What can we expect of the next James Bond? The question is wide open now that Daniel Craig has left the stage, and given the rather definitive nature of his exit, we can expect not only a new actor in the part but a whole new character and story arc as well. Speculation is rife already – No Time to Die is out on DVD and is now movie history after all – so here is some more. It is time for James Bond 007 to go bald.
There is a short and moving story, written by Rudyard Kipling called ‘The Gardener.’ First published in 1925, it is the tale of Helen Turrell, a well-off respectable woman of country stock, and Michael. Though Michael is, ostensibly Helen’s nephew, she lets him call her ‘Mummy’ at bedtime, by way of a “pet-name between themselves.” Helen fears that he might reject her, when, aged ten, Michael got the idea that his civil status was “not quite regular,” but instead their bond grows tighter. Michael realises after all that there were plenty of his sort in English history.
William J Hood 