Lee Child, one of Britain's best-selling authors with over 200 million copies of his crime-thriller novels sold worldwide, has revealed a clash with the literary caretakers of Ian Fleming. The Jack Reacher creator claimed there was 'nothing Scottish about James Bond' until the fictional spy was portrayed on screen by Sir Sean Connery.
The Foreword That Wasn't Published
In 2009, Child was asked to write a foreword for a republished series of Bond novels, The Blofeld Trilogy, which includes Thunderball, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and You Only Live Twice. However, his 1,500-word introduction went unused after the Fleming Estate objected to certain passages.
Child explained: 'I was unaware that the publishers would have to run it by the Fleming Estate and they objected to it for two reasons. Firstly I said that Ian Fleming came from a family of merchant bankers who lived in Mayfair and that, as such, the Depression of the 1930s kind of passed them by. They said 'oh no, life was hell for merchant bankers during the Depression'. But I wouldn't change it.'
He added: 'They also took umbrage when I wrote that even though Fleming had a distant relationship with Scotland, there was nothing Scottish about Bond.'
Fleming's Scottish Connection
Ian Fleming, born in London into a wealthy family, was a former intelligence officer during World War II. His grandfather Robert was a wealthy merchant banker in the late 19th century. While Fleming grew up in London, Child noted that after Sean Connery began playing Bond in the movies, the subsequent books became 'quite Scottish'. However, Child insisted 'that was clearly the author following the actor'.
The Fleming Estate countered: 'Oh no, Ian Fleming was intimately Scottish.' But Child refused to back down, leading to the rejection of his foreword.
Child said: 'Because I would not back down, they refused to let my intro be published.' He added that it wasn't a wasted assignment as he was still paid by Penguin and found another publisher for his essay. 'I called it Project You Only Get Paid Twice.'
Connery's Impact on Bond
Fleming was initially unhappy with a working-class Scot who 'couldn't speak the Queen's English' being cast as Bond in 1962. He referred to Connery as an 'overdeveloped stuntman', and Connery described Fleming as 'a real snob'. However, shortly before his death in 1964, Fleming wrote that Bond had been educated in Edinburgh and had a Scottish father and Swiss mother, likely influenced by Connery's portrayal.
Child felt it was wrong to claim Fleming or Bond were authentically Scottish. He told the Sunday Times: 'Scotland has a high concentration of really good authors, especially in crime fiction. It doesn't need to claim Ian Fleming as well.'
Child's Own Success
Child, who will headline the international crime writing festival Bloody Scotland in Stirling this September, also revealed he turned down offers to write new officially licensed Bond novels. 'They wanted me to do it, but I said no. Why would I do Bond books for 50 per cent of the royalties, when I can get 100 per cent with the Reacher books?'
Child's best-selling novels follow former military police major-turned vigilante Jack Reacher as he travels across America solving crimes. The Fleming Estate was contacted for comment.
