Rare James Bond comic sells at auction

[Blowfeld]

A rare comic version of the James Bond classic Dr No starring Scots movie star Sean Connery has sold at auction.

The comic was produced by DC Comics in 1962 to coincide with the release of the first Bond film, which also starred Ursula Andress as Bondgirl Honey Ryder and Joseph Wiseman as the title character.

It includes the classic scene where Ursula Andress' character emerges from the sea.

The 47-year-old comic was one of 700 comic lots sold by Cameo Auctioneers in London, and was snapped up by a Bond fan who paid £142.

Adrian Cowdry, film memorabilia and comic consultant to Cameo, said the magazine, part of DC Comics' Showcase anthology series, was the first time a Bond film had been seen in comic form.

The front cover features Edinburgh-born Connery's fight with Dr No in his nuclear reactor on Crab Key Island, from the film's climax.

Mr Cowdry said: "This Dr No comic is extremely rare and in impeccable condition given it is nearly 50 years old. It is a 'must-have' for fans of James Bond, Ian Fleming or Sean Connery."

He added: "The comic was aimed at reaching the comic reading masses. Hundreds were printed but in those days very few people thought comics would be worth keeping. Kids read them then give them to friends or threw them out, or their parents would put them on the coal fire."

Dr No was the first James Bond film, based on the 1958 Ian Fleming novel of the same name.

It sees Bond sent to Jamaica to investigate the death of fellow British agent John Strangways. The film was produced with a low budget but was a financial success, leading to the rest of the Bond film series.

Last updated: 09 December 2009, 08:05