James Bond Watches Blog

Adding important credibility to the often debated subject of Rolex Submariner appearances on the wrist of Sean Connery as James Bond in the early EON Productions films, WatchTime weighed in back in 2004 with publication of this analysis by Robert Sprague, Member of the American Society of Master Projectionists.

Several years ago I examined all of the James Bond movies by way of blowups directly from 35-mm film.

It appears that the exact same Rolex Submariner was worn by Sean Connery in no less than three James Bond films: Dr. No (1962), Goldfinger (1964) and Thunderball (1965).

The watch in question is from the heavy case series that used an 8-mm crown (without crown-protecting “shoulders”). It has a 38-mm flush-to-case rotating bezel, radium indices and a plastic Tropic 17 or Tropic 19 crystal. This particular series of Submariners was created between 1953 and 1958 and was actually available in five variants (Ref 6200, Ref 6538, Ref 6538A, Ref 6540, Ref 5510).

It’s impossible to tell which of the five it is.

Mr. Sprague then went on to continue reading…

Up until how, perhaps the biggest impediment to creating a comprehensive list of every James Bond watch featured in an EON Productions film has been the lack of a clear way of identifying each and clearly differentiating it from all of the others. Simply referring to “The Dr. No wristwatch” risks finding only the Rolex Submariner most frequently seen, but missing “The Sylvia Trench watch” in those early scenes with actress Eunice Gayson that established Sean Connery as James Bond.

Same thing holds true with For Your Eyes Only. Or did you think the Seiko Duo-Time was the only wristwatch Roger Moore officially wore as James Bond in that one?

Both mechanical and quartz watches might be called “The Pierce Brosnan Omega.” Even if we were clear on that technical difference, how would we differentiate the Arkangel version, worn on a strap during the GoldenEye pre-title sequence, as opposed to the model worn by 007 on a bracelet throughout the balance? And that’s before we start exploring the Q-Branch options à la Danjaq property masters.

In developing this list for the James Bond Watches website, we decided that looking at the question from that very studio properties department standpoint best captured things for all possible angles of inquiry. Take for example the entries above for Live and Let Die. At least three different presentations of the Rolex watch were made: There was the watch simply as worn by James Bond, and as it worked in gadget-function for magnet and buzz-saw applications (thanks to Q Branch). All three are here, although from a story (and movie-goer) standpoint, the audience is supposed to think of it as the same one wristwatch.

One of the other challenges we’ve overcome continue reading…