|
A memorial for Eunice
Gayson, who played Sylvia Trench in Dr. No and From Russia With
Love, was held yesterday at BAFTA in London on what would have been
her 91st birthday. Attending were James Bond Producer Michael. G. Wilson,
and 007 actresses Caroline Munro [‘Naomi’ in The Spy Who Loved Me
(1977)], Jenny Hanley [‘Irish Girl’ in On Her Majesty's Secret Service
(1969)], Carole Ashby [‘Octopussy girl’ in Octopussy (1983) and
‘Whistling girl’ in A View To A Kill (1985)], Caron
Gardner [‘Pussy Galore's Flying Circus pilot’ in Goldfinger (1964)], Caroline Bliss
[‘Miss Moneypenny’ in The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence To
Kill (1989)] and Madeline Smith [‘Miss Caruso’ in Live And Let Die
(1973)]. |
|
“Willowy, exquisitely
gowned with a classic, deceptively cold beauty.” This is how the
Dr. No (1962) screenplay
describes Sylvia Trench.
Elegant and intelligent, Sylvia became the first woman to catch the
cinematic James Bond’s attention. She also sets
up one of the most iconic lines in cinema history. When casting the first
James Bond film director Terence Young remembered Eunice Gayson from his
1956 film Zarak and offered her the role of Sylvia Trench - a new
character not created by Ian Fleming. Sylvia Trench was due to be a
recurring character, but the idea was dropped when Guy Hamilton took over
the direction of Goldfinger in 1964.
Sylvia first meets Bond at the exclusive Le Cercle casino at Les
Ambassadeurs club in London. Battling over a game of Chemin de fer,
she introduces herself as “Trench, Sylvia Trench” and he responds in his
now trademark manner “Bond, James Bond”, playfully mimicking Trench’s
own delivery.
After indulging in verbal foreplay with Sylvia Trench at the gaming tables
of his London club, James Bond reports to the offices of the British
Secret Service. He learns from M that Strangways their agent in Jamaica,
has disappeared along with his secretary. Bond's mission is to investigate
their disappearance and discover if it is linked with the ‘toppling’ of
American missiles. Returning to his apartment, Bond is surprised to find
Sylvia has gained entry. Dressed only in Bond's pyjama top and high-heeled
shoes and practising her putting stroke. Sylvia is put off aim when Bond
bursts in gun in hand. Her face is a picture of disappointment when Bond
tells her he must leave immediately. After a kiss he relents - “almost
immediately”, he tells her.
Sylvia reappears in the next 007 adventure
From Russia With Love
(1963), sharing a lazy riverside picnic with James Bond. A call from Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell),
instructing Bond to meet with M (Bernard Lee),
interrupts their idyll sending him on a mission to retrieve a decoding
machine from the Russians. It seems, when it comes to James Bond, Sylvia
can never catch a break. |
