Anybody going to the opening day of this exhibition?
If you are let us know your initial thoughts of it on your return.

Strangeways

Anyone in London want to set up a meeting and go to this together? Either post a mesage on here or PM me.
Cheers.

ke02eww

Just home from the pre-opening party...

Yes, Honor Blackman openned the exhibition formally, and she gave a splendid re-rendition of Guy Hamiliton's story from the goldfinger reunion on sunday....this lady has class, style, poise, and of course, true sex appeal.. ;%

even our dear Minister of State for Culture, Media & Sport, Margaget Hodge MP, acquited herself well in her address, highlighting the fact that we're lucky the manuscripts Fleming used in writing the books survive with annotations (some in this exhibition)...while with the advent of the PC and the delete key, future generations won't be able to trace the thoughts of our current batch of Flemings (oh that we were so lucky..)

a few hundred bond officianardos, contributors, celebrities (Tim Burton showed up) and general Londonistanlies partied their way through champagne and canopeys from 6.30pm until short of 11pm, a credit to the hard working, charming and patient girls of the Imperial War Museum staff...I met most and can testify to their qualities as hosts... {[]

The exhibition is superb, and in view of space/time constraints, is a triumph of design.

I loved it, and will go again and again (as I'm only 10 minutes away) but it won't suit all tastes..there will be some that say it's too small, has too many/too few props and gadgets, etc etc...you can't please all the punters..

But I think true Fleming fans will appreciate the simplicity and brevity of the approach.

It's essentially six rooms, each framing a concept in the attempt to "investigate the intersection between two lives, one real, and one fictional" as Ben Macintyre admirably describes in the foreword to his book to accompany the exhibition.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Your-Eyes-Only-Fleming-James/dp/0747595275/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208387268&sr=8-1

Room one begins appropriately with Fleming's smoking jacket, and sweeps into a reconstruction of the desk at Goldeneye, togther with one of the priceless manuscripts on show...
(one small note....THE typewriter is still to come...if anyone knows who has it - especially if it is PB - emplore them to loan it to the exhibition...no...BEG... :007)

Room two gently drifts through the Fleming family, from Robert, the "JP Morgan" of British investment banking, to Valentine, Ian's beloved father, and a selection of cherished family treasures...which nestle next to a display of Fleming's journalism artifacts, including his russian press pass, and a letter from none other than uncle Joe Stalin, kindly declining the offer to parley with Fleming "as he was too busy" - plotting world domination no doubt..

The third room covers Fleming's role in war-time spying, and includes an enigma machine and his coat worn in the ill-fated allied raid on Dieppe, the closest he would come "to real war".

In room four, we have the intersection....the items relating Fleming to Bond, including the pistols given to him by Boothroyd as "prompts" for Bond's weaponry, and an excellent group of drawings relating to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
There is also an excellent (well I liked it....) computerised roulette wheel which upon spinning, gives information on a person who inspired Fleming, and the diplays employ "touch and tell" technology....for those with children (or never having left such state...) it's important to have something PS2 to break the stupor of adult artifact...

This lead to the penultimate room, framed by a beautiful pastiche of novels and paperbacks, and completing the tangency into the life of Bond...

Goldfinger's shoes, a SD Studios Golden Gun, Tiffany Case's slot machine outfit and Jinx's bikini (sadly they originally had it mounted but it was thought too "inspiring" so it's draped as though cast off prior to showering ) are just a few of the offerings...

This leads to the final room, where a morsel of Eon archive props are brutally upstaged by Ken Wallis's little nellie and Prince Andrew's minuiture DB5 genrously loaned by HM Queen. Framed by a selction of posters, the props are aided and abetted by the next PS2 gadget, a mounted screen upon which a projector plays a user-chosen selection of images of Bond icons, eg DB5, Lotus submersible, Little nellie and the acrostar mini-jet....this promises to be really fun once they have all the "rights signed"... :v

before one leaves the exhibition, on the right is mounted the blood-stained shirt from CR, and a couple of interesting letters...


I hope this verbal-tour has inspired you to visit this important bond-fleming site...

I promised not to "flood the web" with the dozens of pics I took, and so this will remain a verbal account...no doubt once the doors have swung open hundreds of pics better than mine will fill that insatiable monster called WWW...

Sir Miles

Thanks for the 'verbal tour', ke02eww - and please do share your pictures.
Have you any idea if this exhibition will come the Imperial War Museum in Manchester ?

scaramanga1

Sir Miles wrote:

Thanks for the 'verbal tour', ke02eww - and please do share your pictures.
Have you any idea if this exhibition will come the Imperial War Museum in Manchester ?

Thought you might ask that one!

I'm hoping to sort out a day trip to London so as to visit the exhibition next month -it will be sort of a birthday treat providing we can book train tickets at a reasonable price. It cost a colleague of mine over £200 quid for a day return ticket the other week -which I think is criminal -its like Blofeld has taken over British Rail!

ke02eww

scaramanga1 wrote:

Sir Miles wrote:

Thanks for the 'verbal tour', ke02eww - and please do share your pictures.
Have you any idea if this exhibition will come the Imperial War Museum in Manchester ?

Thought you might ask that one!

I'm hoping to sort out a day trip to London so as to visit the exhibition next month -it will be sort of a birthday treat providing we can book train tickets at a reasonable price. It cost a colleague of mine over £200 quid for a day return ticket the other week -which I think is criminal -its like Blofeld has taken over British Rail!

my dear man, Blofeld would have it running on time.... )

On the Manchester venue, not sure, will ask..but SGG tells us that it's going to scotland, so I guess it might....

on the pics, I promised IWM I'd keep them until at least Monday...besides, they are worthy of ASP9mm I'm afraid, ... 8-)

Sir Miles

scaramanga1 wrote:

Sir Miles wrote:

Thanks for the 'verbal tour', ke02eww - and please do share your pictures.
Have you any idea if this exhibition will come the Imperial War Museum in Manchester ?

Thought you might ask that one!

Can I help it if I'm just so darn lazy

It would be a shame to put this exhibition together and for it not to tour - plus it would give me the chance to visit it several times instead of just the once

scaramangasgoldengun

please please any one

if you have a photo of the klebbs shoes on display at the museum please email me it if possible I wont publish it anywere... I just wanna have a look.

slicksickmick@msn.com

Mark Hazard

Picked up my copy of the book that accompanies this exhibition, For Your Eyes Only: Ian Fleming and James Bond at my local Tesco for just £10

scaramangasgoldengun

is there a lot in it such as things from the exhibition

Sir Miles

Mark Hazard wrote:

Picked up my copy of the book that accompanies this exhibition, For Your Eyes Only: Ian Fleming and James Bond at my local Tesco for just £10

Thanks for the tip - I didn't realise that there was a book about this exhibition -{

I'll have to see if it's available near me at that price.

scaramangasgoldengun

ok you can see everything thats on display at the museum in this clip... I dont feel its worth the trip as everything that I would be interested in looking at i already have a replica of. butstill As I am the bond nut that I am i feel is should go


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGAMQjHX63o

scaramanga1

Mark Hazard wrote:

Picked up my copy of the book that accompanies this exhibition, For Your Eyes Only: Ian Fleming and James Bond at my local Tesco for just £10

Wow £10! In waterstones there is a hardback book on the ehibition which is £20. Hmm I'll have to see if I can track one down at Tesco then.

Gebruder Gumbold

I will be going from California to see the exhibit from 5/9-5/17. Will report back. Also, will be doing many of the Bond sites in London, incl Stoke Poges, the Big Ben lazenby photo op, Pinewood, and the Aston Martin factory.
Hope to recreate golf scene from GF, and the OHMSS publicity lamp post shot, (naturally adjusted to favour me...)