Moonraker was one of my favorite Bond Novels when I was growing up, always thought the plot from the Novel was more superior than the Film version (Still love the 1979 Moore film don’t get me wrong) but glad the radio play version gave new life to it in a fantastic way
Glad to hear someone else who enjoyed the Moonraker novel. I've talked with a good number of folk from all walks that enjoy it too. Also agree that these productions are brilliant, just feel bad only finding them now
These dramas have gotten me to seek out the books. I am a fan of the movies, but wish so many of them would've stuck to the books. Storylines for some so much better. Actually would love to see the BBC do a TV series and redo the books as written. Allow the movies to do whatever they want. Kind of like what happens with Jane Austen adaptations
So interesting how different these original BOND tales are from the films. I know some of the early BOND films were close to the novels it would be interesting to see these the novels that were changed so much be adapted as films closer to the source. Although some of these films might be short and in the end like this one Bond did not end up with the woman.
"You die a hero, or you live long enough to become a villain." Aside from Toby Stephens it seems. From Bond Villain to James Bond himself. What a performance from Mr. Stephens and the rest of the cast. I now intend to find other BBC dramas like this.
If you do, make sure you do it in chronological order: - Moonraker - Diamonds Are Forever - From Russia with Love - Dr. No - Goldfinger - Thunderball - On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Check out BBC radio's play of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John Lecarre'. I have listened to it many times as I can download it from my local library online using their Overdrive media app. It is just awesome and very well done.
Oooh, a adaptation of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,@@OverlandOne? Colour me intrested. I adored the 2011 film, so this has a lot to live up to. But, I have confidence, thanks to these BBC Bond Dramas. Thanks for the heads up.
@@caileanthomson1286 There were actually two radio adaptations of TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY. One was done in 1988, in seven half-hour episodes, with Bernard Hepton as Smiley. This was released on cassette, but is out of print now. Then, in 2009-2010, there was a series with the explanatory title THE COMPLETE SMILEY, starring Simon Russell Beale. This did TINKER in three hour-long episodes. It is available on CD and as a download.
I accidentally stumbled across this channel - to my sheer delight! These productions are just super ! *Subbed* I really enjoy Toby Stephen's portrayal of Bond.
Wish the film version was truer to the book, instead of the nonsensical space shuttle version. One of my favorite Bond stories. Well played Mr Stevens !
Yes it would be interesting. Many years ago I started to read some of the original Bond novels and it was interesting to see oh close a few of the Connery films were to the novels!
@@slagit I’m reading them now. Really enjoyed Moonraker, working on Diamonds are Forever. I find it a bit sad that only 7 or 8 of the films are accurate to the books
Sadly the only reason they did the space nonsense was because of Star Wars. When Spy who Loved Me came out, they planned to do For Your Eyes Only, but Star Wars made the big bucks and the Bond team decided they wanted a piece of it. I think they'd have been better off following the book or adapting Gerry Anderson's Moonraker script, but even that would need work.
I really wish Toby Stephens could have at least had a stint as Bond in the movies. He embodies the character of Bond better than Pierce Brosnan ever did! And when he was younger (like when he was Gustav Graves in Die another day) he certainly would have had the physicality to pull of being Bond. Plus, I think he looks and sounds a bit more like the original Bond of the books before Connery put his stamp on the character! Also, Samue West would have made an excellent villain in the movies too. Can easily imagine him being a fantastic Blofeld!
Glad you like it. There are others already posted on TH-cam by other people. So just search for them on TH-cam. They are: - Diamonds Are Forever - From Russia with Love - Dr. No - Goldfinger - Thunderball - On Her Majesty's Secret Service Like I said the rest are already posted by other people. But if you want ME to post more (for whatever reason lol), I will do it JUST FOR YOU😉
I love these radio plays I think they are much better than the Bond movie interpretations. Screen writers always love to rearrange the original story but end up replacing it with their own creation... most Bond films did this shameless act
Holy crap, Toby Stephens made a seventh one of these? I didn't even realize. I like the MOONRAKER movie, but from what I've read it's next to nothing like the book. Which begs the question why it hasn't be adapted more faithfully, but apparently some elements made it into DIE ANOTHER DAY?
I THINK it originally was going to be a lot more faithful to the original novel, but the massive success of the 1977 "Star Wars" movie had influenced them into changing it into what we got. And what I remember off the top of my head, there are 2 elements from the Moonraker novel that made it into DAD: 1. Gustav Graves being some sort of "hero" to Great Britian like Hugo Drax was in the novel. 2. Graves constructed a monumental achievement (space laser) for the "good of the people" only to actually use it for evil intentions like Drax did with his monumental rocket in the novel. Did you enjoy Moonraker's radio drama? What is your favorite so far after listening to this one? :)
@@naughtydog1617 Hopefully there's another adaptation then. Still listening to MOONRAKER. My favorite that I've heard so far might be DR. NO, since they were able to clean it up a bit from the book. Aside from No's weird voice.
@@naughtydog1617 Die Another Day (DAD) was going to incorporate more elements from the Moonraker novel before studio executives got in the way. Originally, the Bond Girl of DAD was Gala Brand and Jinx was the mole (this is why she is called Jinx). It was changed when Halle Berry was cast as Jinx as the studio executives thought that audiences would rather have Berry as a Bond Girl than a Femme Fatale. Jinx was made the Bond Girl and Gala Brand the mole. Brand was then renamed Miranda Frost to avoid displeasing fans of the Moonraker novel. Does anyone else wish that they had stuck to the original plan?
@@epsilonalphaargo1948 yeah but I also wish Halle Berry wasn't cast and DAD had a much better director. Maybe we wouldn't have gotten the MESS it turned out to be 😒
@@naughtydog1617 Yeah, studio executives and directors like Lee Tamahori have a bad habbit of adding into good film scripts their ideas of what will make them cooler but actually just damage what makes the scripts good. They also tend to make casting decisions based on anything other than acting talent. Researching the production history of Die Another Day gave me the feeling that it could have been a much better film had the higher ups not forced changes onto it. Originally the story was more about Bond trying to uncover the real traitor by hunting down Zao, Wai Lin from Tommorow Never Dies was meant to assist Bond in Hong Kong instead of Mr Chang and the final showdown took place at an indoor beach resort in Japan rather than on a large flying Antonov jet aircraft (I feel that the indoor beach resort would've been a more believable location for the final showdown).
Better than the bloody film version. I'm glad I won tickets for that one ....would have hated to think I paid to see that one. Having said that had to buy the dvd for the collection. Oh woe.
BBC Radio 4 hasn't done it yet. But one of these four will be next from them: - Casino Royale - Live and Let Die - You Only Live Twice - The Man with the Golden Gun BBC Radio 4 should have a new James Bond Radio Drama sometime this year or next year.😉
@@moneyofpropre2 HOLY SH*T!! I had NO idea! My mistake lol. I will upload Live and Let Die as soon as I can when I find it. Ahh, my FAVORITE James Bond novel coming up from BBC Radio 4 , I CAN'T WAIT! Thanks for letting me know about this!😁
@@naughtydog1617 Seems I'm a couple of years late here. We now have LaLD and TMwtGG & I really wish they'd reach to the conclusion of the Blofeld Trilogy: You Only Live Twice - by re-recording the ruddy thing with (not only Toby, but also…) Joanna Lumley and Alfred Molina.
That’s how the book ended and I’m sure it was a surprise to everyone when it was published. It’s my personal favourite book of Fleming for that reason and that it has my favourite Bond girl ever
How many Ian Flemming 007 books So. Far I only heard 3 Goldfinger You Only ive Twice on audiobooks now moonraker does it matter which order I listen to these 007 audio bookbnovels
The moral of the story buy out the Corporate BBC before 2035 and turn into a Silicon Valley Computer Games Show for the people of 2070 and the years 2080, 2090 and naughty 2090's . I hate James Bond movies, watch a Martin Bashir Documentary about Michael Jackson !
I'm sorry, but I personally think they're murdering this. Almost every single actor is totally unsuitable for their role, in particular that woman playing the rocket scientist. It sounds to me as though the character was originally an australian man and the role has simply been given to a woman. There is no way a woman with that accent would have talked that way in 1954. I also think Jarvis' narration, while he is obviously a stella reader, is intrusive and jarring. Really rather blandly visualized and very poorly executed in my opinion at least.
''There is no way a woman with that accent would have talked that way in 1954.'' HUNDREDS of women spoke like that in the 1950s. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA how bloody clueless are you. What a joke. Are you even English? Fool.
Well Justin, I am English, and I've read books and listened to drama from the period. Still I have never come across a woman with an upper class British accent using the word 'sport' in the sense of mate or friend, much less the word bally. If you can show me evidence of British women talking in this way, I'll be more than happy to admit my error.
Justin Todd-Walker, not at all sure what that's got to do with it... and I fear that nugget of information went over my head. If this is true, it's a blatant piece of stereotyping. Still waiting for your evidence of other women who spoke this way in the 1950s.
@@dan4lau Upper classes don't use received pronunciation ! Anyway the electronic door- lock noises suggest late sixties not fifties and the instant response from the car radio turning on has no valve warming up period, so 1960's again and the instantaneously lighting 'mechanic's blowtorch' is also unconvincing as in the 1950s this would be a roaring paraffin Primus blow lamp needing pre heating with meths and much pumping up of the pressure tank and I defy anyone to light and regulate an oxy-acetylene torch in a nanosecond. 'Blowtorches' are more 1970s. Better we just go with the flow, you guys have now got me ranting at the technical anachronisms and errors, never mind fussing over minor points like the choice of the cast or their speech patterns!
Moonraker was one of my favorite Bond Novels when I was growing up, always thought the plot from the Novel was more superior than the Film version (Still love the 1979 Moore film don’t get me wrong) but glad the radio play version gave new life to it in a fantastic way
Glad to hear someone else who enjoyed the Moonraker novel. I've talked with a good number of folk from all walks that enjoy it too. Also agree that these productions are brilliant, just feel bad only finding them now
These dramas have gotten me to seek out the books. I am a fan of the movies, but wish so many of them would've stuck to the books. Storylines for some so much better. Actually would love to see the BBC do a TV series and redo the books as written. Allow the movies to do whatever they want. Kind of like what happens with Jane Austen adaptations
These radio plays are so well done...Thank you, Thank you
I’m reading the book now. So far 52% of it. This play has been pretty spot on with the story so far.
So good. The only Bond book set in England
Awesome Peter Lorre type impersonation
Krebs actually is described as a mad scientist version of Peter Lorre
So interesting how different these original BOND tales are from the films. I know some of the early BOND films were close to the novels it would be interesting to see these the novels that were changed so much be adapted as films closer to the source. Although some of these films might be short and in the end like this one Bond did not end up with the woman.
"You die a hero, or you live long enough to become a villain."
Aside from Toby Stephens it seems. From Bond Villain to James Bond himself. What a performance from Mr. Stephens and the rest of the cast. I now intend to find other BBC dramas like this.
If you do, make sure you do it in chronological order:
- Moonraker
- Diamonds Are Forever
- From Russia with Love
- Dr. No
- Goldfinger
- Thunderball
- On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Thanks for the heads up,@@naughtydog1617. I hear that these stories contain quite the cast line-up. XD
Check out BBC radio's play of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John Lecarre'. I have listened to it many times as I can download it from my local library online using their Overdrive media app. It is just awesome and very well done.
Oooh, a adaptation of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,@@OverlandOne? Colour me intrested. I adored the 2011 film, so this has a lot to live up to. But, I have confidence, thanks to these BBC Bond Dramas.
Thanks for the heads up.
@@caileanthomson1286 There were actually two radio adaptations of TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY. One was done in 1988, in seven half-hour episodes, with Bernard Hepton as Smiley. This was released on cassette, but is out of print now. Then, in 2009-2010, there was a series with the explanatory title THE COMPLETE SMILEY, starring Simon Russell Beale. This did TINKER in three hour-long episodes. It is available on CD and as a download.
Couldn't help but laugh when Gala Brand said "My real name's even worse," I instantly thought of the name of the bond lady in the movie
Oh, a woman.
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The films are entertaining rubbish. These radio plays are first class.
Dr. Krebs is the best Peter Lore impersonation ever.
Kinda funny considering Fleming described him as a mad scientist version of Peter Lorre in the book
I liked the added touch of James and Gala's panicked mumblings as they listened to the radio broadcast.
Best one yet. My favourite.
Masterpiece.
1:21:02 The sound of the explosion gave me goosebumps.
love Toby's audio dramatizations! Check out his Philip Marlowe's---with an impeccable American accent!
!!!???......his excruciating mannered delivery as Bond is like a parody of a certain type of actor . As for his American accent. ....
.....awful.!
Nothing like the film but equally has good. Thanks
I accidentally stumbled across this channel - to my sheer delight! These productions are just super ! *Subbed* I really enjoy Toby Stephen's portrayal of Bond.
Wish the film version was truer to the book, instead of the nonsensical space shuttle version. One of my favorite Bond stories. Well played Mr Stevens !
Yes it would be interesting. Many years ago I started to read some of the original Bond novels and it was interesting to see oh close a few of the Connery films were to the novels!
@@slagit I’m reading them now. Really enjoyed Moonraker, working on Diamonds are Forever. I find it a bit sad that only 7 or 8 of the films are accurate to the books
Thank very much looking forward
Sadly the only reason they did the space nonsense was because of Star Wars.
When Spy who Loved Me came out, they planned to do For Your Eyes Only, but Star Wars made the big bucks and the Bond team decided they wanted a piece of it.
I think they'd have been better off following the book or adapting Gerry Anderson's Moonraker script, but even that would need work.
Excellent...i listened to this several times 😊
They skipped the details of the Duke of Cumberland Hand at the card table, and that Bond sobered up with amphetamines...
Sir Hugo Drax sounds like Sideshow Bob in this audio play.
Bond swimming in blue pants? That rings a bell...
I do love James, James Bond
Bond, James Bond.
Why? “Because Hugo drakes cheats at cards”. Never forget it!
I really wish Toby Stephens could have at least had a stint as Bond in the movies. He embodies the character of Bond better than Pierce Brosnan ever did! And when he was younger (like when he was Gustav Graves in Die another day) he certainly would have had the physicality to pull of being Bond. Plus, I think he looks and sounds a bit more like the original Bond of the books before Connery put his stamp on the character! Also, Samue West would have made an excellent villain in the movies too. Can easily imagine him being a fantastic Blofeld!
Thanks!
This is amazing! Please post more if it’s possible 🙂🙂
Glad you like it. There are others already posted on TH-cam by other people. So just search for them on TH-cam. They are:
- Diamonds Are Forever
- From Russia with Love
- Dr. No
- Goldfinger
- Thunderball
- On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Like I said the rest are already posted by other people. But if you want ME to post more (for whatever reason lol), I will do it JUST FOR YOU😉
Featuring the great Sir Winston Churchill.
War monger
Thank you
You're very welcome ☺
I love these radio plays, but when will the next one come out?
It's kind of ironic that a Bond villain would play Bond himself 16 years later.
The Bond we never had.
Thx for posting!! I enjoy listening to these!
I listened to this shortly after re-reading the book. It's very close and I recommend it. The film was an abortion, nothing to do with the book.
I love these radio
plays I think they are much better than the Bond movie interpretations. Screen writers always love to rearrange the original story but end up replacing it with their own creation... most Bond films did this shameless act
I have heard and loved all these plays. One question, what part does Ray Winstone play?
That's where Captain Flint went!
Is that a saint a bond and a warlock I hear
Holy crap, Toby Stephens made a seventh one of these? I didn't even realize. I like the MOONRAKER movie, but from what I've read it's next to nothing like the book. Which begs the question why it hasn't be adapted more faithfully, but apparently some elements made it into DIE ANOTHER DAY?
I THINK it originally was going to be a lot more faithful to the original novel, but the massive success of the 1977 "Star Wars" movie had influenced them into changing it into what we got.
And what I remember off the top of my head, there are 2 elements from the Moonraker novel that made it into DAD: 1. Gustav Graves being some sort of "hero" to Great Britian like Hugo Drax was in the novel. 2. Graves constructed a monumental achievement (space laser) for the "good of the people" only to actually use it for evil intentions like Drax did with his monumental rocket in the novel.
Did you enjoy Moonraker's radio drama? What is your favorite so far after listening to this one? :)
@@naughtydog1617 Hopefully there's another adaptation then.
Still listening to MOONRAKER. My favorite that I've heard so far might be DR. NO, since they were able to clean it up a bit from the book. Aside from No's weird voice.
@@naughtydog1617 Die Another Day (DAD) was going to incorporate more elements from the Moonraker novel before studio executives got in the way. Originally, the Bond Girl of DAD was Gala Brand and Jinx was the mole (this is why she is called Jinx). It was changed when Halle Berry was cast as Jinx as the studio executives thought that audiences would rather have Berry as a Bond Girl than a Femme Fatale. Jinx was made the Bond Girl and Gala Brand the mole. Brand was then renamed Miranda Frost to avoid displeasing fans of the Moonraker novel. Does anyone else wish that they had stuck to the original plan?
@@epsilonalphaargo1948 yeah but I also wish Halle Berry wasn't cast and DAD had a much better director. Maybe we wouldn't have gotten the MESS it turned out to be 😒
@@naughtydog1617 Yeah, studio executives and directors like Lee Tamahori have a bad habbit of adding into good film scripts their ideas of what will make them cooler but actually just damage what makes the scripts good. They also tend to make casting decisions based on anything other than acting talent. Researching the production history of Die Another Day gave me the feeling that it could have been a much better film had the higher ups not forced changes onto it.
Originally the story was more about Bond trying to uncover the real traitor by hunting down Zao, Wai Lin from Tommorow Never Dies was meant to assist Bond in Hong Kong instead of Mr Chang and the final showdown took place at an indoor beach resort in Japan rather than on a large flying Antonov jet aircraft (I feel that the indoor beach resort would've been a more believable location for the final showdown).
Better than the film. Fabulous
I would like to see Toby replace Daniel Craig as Bond.
Of course Toby Stephens and Samel West both played Soviet agents before
Better than the bloody film version. I'm glad I won tickets for that one ....would have hated to think I paid to see that one. Having said that had to buy the dvd for the collection. Oh woe.
Welcome to The Mystery Hour with Peter Lo... Oh sorry, it's another Bond story...
Çok sevdim...Teşekkürler😉
Can we hope Live and let Die ?
BBC Radio 4 hasn't done it yet. But one of these four will be next from them:
- Casino Royale
- Live and Let Die
- You Only Live Twice
- The Man with the Golden Gun
BBC Radio 4 should have a new James Bond Radio Drama sometime this year or next year.😉
@@naughtydog1617 Oh they did it last week : www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0004sb9
@@moneyofpropre2 HOLY SH*T!! I had NO idea! My mistake lol. I will upload Live and Let Die as soon as I can when I find it.
Ahh, my FAVORITE James Bond novel coming up from BBC Radio 4 , I CAN'T WAIT! Thanks for letting me know about this!😁
@@naughtydog1617
Seems I'm a couple of years late here.
We now have LaLD and TMwtGG & I really wish they'd reach to the conclusion of the Blofeld Trilogy: You Only Live Twice - by re-recording the ruddy thing with (not only Toby, but also…) Joanna Lumley and Alfred Molina.
someone find the bob holness version and upload that
There is no reason to suppose it still exists.
Moonraker is so much better following the original novel closely
The Moore film was truly disappointing
I dont recall the part of this story where Bond doesnt get the girl. Talk about a nasty case of blue balls!
That’s how the book ended and I’m sure it was a surprise to everyone when it was published. It’s my personal favourite book of Fleming for that reason and that it has my favourite Bond girl ever
How many Ian Flemming 007 books So. Far I only heard 3 Goldfinger You Only ive Twice on audiobooks now moonraker does it matter which order I listen to these 007 audio bookbnovels
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I enjoy these radio dramas but I'm annoyed by the addition of Q and some of the clumsy attempts at humor.
Hehe, I see what you did there, very droll! :) *Humour.
The Unknown Worrier Humor is correct in the USA.
I hate James Bond but I love these radio dramas! Much cooler listening than watching. Btw Sean Connery is the only James Bond worth watching!
The moral of the story buy out the Corporate BBC before 2035 and turn into a Silicon Valley Computer Games Show for the people of 2070 and the years 2080, 2090 and naughty 2090's . I hate James Bond movies, watch a Martin Bashir Documentary about Michael Jackson !
Ruined by a goon show Krebs and cartoon performance by Patricia Hodge. Not a patch on Dr No or FRWL.
I'm sorry, but I personally think they're murdering this. Almost every single actor is totally unsuitable for their role, in particular that woman playing the rocket scientist. It sounds to me as though the character was originally an australian man and the role has simply been given to a woman. There is no way a woman with that accent would have talked that way in 1954. I also think Jarvis' narration, while he is obviously a stella reader, is intrusive and jarring. Really rather blandly visualized and very poorly executed in my opinion at least.
''There is no way a woman with that accent would have talked that way in 1954.''
HUNDREDS of women spoke like that in the 1950s. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA how bloody clueless are you. What a joke. Are you even English? Fool.
Well Justin, I am English, and I've read books and listened to drama from the period. Still I have never come across a woman with an upper class British accent using the word 'sport' in the sense of mate or friend, much less the word bally. If you can show me evidence of British women talking in this way, I'll be more than happy to admit my error.
@@dan4lau You do realise the character is meant to be a lesbian, don't you?
Justin Todd-Walker, not at all sure what that's got to do with it... and I fear that nugget of information went over my head. If this is true, it's a blatant piece of stereotyping. Still waiting for your evidence of other women who spoke this way in the 1950s.
@@dan4lau Upper classes don't use received pronunciation ! Anyway the electronic door- lock noises suggest late sixties not fifties and the instant response from the car radio turning on has no valve warming up period, so 1960's again and the instantaneously lighting 'mechanic's blowtorch' is also unconvincing as in the 1950s this would be a roaring paraffin Primus blow lamp needing pre heating with meths and much pumping up of the pressure tank and I defy anyone to light and regulate an oxy-acetylene torch in a nanosecond. 'Blowtorches' are more 1970s. Better we just go with the flow, you guys have now got me ranting at the technical anachronisms and errors, never mind fussing over minor points like the choice of the cast or their speech patterns!