Bernard Lee

Bernard Lee
Lee as M in The Man with the Golden Gun.
Born	Bernard Lee 10 January 1908(1908-01-10) London, England
Died	16 January 1981 (aged 73) London, England
Spouse(s)	Gladys Merredew

Bernard Lee (10 January 1908 – 16 January 1981) was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first eleven James Bond films.

Biography

Born in London, he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. During the 1930s he acted mostly on stage, but after World War II developed a successful film career, including The Third Man (1949), The Blue Lamp (1950), Beat the Devil (1953), The Battle of the River Plate (1956), The Spanish Gardener (1956), Dunkirk (1958), Web of Evidence (1959), Whistle Down the Wind (1961) and The L-Shaped Room (1962).

Lee also starred in the 1976 television show Beauty and the Beast with George C. Scott. A year later he starred in the television show A Christmas Carol as the Ghost of Christmas Present. He is the grandfather of British actor Jonny Lee Miller.

Death

In January 1981, Lee died in London after a battle with stomach cancer, an illness which ruled him out of the filming for For Your Eyes Only after he had been cast to appear in the film. Out of respect, no new actor was hired to take over the role of M. In the film, M's lines were transferred to the Minister of Defence and Bill Tanner, M's Chief of Staff.

Filmography

James Bond films

In the Bond films, Lee's character, M, is Admiral Sir Miles Messervy (only ever named, besides as 'M', as 'Admiral' and 'Miles' on screen in his appearances), Bond's irascible boss who sends him out on assignments. He also portrays M along with Lois Maxwell as Moneypenny in the 1975 French comedy Bons baisers de Hong Kong. Lee was succeeded by Robert Brown, though not necessarily playing the same character (Brown had played another admiral in the series previously). Judi Dench, a friend of Lee's, would later take over the role of a brand-new M, starting in 1995 with some references to her predecessor, including an oil painting of Lee in the role seen in MI6's secondary HQ (a Scottish castle).

Bernard Lee starred in eleven James Bond films.

• Dr. No (1962)
• From Russia with Love (1963)
• Goldfinger (1964)
• Thunderball (1965)
• You Only Live Twice (1967)
• On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)
• Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
• Live and Let Die (1973)
• The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)
• The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
• Moonraker (1979)

Other films

External links

• Bernard Lee at the Internet Movie Database
• Bernard Lee at TV.com
• Bernard Lee at the British Film Institute's Screenonline