A few weeks ago, I finally got around to starting Nicolas Shakespeare’s biography of Ian Fleming. It’s a long, tomelike text, so I decided it might be easier if I listened to an audiobook, while still having the hardback firmly on my bookshelf. So far, I must admit I’m finding it absolutely engrossing: it started rather slowly, but now I’ve reached the details of Fleming’s adulthood, particularly what he did during world war two, it seems he was a far, far more interesting figure than you might assume.

However, a couple of days ago I came across a detail which I simply must share here: Bond was real! 007 is actually based on a real naval lieutenant who saved Fleming’s brother Peter – himself quite a Bondian figure – when he sent an SOS during operations in Greece. The details are quite Jaw-dropping. The thing is, his name wasn’t James Bond, but Rodney!

Forgive me, but whenever I hear the name Rodney, this inevitably comes to mind.