CORGI 007 MOON BUGGY

The Corgi James Bond 007 Moon Buggy numbered 811, from the film, ‘Diamonds Are Forever.’

A unique vehicle that, I’m sure has appeal for both Bond and space toy fans alike.

It was released in June, 1972, six months following the film’s December, 1971 premier.  (Another model from the film, the Mustang Mach 1 was also released just prior, in February 1972) and continued in production until 1974.

While it’s not entirely screen accurate with its bright, metallic blue and white body combined with yellow balloon wheels and rear ‘balance’ ball colour scheme it still looks very appealing.

The spring loaded red claws are obviously far too big, but they do grip, and the rear radar scanner rotates as you push it along.

Push down the silver cylinder behind the cabin and the bubble observation hatch lifts and up pops  a smiling 007.

Actually, it amazes me how most of these toys have survived intact over the years. The radar scanner is very fragile, and the claw arms, which have become loose over time, aren’t really strong enough to support the over-size claws.

As an adult collector, I obviously treat this delicate model with care. Playing with it as a youngster it would have probably lasted in one piece until tea time.

Corgi Classics did a re-release, as part of their James Bond Collection in 1997. (65201) this comes in a nice presentation box, which includes a figure of Sean Connery in a typical James Bond, pose. 

The model is exactly the same as the original, complete with giant claws, although the colours are more accurate. 

It was repackaged in 2001 without the additional figure as part of Corgi Classics, ‘Definitive Bond Collection.

Although it’s not by Corgi, the Eaglemoss James Bond Car Collection also did a version of the Moon Buggy in issue 31.

It’s much smaller than the Corgi versions, which I imagine are 1:36 scale. This more accurate looking version looks to be somewhere in the region of 1:72.

It comes in its own plastic display case complete with lunar backdrop and surface.

Here’s a truncated history of the ‘real’ Moon Buggy:

Diamonds Are Forever , the seventh Bond  film from Eon Productions,  and the  last to feature Sean Connery as the superspy  in the ’official’ Eon series .

After starring in ‘You Only Live Twice’ in 1967, Connery decided to hang up his Walther PPK and retire from the role, However, following George Lazenby’s single outing as Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service in 1969, Connery was persuaded to return for a record (at the time) $1.25 million dollar salary, which he used to establish his Scottish International Education Trust.  Connery would return to play Bond once more in the ironically titled 1983 unofficial film, ‘Never Say Never Again’.

I’m quite fond of DAF.  It’s intentionally reminiscent of ‘Goldfinger’, another Bond favourite of mine. It featured another great Bond theme song sung  by Shirley Bassey, and written by John Barry and Don Black, and it also featured another quite unique vehicle!

Okay, it’s not quite in the same class as the Goldfinger Aston Martin DB5, but the DAF Moon Buggy is still a memorable prop, even though it’s only seen on screen for just over three and half minutes.

Production designer, Ken Adam, had the job of coming up with the Moon Buggy design and originally based it on the real Lunar Rover , however Director Guy Hamilton felt it wasn’t monstrous enough.  

As Ken Adam recalled during the DAF DVD commentary, “ He kept telling me it had to be more grotesque, and those mechanical arms had to flail around more, so that’s how it became what it was.”

Car customizer, Dean Jeffries , who’d previously created, amongst others, The Monkeemobile for the TV pop group, The Monkees, and  The Black Beauty for the Green Hornet TV series, built the Buggy, which was to have originally crashed through a wall and sped off down a service road.

When filming took place at the John Manville Gypsum Plant in the Nevada desert, which was used in the film as the Willard Whyte Tectronics Space Centre location, Director Guy Hamilton decided to film the chase scene across the surrounding rocky terrain.

Unfortunately, the Moon Buggy hadn’t been built for this kind of punishment, resulting in the fibre glass conical wheels breaking off. These were replaced with the more familiar balloon tyres ,supplied by Honda according to Ken, which worked better, however the suspension still wasn’t up to the job and the new wheels just kept falling off.

In the film, a lone Buggy wheel can be seen briefly, unintentionally rolling into shot during the desert chase scene.

There was only one Moon Buggy built for the film, and once it completed a promotional tour and the publicity campaign for Diamonds Are Forever was over, the Moon Buggy was left to fall into disrepair. It was, however discovered in 1993, by 007 Magazine editor & publisher, Graham Rye who organised its restoration.  Following this it was loaned and displayed at Planet Hollywood, Las Vegas, Nevada.

In 2004, the Moon Buggy was sold at auction for £23,900 to Planet Hollywood founder, Robert Earl, and it now permanently resides as the centre piece at The Planet Hollywood Las Vegas Casino.