Sports Calendar

Sean Connery seemed perfect - possibly because he was the first and the Sixties were right for it. Roger Moore was an ageing Lothario - and looked it. Lazenby never stood a chance. Timothy Dalton was an RSC pretty boy - windswept and uninteresting. Pierce Brosnan looked as if a stiff wind would blow him over. Daniel Craig? Tough cookie, maybe. Bond? No. If he walked into my casino I would direct him to the tradesmen's entrance. What does it matter anyway? This franchise is well past it's sell-by date. Derek Sinclair, Dundee

It's stupid to talk of Craig bringing back "Fleming's Bond", given that he'll never actually be playing in a Fleming story. So little of a good Bond film is anything to do with the protagonist, but far more to do with keeping the idiosyncrasies going in a satisfying way. Personally, I think Rupert Everett would have been a fantastic Bond, but we all knew that was never going to happen. Mike Finn, Cambridge

I'm very disappointed. Why do they keep changing? Brosnan was a great Bond. Now we all have to start again with this new guy. They've lost me. Mark Stroh, Kilauea, USA

Daniel Craig is entirely wrong as James Bond, noir figure or not. Couldn't Hollywood just get out an airbrush for Pierce? Sabella Fabia, Grand Cayman

Sorry, he is a really excellent actor but oh so not James Bond material. How can he compare to the urbane Pierce Brosnan and Roger Moore, not to mention Sean Connery? Paulette Kennedy, Northampton

Clive Owen. smoldering sophisticated looks. Paul Mahon, London

I think that most people's reaction will be that Craig doesn't look smooth and suave enough to be Bond by the usual standard. But that's because there's been an emphasis on the charming playboy-side of Bond. Who really believed that Roger Moore - or even Pierce Brosnan - was a trained killer? They were too worried about their hair. The most believable actors (physically) were George Lazenby and Timothy Dalton, the ones judged by the general public to be the least popular actors. I think that, given the new direction of the Bond franchise, Craig will be a fine Bond. He's a good actor. That's most important. If the new style is grittier, then the new Bond hasn't got to look like a beauty; that would work against him. But I think Craig is good looking - in a manly way. He'll work just fine, but perhaps dye his hair a little bit darker (has to look natural), out of respect for Ian Fleming's description of Bond. Klaus Hjuler, Copenhagen, Denmark

I think Daniel Craig is a great choice. I've been a James Bond fan all my life and I think Craig's brooding rugged looks will be perfect to play Bond. I loved the Timothy Dalton films precisely because they had more of a dark edge and having seen Layer Cake a couple of times, I think Craig will bring out that side in Ian Fleming's creation. Frances Roberson, Croydon

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