Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (; 12 September 1914GRO Register of Births: DEC 1914 11a 490 NEWPORT M. – Desmond W. Llewelyn, mmn = Wilkinson – 19 December 1999GRO Register of Deaths: JUN 2000 A70E 247 EASTBOURNE – Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn, DoB = 12 September 1914, aged 85) was a Welsh actor. He was best known for his role as Q in 17 of the ''James Bond'' films between 1963 and 1999.

Biography

Early life

Llewelyn was born on 12 September 1914 in Newport, Monmouthshire, the son of Mia (née Wilkinson) and Ivor Llewelyn. In 1921, Ivor purchased the very first Bentley production automobile, a Bentley 3-litre from

W. O. Bentley Walter Owen Bentley, MBE (16 September 1888 – 13 August 1971) was an English engineer who founded Bentley Motors Limited in London. He was a motorcycle and car racer as a young man. After making a name for himself as a designer of aircraft a ...

. His father was a coal mining engineer, while his son originally wanted to be a minister, but during his education at

Radley College Radley College, formally St Peter's College, Radley, is a public school (independent boarding school for boys) near Radley, Oxfordshire, England, which was founded in 1847. The school covers including playing fields, a golf course, a lake, an ...

, he worked as a stagehand in the school's productions and occasionally picked up small roles. In his youth, Llewelyn played rugby for Newport RFC and can be seen wearing the club tie in ''

The Living Daylights ''The Living Daylights'' is a 1987 spy film, the fifteenth entry in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first of two to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by John Glen, the film's ...

'' as well as that of Malpas Cricket Club in ''

Octopussy ''Octopussy'' is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by G ...

''.

Second World War

The outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

in September 1939 halted his acting career; Llewelyn was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

, serving with the

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers ( cy, Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales' Division, that was founded in 1689; shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designate ...

. In 1940, he was captured by the German Army in France and was held as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

for five years in

Oflag VII-C Oflag VII-C was a World War II German prisoner-of-war camp for officers located in Laufen Castle, in Laufen in south-eastern Bavaria from 1940 to 1942. Most of the prisoners were British officers captured during the Battle of France in 1940. To ...

and the infamous

Colditz Castle Castle Colditz (or ''Schloss Colditz'' in German) is a Renaissance castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz in the state of Saxony in Germany. The castle is between the towns of Hartha and Grimma on a hill spur over the r ...

(

Oflag IV-C Oflag IV-C, often referred to by its location at Colditz Castle, overlooking Colditz, Saxony, was one of the most noted German Army prisoner-of-war camps for captured enemy officers during World War II; ''Oflag'' is a shortening of ''Offiziersl ...

) in Germany.

Acting career

''James Bond'' series

Llewelyn was chosen for the role of Q because of his work with director

Terence Young Terence or Terry Young may refer to: *Terence Young (director) (1915–1994), British film director * Terence Young (politician) (born 1952), Canadian Conservative Party politician * Terence Young (writer), Canadian writer * Terry Young (American p ...

in the 1950 war film ''

They Were Not Divided ''They Were Not Divided'' is a 1950 British war film, which depicted the Guards Armoured Division in Second World War Europe. It was written and directed by Terence Young, a former Guards officer who served in the campaigns depicted in the fi ...

'', in which he played a tank gunner. Beginning with '' From Russia with Love'' in 1963, Llewelyn appeared as Q, the

quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land armies, a quartermaster is generally a relatively senior soldier who supervises stores or barracks and distributes supplies and provisions. In ...

of the

MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...

gadget Lab (also known as Q Branch), in every EON Bond film until his death, with the exception of '' Live and Let Die'' in 1973, in which the character Q did not appear. Llewelyn was the only actor in the original Bond series to have worked alongside five of the actors who played the spy, who were Sean Connery,

George Lazenby George Robert Lazenby (; born 5 September 1939) is an Australian actor. He was the second actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service' ...

, Roger Moore,

Timothy Dalton Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett (; born 21 March 1946) is a British actor. Beginning his career on stage, he made his film debut as Philip II of France in the 1968 historical drama '' The Lion in Winter''. He gained international prominence a ...

and Pierce Brosnan in 17 films, more than any other actor in the series. Desmond Llewelyn

His last appearance as Q prior to his death was in ''

The World Is Not Enough ''The World Is Not Enough'' is a 1999 spy film, the nineteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions and the third to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Michael Apted, from an ...

'' in 1999. During his briefing of 007 in the film, Q introduces John Cleese's character, R, as his

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...

, and the film alludes to Q's retirement, to which Bond, after seeing Q, expresses his hope that it will not be any time soon. Q's response is to admonish Bond to "always have an escape plan", after which he lowers himself through the floor of his lab. Llewelyn had stated not long before his death that he had no plans to retire and that he would continue playing Q "as long as the producers want me and the Almighty doesn't." In the follow-up 2002 film ''

Die Another Day ''Die Another Day'' is a 2002 spy film and the twentieth film in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It was produced by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, and directed by Lee Tamahori. The fourth and final film st ...

'', John Cleese's character is now the head of Q branch, having inherited the title of quartermaster from his predecessor. In 1967, Llewelyn also portrayed Q in an

EON Eon or Eons may refer to: Time * Aeon, an indefinite long period of time * Eon (geology), a division of the geologic time scale Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Eon, in the 2007 film '' Ben 10: Race Against Time'' * Eon, in the ...

produced television documentary entitled ''

Welcome to Japan, Mr. Bond ''You Only Live Twice'' is a 1967 spy film and the fifth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, starring Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It is the first Bond film to be directed by Lewis Gilbert, who lat ...

''. This promotional film was included in the 2006 Special Edition DVD release of '' You Only Live Twice''.

Other work

Although one of British cinema's most recognisable characters and an important and long-standing element in the 'Bond' franchise, 'Q' did not make Llewelyn rich—the actor was merely paid 'by the day' for his few hours of work on-set and did not share in the money made by the films. Nevertheless, because Llewelyn was considered one of the franchise's major institutions and also immensely popular among Bond fans, Llewelyn starred in several commercials, including ones to promote the video games '' GoldenEye 007'' and ''

Tomorrow Never Dies ''Tomorrow Never Dies'' is a 1997 spy film, the eighteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions and the second to star Pierce Brosnan as fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode from a screenplay ...

''. Llewelyn made a brief appearance in "Little Mother", an episode of ''

The Adventures of Robin Hood ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Technicolor swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and stars Errol Flynn, Olivia d ...

''. He also appeared in other films such as the Ealing comedy ''

The Lavender Hill Mob ''The Lavender Hill Mob'' is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T. E. B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass. The title refers to Lavend ...

'' (1951), the 1963 film '' Cleopatra'' (as a Roman senator), and the 1981

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

production of '' Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'', and he had a small role in the musical '' Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' (1968), which was itself based on a children's book by Bond author Ian Fleming. In 1961 he made an uncredited cameo appearance early on as one of the Marques's servants in the

Hammer Film Productions Hammer Film Productions Ltd. is a British film production company based in London. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic horror and fantasy films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Many of these involve class ...

of ''

The Curse of the Werewolf ''The Curse of the Werewolf'' is a 1961 British horror film based on the novel '' The Werewolf of Paris'' by Guy Endore. The film was made by the British company Hammer Film Productions and was shot at Bray Studios on sets that were constru ...

.'' He also acted on stage with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh (appearing as an extra in Olivier's 1948 film ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'') and appeared as Geoffrey Maddocks ('The Colonel') in the British television series ''

Follyfoot ''Follyfoot'' is a children's television series co-produced by the majority-partner British television company Yorkshire Television (for transmission on ITV) and the independent West German company ''TV München'' (for transmission on the ...

'' from 1971 to 1973. The Bond film ''Live and Let Die'' was filmed during the third series of ''Follyfoot'', and Llewelyn was written out of the series for three episodes to appear in the film. However, the Bond producers ultimately decided to leave the character out of the film anyway, much to Llewelyn's annoyance. He was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' in 1995 when he was surprised by

Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television newsreader and host of programmes such as '' Crackerjack'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', ''This is Your Life'', '' Strange but True?'' and ''Antiques Ro ...

at London's Hyde Park Hotel, during a press launch for the new Bond film, ''

GoldenEye ''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by Martin Campbell, it was the first in the se ...

''.

Personal life

Despite playing an inventor in the Bond films, Llewelyn always maintained that he was totally lost in the world of technology, a trait that also plagued his successors, John Cleese and

Ben Whishaw Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...

. A biography entitled '' Q: The Biography of Desmond Llewelyn'' was written by Sandy Hernu, and subsequently released on 1 November 1999. Blaen-y-Pant House, Newport - geograph

Death

On 19 December 1999, Llewelyn was driving alone to a book signing event when his Renault Mégane collided head-on with a

Fiat Bravo The Fiat Bravo and Fiat Brava (Type 182) are small family cars produced by the Italian automaker Fiat from 1995 to 2003 (2001 in Europe). They were effectively two versions of the same car: the Bravo, a three-door hatchback, and the Brava, a fi ...

on the A27 near the village of Berwick, East Sussex. Llewelyn sustained massive internal injuries and was airlifted by helicopter to Eastbourne District General Hospital, where he died soon afterward at the age of 85. The driver of the Fiat, a 35-year-old man, was seriously injured but survived; a woman in her thirties was also in the Fiat and suffered minor injuries. An inquest recorded a verdict of accidental death. Llewelyn's death occurred three weeks after the premiere of ''

''. Roger Moore, who starred with Llewelyn in six of his seven ''Bond'' films, spoke at his funeral on 6 January 2000 at St Mary the Virgin Church in

Battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, Sussex. The service was followed by a private cremation at Hastings Crematorium, with the ashes given to Llewelyn's family. His widow, Pamela Mary Llewelyn, died in East Sussex in 2001, also aged 85. His son, Justin Llewelyn, died in 2012, aged 59.

Selected filmography

* ''

Ask a Policeman ''Ask a Policeman'' is a 1939 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Will Hay, Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt. The plot sees Will Hay playing a policeman at the Turnbotham Round police force. The force hasn't arrested anyb ...

'' (1939) as Headless Coachman (uncredited) * '' Captain Boycott'' (1947) as Gentleman on Train (uncredited) * ''

'' (1948) as Extra (uncredited) * ''

Adam and Evelyne ''Adam and Evelyne'', released in the U.S. as ''Adam and Evalyn'', is a 1949 romance film starring Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons. According to Robert Osborne, host of Turner Classic Movies, this suited the stars, as they were romantically inv ...

'' (1949) as Undetermined Supporting Role (uncredited) * '' The Chiltern Hundreds'' (1949) as First guardsman (uncredited) * ''

Guilt Is My Shadow ''Guilt Is My Shadow'' is a 1950 British drama film directed by Roy Kellino and starring Elizabeth Sellars, Patrick Holt and Peter Reynolds. In the film, a woman is haunted by her conscience after she kills a man and hides the body. It is base ...

'' (1950) as Pub customer * ''

'' (1950) as '77 Jones * ''

'' (1951) as First guardsman (uncredited) * ''

Valley of Song ''Valley of Song'' is a 1953 British comedy drama film directed by Gilbert Gunn and starring Mervyn Johns, Clifford Evans, Maureen Swanson and the London Welsh Association Choral Society. It marked the film debut of actress Rachel Roberts. It ...

'' (1953) as Lloyd as Schoolmaster * ''

Operation Diplomat During World War II, Operation Diplomat was an Allied naval training operation. It was executed in March 1944 by the British Eastern Fleet to practice operational procedures that would be used by ships allocated to the British Pacific Fleet. Pa ...

'' (1953) as Police Constable at barrier (uncredited) * '' Knights of the Round Table'' (1953) as A Herald (uncredited) * ''Stryker of the Yard'' (1953) * '' A Night to Remember'' (1958) as Seaman at Steerage Gate (uncredited) * ''

Further Up the Creek ''Further Up the Creek'' is a 1958 British comedy film written and directed by Val Guest and starring David Tomlinson, Frankie Howerd, Shirley Eaton, Thora Hird, Desmond Llewelyn and Lionel Jeffries. It served as a follow up to '' Up the Creek'' ...

'' (1958) as Chief Yeoman (uncredited) * ''

Corridors of Blood ''Corridors of Blood'' (aka ''Doctor from Seven Dials'')Tom Weaver, ''The Horror Hits of Richard Gordon'', Bear Manor Media 2011 p 80-95 is a 1958 British-American period drama film directed by Robert Day and starring Boris Karloff and Christo ...

'' (1958) as Assistant at operations (uncredited) * ''

Sapphire Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, chromium, vanadium, or magnesium. The name sapphire is derived via the Latin "sa ...

'' (1959) as Police Constable (uncredited) * '' Sword of Sherwood Forest'' (1960) as Wounded Fugitive (uncredited) * '' Gorgo '' (1961) (uncredited) * ''

'' (1961) as 1st Footman (uncredited) * ''

Only Two Can Play ''Only Two Can Play'' is a 1962 British comedy film starring Peter Sellers, based on the 1955 novel '' That Uncertain Feeling'' by Kingsley Amis. Sidney Gilliat directed the film from a screenplay by Bryan Forbes. The film is set in the fiction ...

'' (1962) as Clergyman on Bus (uncredited) * ''

The Pirates of Blood River ''The Pirates of Blood River'' is a 1962 British adventure film directed by John Gilling and starring Kerwin Mathews, Glenn Corbett, Christopher Lee and Oliver Reed. Plot While in a penal colony, Huguenot Jonathan Standing (Kerwin Mathews) is ...

'' (1962) as Tom Blackthorne (uncredited) * '' Cleopatra'' (1963) as Senator (uncredited) * '' From Russia with Love'' (1963) as Boothroyd / Q * ''

The Silent Playground ''The Silent Playground'' is a 1963 British thriller film written and directed by Stanley Goulder and starring Bernard Archard, Jean Anderson and Roland Curram. Plot In Greenwich, London, just before Christmas, Mavis Nugent, a young widow, drops ...

'' (1963) as Dr. Green * '' Goldfinger'' (1964) as Q * ''

The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders ''The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders'' is a 1965 British historical comedy film directed by Terence Young and starring Kim Novak, Richard Johnson, and Angela Lansbury. It is based on the 1722 novel '' Moll Flanders'' by Daniel Defoe. ...

'' (1965) as Jailer (uncredited) * '' Thunderball'' (1965) as Q * '' You Only Live Twice'' (1967) as Q * '' Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' (1968) as Mr. Coggins * '' On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (1969) as Q * '' Diamonds Are Forever'' (1971) as Q * '' The Man with the Golden Gun'' (1974) as Q * '' The Spy Who Loved Me'' (1977) as Q * ''

The Golden Lady ''The Golden Lady'' is a British thriller film directed by José Ramón Larraz and starring Christina World, June Chadwick, Suzanne Danielle and Desmond Llewelyn. Filmed in 1978, it was released in 1979. Plot Julia Hemingway ( Ina Skriver, cre ...

'' (1979) as Professor Dixon * '' Moonraker'' (1979) as Q * '' For Your Eyes Only'' (1981) as Q * ''

'' (1983) as Q * ''

A View to a Kill ''A View to a Kill'' is a 1985 spy film and the fourteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and is the seventh and final appearance of Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Although the title is adapted ...

'' (1985) as Q * ''

'' (1987) as Q * ''

Prisoner of Rio ''Prisoner of Rio'' is a 1988 drama film directed by Lech Majewski and starring Steven Berkoff, Paul Freeman and Peter Firth. It shows the flight of the Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs to Brazil and the attempts of Scotland Yard detectives t ...

'' (1988) as Commissioner Ingram * ''

Licence to Kill ''Licence to Kill'' is a 1989 spy film, the sixteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the second and final film to star Timothy Dalton as the MI6 agent James Bond. It sees Bond suspended from MI6 as he pursues t ...

'' (1989) as Q * ''Merlin'' (1993) as Professor Mycroft * ''

'' (1995) as Q * ''

'' (1997) as Q * ''

'' (1999) as Q * ' (1999) as Peregrin Morley

Other appearances

* '' Dangerman'': Episode "The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovergrove" 1964 as Charles - Doorman * ''James Bond: Licence to Thrill'' – TV Movie documentary (1987) as Himself * ''

Wogan ''Wogan'' is a British television talk show which was broadcast on BBC1 from 1982 until 1992, presented by Terry Wogan. It was usually broadcast live from the BBC Television Theatre in Shepherd's Bush, London, until 1991. It was then broadcas ...

'' (1989) – episode – Licence to Kill Special * ''30 Years of James Bond'' – TV Movie documentary (1992) as Himself * ''The Goldfinger Phenomenon'' – Video documentary short (1995) as Himself * ''Behind the Scenes with 'Thunderball – Video documentary (1995) as Himself / Q * ''GoldenEye: The Secret Files'' – TV Short documentary (1995) as Himself * ''In Search of James Bond with Jonathan Ross'' – TV Movie documentary (1995) as Q * ''This Is Your Life'' – TV Series documentary – Desmond Llewelyn (1995) as Himself * ''The World of James Bond'' – TV Movie documentary (1995) as Himself * ''Countdown to Tomorrow'' – Documentary (1997) as Himself / Q * ''The Secrets of 007: The James Bond Files''- TV Movie documentary (1997) as Himself / Q * ''James Bond: Shaken and Stirred'' – TV Movie documentary (1997) as Himself * ''License to Thrill'' – Short (1999) as Q * ''The Making of 'The World Is Not Enough – Video documentary short (1999) as Himself * ''Exclusive'' – TV Series documentary – Episode dated 21 November 1999 (1999) as Himself – Interviewee * ''The Bond Cocktail'' – TV Movie documentary (1999) as Himself * ''Highly Classified: The World of 007'' – Video documentary (1998) as Q * ''The James Bond Story'' – TV Movie documentary (1999) as Himself / Q * ''Inside "From Russia with Love"'' – Video documentary short (2000) as Himself * ''Inside "Moonraker"'' – Video documentary short (2000) as Himself * ''Inside Q's Lab'' – Video documentary short (2000) as Himself / Q * ''Terence Young: Bond Vivant'' – Video documentary short (2000) as Himself * ''Now Pay Attention 007: A Tribute to Actor Desmond Llewelyn'' – TV Movie documentary (2000) as Himself

References

External links

Obituary at Salon.com
* *
The Follyfoot forum
, width = 28% align = center , Preceded by
Peter Burton , width = 44% align = center , Q
(in

Eon Eon or Eons may refer to: Time * Aeon, an indefinite long period of time * Eon (geology), a division of the geologic time scale Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Eon, in the 2007 film '' Ben 10: Race Against Time'' * Eon, in the ...

James Bond films James Bond is a fictional character created by British novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. A British secret agent working for MI6 under the codename 007, Bond has been portrayed on film in twenty-seven productions by actors Sean Connery, David Nive ...

)
1963–1999 , width = 28% align = center , Succeeded by
John Cleese , - , width = 28% align = center , Preceded by

Johnny Weissmuller Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an American Olympic swimmer, water polo player and actor. He was known for having one of the best competitive swimming records of the 20th century. H ...

Mickey Rooney , width = 44% align = center , Playing the same role in most movies
17
1999 , width = 28% align = center , Incumbent {{DEFAULTSORT:Llewelyn, Desmond 1914 births 1999 deaths Artists' Rifles soldiers British Army personnel of World War II Prisoners of war held at Colditz Castle People educated at Radley College People from Newport, Wales Road incident deaths in England Royal Welch Fusiliers officers Welsh male film actors Welsh male television actors World War II prisoners of war held by Germany 20th-century Welsh male actors Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art