Roger Moore, James Bond Actor, Dies of Cancer Aged 89

Former James Bond star, Sir Roger Moore, died Tuesday in Switzerland at the age of 89 after a short battle with cancer, his family has announced.

A message shared on the actor’s official Twitter account read: “With the heaviest of hearts, we must share the awful news that our father, Sir Roger Moore, passed away today (Tuesday). We are all devastated.”

The statement continued: “It is with a heavy heart that we must announce our loving father, Sir Roger Moore, has passed away today in Switzerland after a short but brave battle with cancer.

“The love with which he was surrounded in his final days was so great it cannot be quantified in words alone.”
They continued: “We know our own love and admiration will be magnified many times over, across the world, by people who knew him for his films, his television shows and his passionate work for UNICEF, which he considered to be his greatest achievement.

“The affection our father felt whenever he walked on to a stage or in front of a camera buoyed him hugely and kept him busy working into his 90th year, through to his last appearance in November 2016 on stage at London’s Royal Festival Hall.
“The capacity crowd cheered him on and off stage, shaking the very foundations of the building just a short distance from where he was born.

“Thank you Pops for being you, and for being so very special to so many people.
“Our thoughts must now turn to supporting Kristina at this difficult time, and in accordance with our father’s wishes there will be a private funeral in Monaco.”

The statement was signed by Moore’s children, Deborah, Geoffrey and Christian.
Moore was the longest-serving actor to play the womanising MI6 agent, having portrayed 007 in seven films.
He held the title for a total of 14 years, from 1972 – when he was officially confirmed as 007 – to 1986, when his successor Timothy Dalton was formally announced.

In total he spent 5,118 days as James Bond and starred in seven films, beginning with Live And Let Die in 1973 and ending with A View To A Kill in 1985.
Current 007 actor, Daniel Craig, is the second longest-serving Bond, having so far spent 4,239 days playing the secret agent.

Moore was officially unveiled as James Bond at a press conference at the Dorchester Hotel in London on August 1, 1972.
“I think that I’ve got an even-money chance to make it,” he told reporters. “After all, I’ve been around a long time in this business. I did The Saint on television for seven years.”
He would end up playing 007 for twice that long.

Last year during a question-and-answer session at London’s Southbank Centre, he admitted that, despite winning the coveted role of the martini-swirling spy, one part he wished he had landed was Lawrence of Arabia.
He said: “I remember Bob Baker and I going to see Lawrence of Arabia and coming out both being very depressed and saying ‘We might as well give up the business’, because they had made the best movie that had ever been made.”

The debonair star, who added a distinct light-hearted touch to the 007 role, also admitted that, while he thought Sir Sean Connery had been the greatest Bond, fans were “lucky” to have the current star of the franchise, Daniel Craig.
He said: “I think that Sean was obviously the great Bond.

“He was obviously the right person, he brought the right personality to the performance, otherwise Bond would not have gone on past the first six that he did. He was a tremendous Bond.
“Today, I think we’re very lucky to have Daniel Craig because he is quite extraordinary. I always say that Sean looked like a killer – but Daniel Craig would finish it off.
“When I saw Casino Royale, I thought that Daniel Craig did more action in the first seven minutes than I did in seven movies.”

While arguably best known for his role as 007, Moore will also be remembered for his work in TV’s The Saint in the 1960s.
He once joked of his role as Simon Templar in the spy thriller series, which he also produced: “When I was doing The Saint on television I had two expressions; as Bond I’ve managed to work up to four.”
Despite having been criticised somewhat throughout his decades-long career for having a lack of depth, Moore remained self-deprecating.

He once said he could not act “in the Olivier sense”, although he described himself as a good technician.
Along with Bond films including Moonraker, A View To A Kill and The Man With The Golden Gun, Moore appeared in movies such as The Cannonball Run, Spice World, The Boat That Rocked and The Man Who Wouldn’t Die.
Off screen, he was respected for his charity work, and in 1999 he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), and a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 2003.
His knighthood was given for his humanitarian work, his main focus for many of his final years.

• Culled from Telegraph.co.uk