A new housing estate in north Swindon has named its streets after James Bond characters and actors, drawing on the area's tenuous connection to the franchise. The Taylor Wimpey development, Robin Gardens, features Bond Place, Desmond Crescent, Llewelyn Road, and Dench Close, among others. The names honour figures such as Desmond Llewelyn, who played Q, and Dame Judi Dench, who portrayed M.
The decision stems from the 1999 Bond film The World Is Not Enough, which used the exterior of the former Motorola factory on the site as a stand-in for a Turkish oil refinery. The location scout's choice has now become a permanent part of the local landscape, offering a quirky piece of cinematic history to residents.
While Swindon's Bond connection is limited to this single film, the article argues that many other UK locations used in Bond movies could similarly inspire street names. Examples include a car park in Brent Cross used for Tomorrow Never Dies, a Virgin Active in Canary Wharf that doubled as a Shanghai pool in Skyfall, and a Kent airport that featured in Die Another Day.
The author suggests that naming estates after Bond filming locations could become a charming tradition, providing a tangible link to the franchise during the long wait for the next film. The Swindon development, though modest in its claim to fame, offers a more fitting tribute than recent Bond-related media, such as Amazon's poorly received gameshow.
