Were the Fleming Family Embarrassed By Bond?

DavidJones

The Fleming family seem to be upper-crust types and not the sort you would usually associate with, as Fleming himself put it, "kiss kiss bang bang" stuff.

I remember reading that his wife disapproved of Bond and that their friends and associates would read out passages of Fleming's work and laugh uproariously.

PPK 7.65mm

Kate and Lucy Fleming, his nieces have always said nice things about the James Bond novels in various interviews that I have seen them in. Peter Fleming, Ian's older brother who was a travel writer also seemed to understand what Ian was doing in terms of his writing from what I recall.

7289

It would be very embarrassing to have all the money Bond thrillers netted the family. Too bad IF didn’t get to spend more of it.

caractacus potts

do we mean the Fleming family, as opposed to Ann?
cuz Ann was certainly a snob who made many facetious remarks about the popular thrillers her husband was writing … but they seem like a strange couple who liked to torture each other anyway. Like if he did prefer to hang out with her serious literary crowd friends, would she have gone any easier on him?
He was writing the books specifically to get away from her for two blissful months each year, so she might have found that choice a bit insulting to begin with.

as for the actual Fleming family...
who runs Ian Fleming Publications these days? for some reason I thought it was family members, but their website gives no clue.
this fansite claims it is the Fleming family

Ian's nephew Fergus Fleming edited the Man with the Golden Typewriter, a collection of Fleming's letters, so he can't be that embarrassed

DavidJones

I can't stand snobbery, so I have no sympathy for Ann Fleming. She disapproved of Amis writing a Bond too, saying he would turn the spy into into Lucky Jim - which only proves, really, that She had maybe read only one Amis book.

Lucy Fleming said in the 2012 doc that her uncle had been "a very, very, very, very good writer", but if she is just saying that to stick up for him, or is trying to focus on his prose and not the plots, I don't know.

Revelator

Ann was the only member of the Fleming family who was embarrassed by Bond. Partly out of snobbery, partly because she resented Bond for coming between her and her husband and helping kill him. She didn't care about spy thrillers, but she did care about Ian.

The rest of the family, especially Ian's nephews and nieces, have always been appreciative of their Uncle's artistic legacy. We owe Fergus Fleming many thanks for collecting Ian's letters. And, from what I understand, Lucy and Kate Fleming control Ian Fleming Publications and have been doing a fine job.