James Bond actors with real life 007 skills

Number24

While actors have to do a lot of pretending when making movies, they sometimes actually know how to do stuff. What skills did actors who played James Bond really have that 007 has? I have some examples:

- Sean Connery was a dedicated golf player.

- Timothy Dalton was an RAF cadet when he was young and could fly a single-prop plane.

- Roger Moore could speak Italian fluently.

Any more examples?

Number24

I wonder about George Lazenby. According to the internet he was a skiing champion and raced cars and motorcycles, but when did he learn it? I think it's fair to only list skills they learned before or while they played Bond, and that puts George in an akward position. I also wonder about martial arts. He trained i several types of martial arts, but when? He befriended Bruce Lee in 1972 and trained with him until Lee died a year later, but did Lazenby know any martial arts before that? And what about his military service? He apparently did his national service in the Australian special forces as a martial arts instructor. What skills did he learn in the military and when did it happen? He turned 18 in 1957, the normal age for national service, but I have trouble picturing an 18 year old becoming an instructor in an elite unit. On the other hand he was 29 when he became Bond, and at that age you're getting to old to do your national service. If this story is true my guess is that Lazenby picked up some skills in martial arts when he was modeling abroad. The military applied pressure for him to do his military service while he was still young enough, and in a time when few westerners knew martial arts this was a good solution. Few units were trained in martial arts, so he was sent to the special forces for a few months. He was given the stripes of a sergeant in order to be an instructor. Does that seem likely?

Sir Miles

https://www.ajb007.co.uk/discussion/comment/1067742#Comment_1067742

Knowing what George is like - it’s probably ALL made up 🤣

Number24

That's a possibility I've considered. But I think there's a kernel of truth to many of his stories.

At least there is something to his motor racing and martial arts stories.

The man from Hong Kong: https://youtu.be/fS-wUJv2AqU?t=87

Number24

Daniel Craig speaks Russian - badly, from when he did the movie Defiance.