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Bond's accent.

megaluke007megaluke007
edited October 2013 in Literary 007 Posts: 13
Hey guys. My first thread. Hope I put this in the right place.
I don't if it's been asked before, but, how did you always picture Bond's accent/voice??? Yes, he is British, English to be precise (although with a Scottish father and Swiss mother), but there are quite a few different British accents. Have any of the actors who have played him, sounded like what you thought Bond would sound like???

Comments

  • mgwenfmgwenf
    edited October 2013 Posts: 18
    Removed by a moderator
  • megaluke007megaluke007
    edited October 2013 Posts: 13
    Sorry. That is freaky, isn't it.
    I guess there isn't a correct answer. I mean, you could take into account where he grew up, his father's accent, where he traveled, where he spent his teenage years. Of course, you could not play Bond with a cockney accent :)
  • mgwenfmgwenf
    edited October 2013 Posts: 18
    Removed by a moderator
  • megaluke007megaluke007
    Posts: 13
    I've been a drama group for two years now, but we haven't worked on accents yet. Forgive me though, but did you mean to record a clip of me doing a English accent???
  • mgwenfmgwenf
    edited October 2013 Posts: 18
    Removed by a moderator
  • minorMajor9thminorMajor9th
    Posts: 157
    Fleming's Bond's accent would have been Received Pronunciation (RP) with maybe a small trace of a Scottish brogue. All of the Bond actors have brought their own accents to the role, from Connery's faux-sophisticated Edinburgh accent thanks to Terrence Young's tutelage to Craig's modern RP with a hint of Wirral.
  • Matt007Matt007
    Posts: 1,314
    I think voice wise I'd rank the bonds in this order:

    Brosnan - too light and inconsistent accent
    Lazenby - too grating and unconvincing accent
    Dalton - pretty good and good pronunciation
    Moore - smooth as silk and deep
    Craig - deep and it helps he is by far the best actor
    Connery - deep and unmistakable. The best.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    edited October 2013 Posts: 12,837
    Bond would probably have an RP accent but I don't like him sounding too posh. I'd have a hard time rooting for him if he sounded really snobby. He should sound rough but sophisticated.

    Connery definitely had the best voice, he always sounded cool. Lazenby's voice was nothing special imo. Moore was posh and didn't really sound rough but he was likeable enough for me to look past it and to enjoy his Bond. Dalton sounded great. Brosnan's accent didn't really sound very English but again, I enjoyed him so much that I could look past it. Craig sounds great.
  • SoundofthesinnersSoundofthesinners
    Posts: 3,236
    Matt007 wrote:
    I think voice wise I'd rank the bonds in this order:

    Brosnan - too light and inconsistent accent
    Lazenby - too grating and unconvincing accent
    Dalton - pretty good and good pronunciation
    Moore - smooth as silk and deep
    Craig - deep and it helps he is by far the best actor
    Connery - deep and unmistakable. The best.

    Pretty good list. I'd probably rank them like this:
    1. Connery. His voice has a following all its own. Cashe closhed.

    2. Moore. As you said, smooth as silk and deep.

    3. Dalton. Rough and deep, with a Northern edge.

    4. Craig. Can be a little clipped, but his acting prowess more than makes up for it.

    5. Brosnan. A bit high-pitched, but I like that his accent is strictly English (or Scottish, or Australian). It makes sense for a half-Scottish, half-Swiss Englishman who spends his time trotting the globe to have a distinctive accent.

    6. Lazenby. To nobody's great surprise, he brings up the rear. Too Australian and Lazenby-esque.
  • Pierce2DanielPierce2Daniel
    Posts: 4,409
    I guess the voice Fleming imagined Bond had was probably closest to Moore's accent or Lazenby's. Connery was about 100 lightyears away from what Fleming imagined.

    1. Connery - his voice has become so iconic especially connected to his time with the Bond role. Connery had a great voice.

    2. Lazenby - He did a good job putting on an upper-crust English accent. I approve.

    3. Moore - Cut-glass posh English accent.

    4. Dalton - He has the best voice of all the Bonds. His voice is so seductive and velvety. The way he talks makes me melt, everything sounds good coming out of Tim's mouth.

    5. Brosnan - He had a very Transatlantic sounding accent, which maybe made him appeal more to Hollywood. I like his voice, it's very breathy and whispery.

    6. Craig - He has a rather deep voice and probably the most monotone of all the Bonds. Not my favourite. However Craig's Bond is at his best when he says nothing at all - and that is a rather frequent occurrence.
  • jamez007jamez007
    Posts: 26
    moore the best in my mind
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 18,271
    minorMajor9th wrote:
    Fleming's Bond's accent would have been Received Pronunciation (RP) with maybe a small trace of a Scottish brogue. All of the Bond actors have brought their own accents to the role, from Connery's faux-sophisticated Edinburgh accent thanks to Terrence Young's tutelage to Craig's modern RP with a hint of Wirral.

    I agree - a bit like that of Sir Alec Douglas-Home (look for him on You Tube) he was a Scot by birth, but had an Eton upper-class affected accent, as did Ian Fleming, another Scot. Bond would sound the same, though with no Scottish brogue at all, in my book.
  • megaluke007megaluke007
    Posts: 13
    I agree - a bit like that of Sir Alec Douglas-Home (look for him on You Tube) he was a Scot by birth, but had an Eton upper-class affected accent, as did Ian Fleming, another Scot. Bond would sound the same, though with no Scottish brogue at all, in my book. [/quote]

    Would anyone consider Bond to be upper or middle class, or between???
  • minorMajor9thminorMajor9th
    edited October 2013 Posts: 157
    Upper middle class.
  • LicencedToKilt69007LicencedToKilt69007 Belgium, Wallonia
    Posts: 523
    Connery had the best voice followed by Roger Moore.

    Dalton had a cool voice too. While Brosnan is generally too light, Craig too monotone and Lazenby's like an Aussie businessman (not Bond-esque).

    That's how it seems to me.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,117
    megaluke007 wrote:
    I agree - a bit like that of Sir Alec Douglas-Home (look for him on You Tube) he was a Scot by birth, but had an Eton upper-class affected accent, as did Ian Fleming, another Scot. Bond would sound the same, though with no Scottish brogue at all, in my book.

    Would anyone consider Bond to be upper or middle class, or between???
    [/quote]

    Definitely upper-middle class.

    Now about the OP, I would say it depends of the novel. Fleming only made Bond half-Scottish relatively late, as a nod to Sean Connery. In the later novels, I usually imagine a voice akin to Connery, in earlier ones for some reasons I imagine Daniel Craig's voice.
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 18,271
    minorMajor9th wrote:
    Upper middle class.

    Agreed on that. I was thinking of starting a thread on Bond and class, in fact. I just might do that now...
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