This evening Sir Roger Moore returns in his sixth outing as infamous spy James Bond, when Octopussy airs on ITV from 5.10pm. It follows Bond who attempts to track down the killer of a British agent in East Germany, who is found dressed up as a clown, clinging on to a priceless Fabergé egg. Armed with his trusted Walther PP, Bond faces a race against time to find the mystery killer, before coming up against rich businesswoman Octopussy, herself with an army at her disposal.
Released in 1983, Octopussy was a box office success, and was described by The Washington Post as one of the “snazziest, wittiest productions” in the Bond series.
Gene Siskel, of the Chicago Tribune, noted how the film was “surprisingly entertaining — surprising because in his previous five Bond appearances Roger Moore has always come off as a smug stiff”.
He added: “In Octopussy Moore relaxes a bit and, just as important, his role is subordinated to the film’s many and extremely exciting action scenes.
“Octopussy has the most sustained excitement in a Bond film since You Only Live Twice.”
While Moore’s outing as Bond was hailed, the actor himself was convinced it would be his final time donning the British agent’s famous tuxedo.
Aged 56 at the time of the film’s release, Moore didn’t believe he could go again, telling journalist Iain Johnstone at its opening: “I really didn’t think I was going to do this one.
“I have now done six; I think six is enough.”
The film was released at the same time as Sean Connery was returning to his role as Bond, with a rival production company releasing their own version of the spy in Never Say Never Again.
JUST IN: James Bond Roger Moore Moonraker ‘hardest’ love scene with Lois Chiles
“During the first week of shooting, rumours began that Roger would be returning once again, so the double was told to lighten his hair a bit.
“During the second week, we found out that Roger would be coming back as Bond, so we told the double to lighten it all the way.”
Moore and Connery are often hailed as the best incarnations of Bond, though many new viewers prefer the last man to take on the role, Daniel Craig.
The Londoner played Bond between 1973 and 1985, returning for a final time in a View To A Kill.
And though Moore was clearly comfortable with the role of Bond, the agent’s weaponry actually made the film star nervous.
Moore’s phobia of guns was discussed in his 2008 memoir My Word is My Bond, which saw the star struggle to use the secret agent’s trusty Walther PPK.
The English actor noted that the main reason for his phobia came from his time carrying out National Service, and during his commentary for his final Bond film A View To A Kill, Moore went further.
He explained how on a refresher training course for weapons, a gun exploded in his hands.
Moore said: “A gun blew up in my hands, which deafened me for a few days.
“It caused me to blink before I squeezed the trigger of any gun.
“Anything that went bang made me blink.”
In a BBC obituary from 2017, it revealed how Moore felt disappointment that heroes in films often had guns.
While discussing how he struggled to shake-off the Bond tag following his retirement from the role, Moore confessed he “didn’t regret” his time in the franchise.
He added: “I regret that sadly heroes in general are depicted with guns in their hands, and to tell the truth I have always hated guns and what they represent.”
Octopussy airs from 5.10pm on ITV today.