Brolly good show, 007!

QUESTION

Which actors were considered for the role of James Bond before Sean Connery was cast in Dr No? There were four contenders to play the first film version of James Bond, all of whom had found fame in TV action roles: Patrick Macnee of The Avengers, Patrick McGoohan of Danger Man, roger Moore (about to start playing Simon Templar in The Saint) and robert Shaw, dashing Dan Tempest in The Buccaneers.

Macnee, who was a friend of Bond author Ian Fleming, turned down the role as he was repulsed by the brutish way 007 went about his business. he was proud of the fact his spy character, John Steed in The Avengers, never carried a gun and used his ever present brolly, wits and ‘mitts’ to see off his adversaries.

he had seen enough killings during his World War II royal Navy service to put him off guns forever. however, he did go on to play MI6 operative Sir Godfrey Tibbett in the 1985 Bond film A View To A Kill and narrated the documentary, Ian Fleming: 007’s Creator, in 2000.

Patrick McGoohan’s portrayal of Danger Man’s secret agent John Blake was the closest to Bond’s character of any of the Sixties TV spies, but due to his strong roman Catholic principles, he turned down the role on moral grounds.

he was also earning more from Danger Man; Sean Connery’s meagre pay packet of $17,000 for Dr No wasn’t much more than an extra would have earned for six weeks’ work on the film.

Though passed over in favour of Connery, robert Shaw ended up as Bond’s adversary, assassin Donald Grant, in the second 007 film, From russia With Love.

Other James Bond contenders were Cary Grant, Trevor howard, Stanley Baker, rex harrison, richard Todd, Ian hendry and David Niven.

George Lazenby was the second Bond, appearing in the 1969 film On her Majesty’s Secret Service. roger Moore was the third Bond, playing the role in seven films in the Seventies and eighties. Gentleman spy: Patrick Macnee with Diana Rigg in The Avengers Some critics say Moore was too ultrasmooth for the part following Connery’s ‘animalistic’ approach to the role.

Later, there were unusual candidates for the role, such as Peter Purves from BBC children’s TV show Blue Peter.

Danny Darcy, Reading, Berks.

QUESTION How accurate are claims that last month was the coldest ever February?

They are not accurate. According to the Met Office, the UK mean temperature for February was 2.4c, which was 1.3c below the 1981-2010 long-term average. There have been several colder Februaries, the most extreme being 1993 with an average of -1c; 1986 with -1.2c; and 1947 with -2c.

The coldest February day recorded was -27.2c at Braemar, Grampian, on February 11, 1895. england’s coldest was -20.6c at Woburn, Beds, on February 25, 1947.

The coldest recorded this February was -11.7c, at South Farnborough, hampshire, on February 28. L. Neill, Liverpool.

QUESTION

What is the origin of the Japanese shogun? How did they become more powerful than the emperor?

ShoguN was the title given to the highest ranked military commanders.

General Sakanoue Tamuramaro (758811), serving emperor Kanmu (737-806), n was the first to be appointed shogun and given the task of conquering the emishi people in north honshu. Shogun was an abbreviation of seii

taishogun meaning ‘ barbarian-quelling commander’. Legally, the shogunate was under the rule of the emperor, but in feudal Japan, control of the military was tantamount to control of the country. Minamoto yoritomo ( 1147- 1199) established the supremacy of the samurai caste in 1185 and created the bakufu (tent government) at Kamakura. This became the true government of Japan. he declared himself shogun in 1192. For seven centuries, Japan was ruled by

shogun, whose titles were hereditary, though weak rulers were usurped by rebel factions. During this time, the emperor’s role was ceremonial.

After the collapse of the Kamakura shogunate in 1333, Ashikaga Takauji (1305-58) established a shogunate run from the imperial city of Kyoto and appointed constables, or shugo, as heads of each province. The 180 shugo began calling themselves daimyo or lord.

In 1600, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616) gained power over the daimyo and in 1603 established the third shogunate in edo (now Tokyo).

This was the most powerful central government Japan had yet seen: it controlled the emperor, the daimyo and the religious establishments.

In 1867, the 15th Tokugawa shogun, yoshinobu, was forced to return his power to the emperor’s court. emperor Meiji ‘the Great’ (1852-1912) moved from Kyoto to edo a year later, laying the foundation for Japanese expansionism.

K. Weston, Marlow, Bucks.

QUESTION A good way to establish someone’s age is to ask what they call the English Football League Cup, which has changed name several times over the decades. What other systems are there?

FUrTher to the earlier answer, another option is to ask if they know their Co-Op ‘Divi’ or dividend number.

In 1950, aged seven, I lived with my family in a flat over a parade of Co-Op shops and was often sent to buy items. I still remember the six-digit number — it is handy for computer passwords.

My first job was as a trainee draughtsman, which is another way to date someone, as there is no pen-and-ink drawing with CAD (computer-aided design) these days.

geoffrey Maycock, Rochford, Essex.

IS THERE a question to which you have always wanted to know the answer? Or do you know the answer to a question raised here? Send your questions and answers to: Charles Legge, Answers To Correspondents, Daily Mail, 2 Derry Street, London, W8 5TT; fax them to 01952 780111 or email them to charles.legge@dailymail.co.uk. A selection will be published but we are not able to enter into individual correspondence.