Ian Fleming

Biography

Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer, best known for his postwar James Bond series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his father was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Henley from 1910 until his death on the Western Front in 1917. Educated at Eton, Sandhurst, and, briefly, the universities of Munich and Geneva, Fleming moved through several jobs before he started writing.

While working for Britain's Naval Intelligence Division during the Second World War, Fleming was involved in planning Operation Goldeneye and in the planning and oversight of two intelligence units: 30 Assault Unit and T-Force. He drew from his wartime service and his career as a journalist for much of the background, detail, and depth of his James Bond novels.

Fleming wrote his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1952, at age 44. It was a success, and three print runs were commissioned to meet the demand. Eleven Bond novels and two collections of short stories followed between 1953 and 1966. The novels centre around James Bond, an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond is also known by his code number, 007, and was a commander in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. The Bond stories rank among the best-selling series of fictional books of all time, having sold over 100 million copies worldwide. Fleming also wrote the children's story Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang (1964) and two works of non-fiction. In 2008, The Times ranked Fleming 14th on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".

Fleming was married to Anne Charteris. She had divorced her husband, the 2nd Viscount Rothermere, because of her affair with the author. Fleming and Charteris had a son, Caspar. Fleming was a heavy smoker and drinker for most of his life and succumbed to heart disease in 1964 at the age of 56. Two of his James Bond books were published posthumously; other writers have since produced Bond novels. Fleming's creation has appeared in film twenty-seven times, portrayed by six actors in the official film series.

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Selected Filmography

• Climax!(1954)TV Series · 1 epNovel
• Omnibus(1967)TV Series · 1 epas Self
• Gideon's Way(1965)TV Series · 1 epas Doctor
• Casino Royale(1967)Novel
• Never Say Never Again(1983)Novel
• Prins Bernhard(2023)TV Series · 1 epas Self (archive footage)
• Chitty Chitty Bang Bang(1968)Novel
• Stryker of the Yard(1961)TV Series · 2 eps
• Everything or Nothing(2012)as Self (archive footage)
• Bond 26Characters
• Heidi(1959)TV Series · 6 epsas Pastor
• The Incredible World of James Bond(1965)as Self (archive footage)
• The Poppy Is Also a Flower(1966)Story
• Casino Royale(1954)Novel
• Chitty Chitty Bang BangNovel
• Shadow of the Past(1950)as doctor
• The Making of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang(2002)Writer
• My Name Is Fleming, Ian Fleming(2015)as Self (archive footage)
• Ian Fleming: 007's Creator(2000)as Self
• James Bande 00Sex : Rien Que Pour ton Cul(1982)Characters