James Bond’s (Pierce Brosnan) Full-size Q-Boat
THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH (1999)
A full-size Q Boat driven by James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) in the opening scenes of Michael Apted’s spy film The World is Not Enough. This jet boat was used in the high speed chase along London’s River Thames, which remains one of Bond’s most exciting pursuits. The scene is regarded among the very best in the history of the entire franchise. In Bond’s world, the boat is a sophisticated, powerful, well-armoured vessel designed by Q division and is highly manoeuvrable and computer controlled. It also has GPS navigation and a full array of torpedoes and machine guns.
Initially conceived by production designer Peter Lamont, 15 Q Boat shells were constructed for filming by Riddle Marine of Idaho, USA. The shells were shipped to the UK and detailed at the workshops of Pinewood studios. Four of the boats were functioning and operational, powered by enormous 5.7L V8 engines. The rest were designed for specific purposes, including the barrel role, underwater filming as well as SFX cannon shots. Only nine of the boats remain today, and can usually only be found in museums and touring exhibitions.
This particular Q Boat was specifically constructed for use in the pre-title sequence. The original filming canopy was removed after filming, but everything that remains is true to the production, including the driver’s green racing seat, steering wheel, basic instrumentation and the watertight Chevy engine. Dimensions: 5 m x 1.6 m x 1.6 m (16’ 4” x 5’ 2” x 5’ 2”)