James Bond & Friends

Join us as we watch 1989's Licence To Kill together as a group experience.

For this episode, don your baggy suit, grab a Bud with a lime, and cue up your copy of Licence To Kill as the panel chats over the film in real-time with observations, trivia, insights, and irreverence. Along the way, we discover a lighter Leiter lighter, a new idea for a Bond costume party, a corsage hidden in plain sight, talking to maggots, Dario's bad fighting, and Tim's time at Burger King.

The recording took place on April 24th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is a co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Lisa Funnell (@DrLisaFunnell) is Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

But don't look back in anger, I heard you say. 

We kick off discussion this week with the recent GoldenEye watch-along with Pierce Brosnan, hosted from his Hawaiian home. Inevitably we muse on his long association with the iconic part, dating back to 1981, together with the frustration of having Bond snatched away from you, twice: first by NBC contract option in ’86 and then getting dumped by phone in 2005. The second topic is the odd timing and tone of a new interview with Cary Fukunaga in which he reveals his comparatively short history with Bond, and the fact he might just have been reading the MI6 Community. 

Along the way we stumble on vehicular spats, Uncle Bond, going ‘round Roger’s, ethereal instagram captions, the magic of pre-recording, hiring from the art house, Craig’s acting chops, missing Connery commentary, Burt Reynolds’ ‘tash, blooper reels, the curse of Bond, Nicolas Cage cash-ins, location stand-ins, Spock’s rocks, a spike in sales for Dan August DVDs, fan theories run amok, untimely endings, Bill’s interview technique, and another bold prediction from David. 

The recording took place on April 22nd, 2020 in the USA, UK, New Zealand, and Spain.

Paul Atkinson and James Page are co-founders of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

Phil Nobile Jr is Editor-in-Chief of Fangoria magazine, former Bond correspondent for Birth.Movies.Death

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

Join us as we watch 1979's Moonraker together as a group experience.

For this episode, don your shiniest space suit and cue up your copy of Moonraker as the panel chats over the film in real-time with observations, trivia, insights, and irreverence. Along the way we discover the perfect 007 theme park ride, rare POV shots, untapped prop replica potential, glued pigeon feet, stiffed tips, a furry convention, stealth jam jars, Hitchcockian casting, Drax Industries welcome baskets, and those 'missing' braces.

The recording took place on April 17th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is a co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Lisa Funnell (@DrLisaFunnell) is Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

Join us as we watch 2002's Die Another Die together as a group experience.

For this episode, strap yourself in and cue up your copy of Die Another Day as the panel chats over the film in real-time with observations, trivia, insights, and irreverence. Along the way we discover Pierce Brosnan waving, a lack of Korean extras, a familiar-looking shooting target, emergency stairs, strategic use of cacti, cardboard in a car park, and how Moneypenny fantasizes about writing press releases.

The recording took place on April 10th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is a co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Lisa Funnell (@DrLisaFunnell) is Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

Join us as we watch 1962's Dr. No together as a group experience.

For this episode, cue up your copy of Dr. No as the panel chats over the film in real-time with observations, trivia, insights, and irreverence. Along the way we discover Ben's encyclopedic knowledge of James Bond's wrong guns, things they glued on Connery's head, bad Uber rides, towel dresses, unfortunate spiders, the unique use of colour in the film, inflatable suits, and how things were done on the cheap.

The recording took place on April 3rd, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is a co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Lisa Funnell (@DrLisaFunnell) is Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

What was the impact and cultural context of GoldenEye's release in 1995?

In this episode, we reflect on the release of GoldenEye back in 1995, the challenges it faced, and the lasting legacy it had on the series. Where was Bond fandom at the time? Is it fair to still frame the film as a critical judgment of the character? Did the film succeed in tackling the issues its publicity ran on? Did the videogame have more of an impact in creating a new wave of fans? Has GoldenEye taken on a brand of its own outside the film series? Why does Jack Wade ask about gardening? We attempt, in our own inimitable way, to try and answer all of these questions and more.

The recording took place on March 19th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is a co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Lisa Funnell (@DrLisaFunnell) is Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

What just happened and how will 'No Time To Die' fare in November?

In this episode to mark the one year anniversary of the podcast, we take a quick trip down memory lane and recount some of the standout moments before getting on to the big news of the week...

On Monday, an open letter suggesting a delay to the release of No Time To Die went viral, and by Wednesday the franchise had officially postponed the film until November. James and David discuss their rationale behind the letter, and the panel bat around the ramifications of the delay. What could happen to Daniel Craig's final outing over the next seven months, and will the move pay off?

The recording took place on March 6th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is a co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

Joseph Darlington is Head of Section at beingjamesbond.com

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

How are we feeling about No Time To Die's marketing campaign?

This week we round up the latest ‘No Time To Die’ news, and Bill reports from Toronto where he and a large group of Bond fans assembled for ‘Skyfall’ in Concert. We discuss the experience of seeing the film live with an orchestra and what other scores are ripe for the ‘in concert’ treatment before segueing to Billie Eilish’s UK chart success and the behind-the-scenes video narrated by Cary Fukunaga. We end on the long running time and whether this will be conducive to a satisfying close to the Craig era. Along the way we discover the O’Connell proximity effect, unfortunate honeymoons, unrecorded Bond themes by Rudy Vallée and Hoagy Carmichael, underground clubs pumping out Adele remixes, Cary Fukunaga’s outtakes, the cable guy on ‘No Time To Die’, a gun barrel intermission, an industrial dispute at MI6, a missed marketing opportunity for Dr. No, how best to wear your 007 trainers, how many Oscars the B-roll will win, redacted reminisces, and Hans Zimmer’s MasterCard.

The recording took place on February 26th, 2020 in the UK, USA, and New Zealand.

Paul Atkinson and James Page are co-founders of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

Ben Williams writes for MI6-HQ.com and MI6 Confidential

Mark O'Connell's home base is markoconnell.co.uk

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

How many times has James Bond died?

In this episode, as rumours swirl about the fate of 007 in No Time To Die, we ponder how many times James Bond is assumed to be dead or pretends to be dead, and how effective was the ruse?

Along the way, we walk around a SPECTRE shrubbery, mourn poor crater guy and Bond's blue-collar victims, discover a crocodile puppet show, the villains who must have left the oven on, Miss Moneypenny's grief counseling, and BBC photographers who are always in the right place. We end with deciding how we would want to see James Bond meet his maker.

The recording took place on February 7th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

Calvin Dyson Reviews Bond channel can be enjoyed at youtube.com/calvindyson

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man

How was Billie Eilish's title song for No Time To Die Received?

In this episode, we gather a mega panel to discuss the reaction to the new No Time To Die title song by Billie Eilish that was released yesterday. Joining host JAMES© Page this week are BILL® Koenig, LISA™ Funnel, WARREN℠ Ringham, DAVID© Leigh, PHIL® Nobile Jr, and JOE™ Darlington. Along the way, we ponder Bond's emotional state, the bookending of an era, stumble upon Lisa's grocery store litmus test, and raise an eyebrow at Esquire's bizarre rankings.

You can contact the show via the Twitter hashtag #askbond

The recording took place on February 14th, 2020 in the USA, UK, and Spain.

James Page is co-founder of MI6-HQ.com and the magazine MI6 Confidential

Bill Koenig runs the Spy Command at hmssweblog.wordpress.com

Lisa Funnell (@DrLisaFunnell) is Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma

Warren Ringham is the founder of Q The Music (qthemusicshow.com)

David Leigh runs thejamesbonddossier.com

Phil Nobile Jr is Editor-in-Chief of Fangoria magazine, former Bond correspondent for Birth.Movies.Death

Joseph Darlington is Head of Section at beingjamesbond.com

This podcast is copyright Pretitles LLC © 2020

Music credit 'Spy & Die' by Jay Man