James Bond: 10 Things Only Die-Hard Fans Know About Q (2024)

Q is one of the most iconic James Bond characters of all time. Every time a new Bond movie comes out, fans always look forward to seeing Bond's scene with Qand all the fantastic gadgets being tested in the lab. Bond's mischievous antics with Q have also become a well-loved staple, to which Q would sometimes respond "Grow up 007."

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There have been six men to play Q. Desmond Llewelyn is the most famous, but Peter Burton, John Cleese, and Ben Wishaw have also appeared in the role. Geoffrey Bayldon and Alec McCowen have played Q in the "unofficial" films Casino Royale (1967) and Never Say Never Again. But despite watching Qin 24 films and counting, there's still a lot that fans don't know about the character.

Why He Is Called Q

According to an article by AllThatsInteresting, the use of a single letter to identify a person of importance in MI6 was started by Captain Sir Mansfield George Smith-Cumming, who was its first director from 1909-1923. Smith-Cumming would sign documents with a green "C," which was later used by "Control" in themovie version of Johnle Carré's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

Furthermore, according to TheLegendOfQ, during World War 2, Ministry of Supply officer Charles Fraser-Smithcreated equipment called Q-devices, which were named after Q-ships. In the world of James Bond, Q actually stands for Quartermaster, and Bond has referred to him as such on several occasions.

"Major Boothroyd" Was Based On A Real Person

Geoffrey Boothroyd was aBritish firearms expert who published over a dozen books on the topic between 1961 and 2004, the first being "A Guide to Gun Collecting" in 1961 and the last called "The British Over And Under Shotgun," published after his deathin 2001.

According to LettersOfNote,Boothroyd wrote to Fleming expressing his admiration for Bond but also his disdain for Bond's weapon of choice, saying the Beretta M418 was better suited for a woman.He suggested the Walter PPK, which soon became Bond's iconic weapon. Fleming's Dr. No introduces the character of Armorer Major Boothroyd, whoshared real-life Boothroyd's sentiments of the Beretta being suitable "in a lady's handbag."

Desmond Llewelyn Was Not The First Q

When Q was introduced in the first-ever bond film, 1962's Dr. No, it wasn't the familiar Desmond Llewelyn playing Q. Instead it was English character actor, Peter Burton. The character is identified as Major Boothroyd but also as the Armorer, as opposed to the Quartermaster. This Q gives bond his signature weapon, the Walter PPK.

Due to a scheduling conflict, Burton was unable to take part in the filming of From Russia With Love. In stepped Desmond Llewelyn and the rest was history. Burton would later appear in other roles in the 1965 Bond film Thunderball and the 1967 version of Casino Royale. His other film credits include Lawrence of Arabia and A Clockwork Orange.

'Q' Never AppearsIn Fleming's Books

For anyone who never read Ian Fleming's books, as the NYTimes mentioned, it will come as a big surprise that the iconic character never appeared in them, although Q and Q-Branch were mentioned. There are several references to Q-Branch in Fleming's work, such as inCasino Royalewhere M tells Bond to "have a talk to Q."

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As mentioned, Major Boothroyd was introduced in Fleming's Dr. No, but as the Armorer and not the Quartermaster. Llewelyn replaced Burton in From Russia With Love andfrom Goldfinger on, he was known as Q, though the nameMajor Boothroyd has occasionally been used.

Llewelyn's 17 Films As Q Is A Record - And Not Just For Bond Films

Desmond Llewelyn appeared as Q in a staggering 17 bond films between 1963 and 1999: a world record for theatrical feature films by an actor playing a single character. In addition to these films, Llewelyn has appeared as the character in numerous video games, commercials, a documentary, a TV special, and even the theme park attraction, 007: Licence to Thrill.

Basil Rathbone played Sherlock Holmes in 16 films. Another Bond veteran, Lois Maxwell, appeared in 14 films as Moneypenny. Other actors who have broken into double digits include renowned suit actor Haruo Nakajima, who portrayed Godzilla in the movies 12 times, Bernard Lee played M in 11 Bond films, Robert Downey Junior has been Ironman 10 times, and Anthony Daniels has 10 credits as C-3P0. Llewelyn's record is safe for now, but with the modern cinematic universe, who knows who will break it.

Boothroyd Didn't Appear In LALD Because The Producers Wanted To Leave Him Out

Roger Moore's first turn as 007 came in 1973's Live And Let Die, and Q was notably absent. Bond producers Albert R Broccoli and Harry Saltzman wanted to tone down the use of gadgets and in doing so, distance the new era from that of Connery's. Instead, Bond explains the use of a Q-Branch gadget to M after stealing his teaspoon with a magnetic watch.

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Llewelyn was appearing in a TV show at the time called Follyfoot and had been written out of three episodes to film Live And Let Die.But the Bond producers wrote him out anyways.By the next Bond film, The Man With The Golden Gun,Llewelyn was back and he never missed another Bond film until his death in 1999.

Desmond Llewelyn died exactly one month after his last appearance in final appeared as Q in 1999's The World Is Not Enough was released. Llewelyn was on his way home from a book signing promoting his autobiography Q: The Biography of Desmond Llewelyn when he was involved in a head-on car accident while overtaking another vehicle in East Sussex.

Llewelyn's death made headlines around the world and his family received an outpouring of condolences from fans, and from all five men who had played James Bond alongside him. Roger Moore, who appeared in six James Bond films with Llewelyn, gave the eulogy at his funeral.

TWINE Was To Be The First Of Many Films With Llewelyn & Cleese

In the 1999 Pierce Brosnan Bond film,The World Is Not Enough, fans were introduced to a new assistant played by Monty Python legend, John Cleese. Q had has named assistants before, such as Smithers who was played byBoba Fett himself, Jeremy Bulloch. But this new character was intended to be a long-time member of the Bond family.

TWINE gives Llewelyn the perfect farewell scene, but according to Cleese, the duo of Q and R were to continue appearing in films together for years to come until R would be promoted to Q. Nicknamed "R" by Bond, he became Q in 2002's Die Another Day. This Q appeared in video games including Agent Under Fire and Everything Or Nothing.

Q Had A Grandson Named IQ In James Bond Jr.

Of all the generations of Bond fans, only a smallnumber are familiar with IQ. James Bond Jr came in at a time when many cartoons were being adapted from live-action movies. This 1991 cartoon lasted for just one season of 65 episodes and focused on James Bond Jr., the nephew of 007.

Several Bond villains appeared, as well as relatives of Bond allies. One such character was IQ, the grandson of Q. IQ was given a major role in the show as one of the primary characters. Like his grandfather, IQ was very intelligent and created numerous helpful gadgets over the course of the show.

OtherInteresting FactsInvolving Q

Llewelyn's 36-year tenure as Q saw him act alongside five James Bonds, a record that will probably never be broken. Llewlyn's Q was frequently seen abroad: 12 of his 17 films feature a scene in England, while 13 feature Q in another country, with his final scene coming in Scotland's MI6 headquarters in The World Is Not Enough.

The relationship between Q and Bond evolved over time. With Connery and especially Moore, Bond was quite mischievous and Roger Moore would actuallyarrange forLlewelyn to have to learn elaborate technical dialogue at the last minute. Q became more of a mentor to the younger Dalton and Brosnan Bonds. And under Craig, Bond became the elder, though he still managed to cause his fair share of mischief.

NEXT:10 Times James Bond Made An Incredible Escape Without Q-Branch Gadgets