British actor Roger Moore played James Bond in a record seven films, more than any other man to date.
He made the role truly his own by using an ironically raised eyebrow, well-timed to go with deadpan quips he delivered with a slight smirk.
Moore once said he had nothing in common with “that cold-blooded killer type,” preferring instead to “play [the role] mostly for laughs”.
He made his Bond debut at 45 years old in 1973 in Live and Let Die and went on to star as the MI6 agent in another six films: The Man With the Golden Gun (1974), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), Moonraker (1979), For Your Eyes Only (1981) and Octopussy (1983) before bowing out after A View to a Kill in 1985, when he was 57.
Here are five of Moore’s best quotes as James Bond:
- Forever hold your piece -
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Lazar: “Mr Bond, bullets do not kill. It is the finger that pulls the trigger.”
Bond (holding rifle): “Exactly. I am now aiming precisely at your groin. So speak or forever hold your piece.”
(The Man with the Golden Gun)
- Naked wit -
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Bond: “Miss Anders... I didn’t recognise you with your clothes on.”
(The Man with the Golden Gun)
- Giant step -
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Drax: “Desolate Mr Bond.”
(Bond shoots Drax in the heart with a hidden gun)
Bond: “Heartbroken Mr Drax.”
Bond: “Allow me.”
(Bond opens space station door and shoves Drax into an air lock)
Bond: “Take a giant step for mankind.”
(Moonraker)
- Half cocked -
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Solitaire: “Is there time before we leave for lesson number 3?”
Bond: “Of course. There’s no sense going out half-cocked.”
(Live and Let Die)
- Survival of the fittest -
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Khan: “You have a nasty habit of surviving.”
Bond: “You know what they say about the fittest.”
(Octopussy)
