James Bond's Miss Moneypenny stars now – Playboy shoot, showbiz U-turn and stolen role

If there’s any James Bond character just as famous as 007 himself, it’s without doubt Miss Moneypenny.

Despite having a relatively small role in each of the Bond films, the trusty secretary’s presence was always boosted by the sizzling sexual tension between her and womaniser James.

Mr Shaken-Not-Stirred certainly loved the ladies – best known as the “Bond Girls” – but none quite as much as Miss Moneypenny.

Portrayed by a slew of stars over the years, the unflappable assistant is the only one of the super-spy’s love interests to stand the test of time – perhaps because the pair never actually took their steamy flirtation between the sheets.

From the franchise’s treasured long-runner Lois Maxwell to one-time Moneypenny Barbara Bouchet, Daily Star looks at the ladies who played the role.

Lois Maxwell

The original – and some say greatest – Miss Moneypenny, Lois Maxwell, appeared in 14 Bond movies between 1962 (Dr No) and 1985 (A View to a Kill).

The 23-year tenure saw her work alongside Sean Connery and Roger Moore, maintaining the same scorching chemistry with both actors.

As well as her Bond role, the Canadian actress also featured in other films and TV shows, and even wrote a weekly column for the Toronto Sun under the pseudonym Miss Moneypenny.

Maxwell sadly passed away at the age of 80 in 2007, years after being diagnosed with bowel cancer.

At the time, Moore said: “It’s rather a shock. She was always fun and she was wonderful to be with and was absolutely perfect casting.

“It was a great pity that, after I moved out of Bond, they didn’t take her on to continue in the Timothy Dalton films.

“I think it was a great disappointment to her that she had not been promoted to play M – she would have been a wonderful M”.

Caroline Bliss

Caroline Bliss stepped into Miss Moneypenny’s heels twice in 1987 (The Living Daylights) and 1989 (Licence to Kill).

Although her performances alongside Timothy Dalton’s 007 were decent enough, she was certainly no Lois Maxwell – just as Dalton was no Moore or Connery.

The English actress went on to star in other titles and also carved out a successful career on stage but looks to have taken a step back from acting since the mid-90s.

The 60-year-old has now swapped the screen for the bliss of Cornwall, where she lives with her husband, actor and author Andy Secombe.

Samantha Bond

The aptly-named Samantha Bond had a longer run as Miss Moneypenny than Bliss, starring alongside Pierce Brosnan’s 007 between 1995 (GoldenEye) and 2002 (Die Another Day).

When she bagged the role, GoldenEye’s casting director had no clue Bond and Bliss had actually been pals since they were kids, and apparently Bliss wasn’t mad about the replacement.

The 59-year-old is considered by many to be one of the finest Moneypennys to date, largely thanks to her ability to flesh out the role in a way her friend and predecessor couldn’t.

The English actress is perhaps best-known today as Downton Abbey’s Lady Rosamund Painswick, although this is just one of many appearances since her Bond days.

The mum-of-two lives in London with her actor hubby Alexander Hanson, and received an honorary doctorate from the University of Northampton in 2014.

Naomie Harris

Naomie Harris took up the mantle as Eve Moneypenny in 2012 (Skyfall) and still occupies the role today, most recently starring in 2021’s No Time to Die.

The 45-year-old was the bread to Daniel Craig’s butter as Bond, and hopefully she’ll have equally banging on-screen chemistry with whoever replaces Craig in the next movie – if she sticks around, that is.

Harris, who was diagnosed with scoliosis at 11 and suffered adenomyosis in her teens, has been with her partner Peter Legler since 2012 and finds questions about her intentions to have kids strange.

In 2017, she told Woman magazine: “People ask, ‘So when are you going to have children?’ I think it’s a really odd thing because it’s such a personal decision.

“And also, you don’t know what is happening in someone’s life. I find it bizarre, even with my friends, when they want me to have children.

“Why would you encourage anybody to have children unless it was their burning desire? You need to be fully committed to it.

“Have children when you’re ready, if you’re ready, but only then. I’d never had any pressure.”

Pamela Salem

Pamela Salem is the penultimate entry here for good reason: she only featured in one Bond film in 1983 (Never Say Never Again).

Starring Sean Connery as 007, this was one of two movies in the franchise not made by Eon productions.

The British actress, who was born in India, also had a guest role as a shady mafia affiliate on much-loved BBC soap Eastenders in the late-80s and has appeared in Doctor Who too.

Salem was married to actor Michael O’Hagan until he died in 2017, and the 71-year-old now lives in Florida.

Barbara Bouchet

And finally we come to Barbara Bouchet, who technically didn’t even play Miss Moneypenny in 1969’s Casino Royale – the other movie not made by Eon Productions.

The German-American actress portrayed the beautiful daughter of Bond’s original secretary, who works for the service in the same position her mother had years before.

Across her career, the now-78-year-old appeared semi-nude in two issues of Playboy and also guest-starred in Star Trek.

She was married to producer Luigi Borghese, but the couple divorced in 2008 citing “differing aspirations”.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk