When bantering about the 007 franchise with sundry chums and acquaintances, talk is most likely to gravitate either towards the special ladies in the special agent’s life – the “Bond Birds” as they were chirpily known in times pre-woke – or the gadgets that helped him flee the clutches of sundry super baddies, the jetpack, say, or that souped-up seabed-cruising sportscar.
Those in the know, however, have quite a different focus. Nearly every instalment in the longrunning movie series sees our licenced-to-kill hero sporting one particularly fine timepiece or other. It’s a conceit drawn from the real-life peccadilloes of Ian Fleming, the author of the original Bond books, who penned each caper with his trusty Rolex 1016 Explorer strapped to his wrist.
It’s a tradition apparent right from the very beginning of the movie series, with 1962’s Dr. No seeing Bond, James Bond sporting a Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538. Aside from the historic debut of this movie staple, the watch itself was pretty momentous in horological terms as it set a new standard for divers’ watches by being waterproof to a depth of 300 metres. The dial’s Chromalight display is also something of an innovation in that it delivered unprecedented visibility in even the darkest of environments. Notably, it also features hour markers in simple shapes and broad hour and minute heads.
Later, in the same movie, Sean Connery (the franchise’s first Bond) was seen wearing a Gruen Precision 510 gold dress watch on a black fabric strap, a timepiece known to chronometer connoisseurs as the Sylvia Trench watch. With a brown lizard leather band fitted as standard, this fine vintage piece also featured a 14k gold fill tang buckle and a 33 x 33 mm case with a round case back and a Champagne stick dial.
In Thunderball, four films on but still incarnated as Connery, Bond was brandishing a Breitling Top Time Chronograph, which helpfully had been customised to incorporate a Geiger counter, allowing Our Hero to dodge radioactive isotopes. In addition, it also boasted a stainless-steel case, a black dial with applied baton hour markers, two metal subdials, luminous hands, sweep centre seconds and a metal tachymeter ring around the dial. Fancy.
By the time of the next film – 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service – Bond was briefly incarnated as George Lazenby, an Australian former male model. Despite the change, his watch remained a Rolex, this time an Oyster Perpetual with an expanding bracelet. When not doing double-duty as a knuckle-duster it was otherwise a simple, time-only watch, albeit one with a legendary self-winding Perpetual movement and a 100-meter water-resistant Oyster case.
Skip forward a Bond or two and 1987 saw 007 (now Timothy Dalton) donning a Tag Heuer Professional Night Drive Ref. 980.031 in The Living Daylight. By 1995, Dalton’s successor, Piers Brosnan had moved on to an Omega Seamaster Professional 300M Ref. 2541.80.00 for 1995’s GoldenEye, with Q Branch thoughtfully adding a – sadly nonstandard – laser and a remote detonator.
It is the start of a beautiful relationship as, for the next 20 years or so, Omega was Bond’s wristwatch marque of choice. This saw his favoured crystal domed anti-reflective and scratch-resistant sapphire crystal watch become a familiar sight, along with its quartz precision movement with a rhodium-plated finish and battery life indicator.
Moving forward to 2002, Die Another Day – Brosnan’s fourth and final outing as the series’ lead – saw Bond partnered with comely M16 agent Miranda Frost. During an iconic fight scene, we later catch a glimpse of her own stylish timepiece – a black Tissot T-Touch watch with a black rubber strap. A multifunctional analogue/digital watch, it also boasted a handy bezel-mounted compass.
Proving that this showcasing of a more feminine timepiece wasn’t a one-off, 2012’s Skyfall (Daniel Craig’s third Bond) saw M, the boss of M16 (as played by Dame Judi Dench), wearing a Hamilton Jazzmaster Lady watch. This particular Jazzmaster paired an understated 27mm stainless steel case with an elegant black leather strap and muted black dial, a classic look for the most classic movie franchise of them all.
(Text: Joseff Musa)