Bond By Numbers

If budgets, engineering and the many laws of physics were not factors to consider, how might you build your 007 dream home from the franchise's fabled sets, locations and interiors? An Atlantis En-Suite? How about an Octopussy boudoir? Throwing logic and planning to the wind, in this "What If?" we revive our trusty roulette and share blueprints for our Grand (Bond) Designs! So clear that empty lot in your imagination and come building with us!

Stanley Donen's cinematic kitchen was working hard in 1963: start with a pair of stars, thicken their stock with an ensemble cast, add a wallop of visual style, toss in a heavy helping of romantic comedy then add a pinch of international intrigue before finishing with a half-cup of irony. What's that make? A difficult film to categorize! Or, if you prefer, the "whoopie-cushion thriller" better known as "Charade"! We discuss all the ingredients here as Josh's selection brings our annual "3 Non Bonds" review festival to a close in simmering style. We also go inside the new book from Pete Brooker and Matt Spaiser, "From Tailor's With Love" (11:35) and celebrate the fascinating war-time career of young Audrey Hepburn (40:40).

For our second selection in the annual "3 Non Bonds" festival, we go behind the Iron Curtain with Paul Newman and Julie Andrews in Alfred Hitchcock's "Torn Curtain". Often pegged as one of the famed director's more conflicted works, this thriller possesses enough moments of intriguing espionage, quirky potpourri and technical chutzpah to nevertheless make a case for itself. So grab your passport and get ready to infiltrate - BBN's flight to defection is now boarding!

This season's "3 Non Bonds" Festival gets off to a great start with 00-Chapman's selection of "The Quiller Memorandum" from 1966. Directed by Michael Anderson, "Quiller" was penned by the renowned Harold Pinter and features a dynamic cast including George Segal, Senta Berger, Max von Sydow and the impeccable Alec Guinness. Looking for an understated neo-Nazi spy thriller set in divided Berlin? Then look no further as we launch our annual fest with this worthy conversation piece!

Who doesn't like a good film festival? Our six cinematic Bonds sure do! From inspired screenings to banquet dinners, celebrity speakers to questionable pop-up bars, our first "What If?" of the series pulls out nearly all the stops and runs wild with this imaginative theme. So polish your shoes and grab your VIP passes - BBN proudly invites YOU to this red-carpet event!

Our "00-Origins" series officially gets off the ground here as Josh introduces the fascinating life and work of Sir Francis Walsingham. Queen Elizabeth I's "spymaster" is widely regarded as the progenitor of British espionage and without his involvements in such matters as the St. Bartholomew's Massacre, The Babington Plot and The Spanish Armada, the course of world history would have run much differently! But one nation's spymaster is another nation's antagonist and Walsingham wasn't everyone's hero. From spoiled thrones to sunken ships, this history-heavy feature is full of Tudoriffic highlights!

In this special episode, the multi-talented Chris Wood (Instagram's @bondonvinyl) joins BBN for a fun and furnished survey of John Barry's score to "Diamonds Are Forever". From Wint & Kidd killings to Moon Buggy misdemeanours, we put Barry's versatile efforts under the microscope here and celebrate the film's 50th anniversary in style! Jackpot!

In our first watch party of the season, we synchronize our MGM lions (@8:08 in) and saunter through the strokes of "Tomorrow Never Dies", Pierce Brosnan's sophomore outing and Josh's pick for the best Bond flick of the '90s. No need for social distancing here so grab your refreshments from the lobby and meet us inside! For our full review of the movie, check out S1:E11 from March 2019.

BBN marks the start of its third series with an overdue exploration into the style and many contributions of John Glen to the Bond franchise. His tenure as director encompassed the entire decade of the 1980s and his straight-ahead approach to action and storytelling left its impressive mark on several influential features. Join Josh, Jeff and Scott as they survey the legacy of Glen's career with 007.

Our season finale proudly presents a festive assortment of trivia, games and discussion as we try to send the ugliness of 2020 packing like a Max Zorin megabomb! So, Ho-Ho-Holster your PPKs and join us by the hearth for our marathon Holiday Special!