Ian Fleming dismissed his own creation as “bang, bang, bang, kiss, kiss”, adding: “It’s what you would expect of an adolescent mind – which is what I happen to possess.” But James Bond has become a pop culture superstar and this volume of 14 essays by academics celebrates the remarkable global influence of 007 and “spy mania” in general, on areas of life from TV to advertising. Michael Baskett delves into the 1960s spy boom in Japan and especially the Nakano Spy School hit TV series. Nicholas Diak explores the “Eurospy phenomenon” which was particularly popular in Italy, where more than 150 films were made in the 60s including gems such as Dr Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs. Product placement was so outrageous in Die Another Day (2002) that it was dubbed Buy Another Day. Mark Biddulph shows that the Bond brand was already popular in advertising before the films. The Courtelle range used 007 to sell men’s clothing in 1961 that was “rugged and good-looking” and could take “a beating”. Spy-fi fans will not be disappointed by this well-researched and wide-ranging collection.
• James Bond and Popular Culture, edited by Michele Brittany, is published by McFarland (£35.95).
