The Watches of James Bond

Now pay attention please, 007.

The passing of Sir Sean Connery and the continued delay of No Time to Die has got me thinking about all things James Bond. Given the recent lack of James Bond in our lives, now seems like an appropriate time to have the conversation that we have long considered, but never put in writing.

Who was the better Bond; Connery or Moore? Brosnan or Craig? Was the better car the Aston Martin or Lotus? Should Bond carry a Beretta or a Walther? I fancy myself a bit more a Timothy Dalton man, but nevertheless, you get the point. But the question I am asking is which of James Bond’s watches reigns supreme?

Of Bond’s many gadgets, watches have played a significant role over the years. Often, the pieces chosen are the best watches for the job – a serious watch for a serious man. These were utilitarian timepieces that could survive Bond’s lifestyle and keep on ticking, just like Bond himself. I love that Bond continues to wear a watch in each generation of films. I am also delighted that the scripts continue to call for grander and grander complications that Switzerland or Japan would never dream of, from Geiger counters to ticker-tape messaging systems to lasers.

Origins: The Rolex Submariner

I’ll never forget the first time I watched Dr. No as a child and marveled at the Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538 on Sean Connery’s wrist. This watch, in no small part, is one of the reasons for my obsession with watches. To me, James Bond was the epitome of cool, and his gear was equally iconic. And so, it is only fitting that Bond’s first watch was the Rolex Submariner. A utilitarian watch that could be worn to complete a recon of an enemy fortress, or just as suitably while wearing a tuxedo, smoking a cigarette, and having no objections to raising the stakes at the baccarat table.

That first Sub, Ref. 6538 is the ultimate beach to boardroom, (or lair, as Bond may have it) watch. The Sub is a minimalist no-date version and demonstrates Bond’s choice for the utilitarian aspect of the watch over form. The Sub has long been the standard by which all of 007’s watches are measured. It made appearances in From Russia with Love and Goldfinger. Sir Roger Moore wore a Rolex Submariner Ref. 5513, as seemed almost necessary, before dalliances with Hamilton and Seiko.

The Sub is just iconic for Bond. For me, it is the no-holds-barred, winner-take-all watch of the Bond watches. It is just a simple watch designed to do one thing very well, and with very few modifications from Q Branch. I love a watch that is unapologetically good at what it does. And the Sub will take a beating and keep on ticking. It’s a classic and the perfect allegory for Bond: simple and effective.

 The Quartz Crisis Years

The Quartz Crisis was supposedly going to be the demise of the Swiss watch industry. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Swiss watch industry was under threat from the development and popularity of the quartz watch. Quartz watches receive their power not from a main spring, but from a battery. On Christmas Day in 1969, Seiko introduced the first quartz watch to the world and the crisis began. It was not only cost and durability that drew people to the new quartz-powered watch; it was also the promise of the future and of new technology.

It was becoming clear from the interest in the market that many people were preferring quartz watches to the handmade mechanical watches of Switzerland. These watches were also cheaper to produce, helping Seiko to become the world’s largest watch company (by revenue) during the crisis. The crisis was eventually averted by the formation of what would become the Swatch Group. And amazingly, today, the watch industry is flourishing.

During the time of the Quartz Crisis, however, it was apropos that James Bond would choose a quartz watch over his trusty Rolex Submariner. Sir Roger Moore would play Bond in Live and Let Die wearing a Rolex Sub Ref. 5513. Moore would also wear a Hamilton Pulsar in Live and Let Die. Again, the Pulsar meets Bond’s need for function over form. The watch simply tells time with its LED display and nothing more.

Moore would also bring Seiko into the mix of Bond watches, wearing a Seiko 0674 LC in The Spy Who Loved Me, then a Seiko M354 in Moonraker, and a Seiko 7549-7009 and a Seiko H35 in For Your Eyes Only, and finally a Seiko G757 in Octopussy. These quartz watches all feature multiple complications and provide fascinating insight into the watch culture of the time.

Bond’s change to Seiko during the quartz crisis tells us about the mood of the time. All of these watches represent the shift in the watch industry to a future of technology and innovation. During the Quartz Crisis, the world’s attention shifted from the handmade narrative of the Swiss watch industry to one of technology and the future. That Bond would choose to join this trend probably had more influence on people buying Seikos and quartz watches than we could ever quantify.

Rolex and Seiko are two of the best tool watch brands in the business, doing their job of timekeeping to an extremely high standard. The quartz Seikos that Moore wore certainly had more complications, and not just from Q Branch. Bond riding the quartz wave amid the Quartz Crisis demonstrates how the world viewed technology and horology at the time. It seems to me that the producers of the series thought that mechanical watches were done for, and Bond was clearly looking to the future.

A Return of the Mechanical Watch

Fear not, horology fans, the quartz crisis would be averted. The formation of what would become the Swatch Group, spearheaded by Nicolas G. Hayek and Ernst Thomke, would lead to a revival of the Swiss watch industry. By the time Timothy Dalton would take over as Bond in The Living Daylights in 1987, it only made sense for him to wear a mechanical watch. Wearing a TAG Heuer Professional Night Dive Reference 980.031, Timothy Dalton took on the role of Bond in The Living Daylights. And he returned to wearing Bond’s trusty Rolex Sub in his next installment in License to Kill.

The return to the Sub seemed likely to continue throughout the franchise until Pierce Brosnan came to the big screen as Bond in Goldeneye with the Omega Seamaster Professional 300M Ref. 2541.80 upon his wrist. I will never forget the Seamaster’s grand introduction, as Brosnan tried to use the inboard laser on his watch to open a hatch on the armored train in which he is trapped. It was with this watch in 1995, that Omega became the official watch of the Bond franchise, and even with release timelines array, there is no sign of this relationship falling by the wayside.

The modern Omegas that have adorned Bond’s wrist since ‘95 are every bit the utilitarian tool watch that the original Submariner Ref. 6538 was to Sean Connery. With Omega, Bond returns to functional tool watches that just run and run and run, taking all the abuse that 007 can dish out while continuing to perfectly tick along. In all seriousness, Omega makes a fantastic watch, and recent heritage-inspired pieces like the Spectre represent their continuation of Bond’s function-over-form style.

I hope Omega continues to create limited edition watches connected to the Bond franchise. A personal favorite is the Omega Seamaster 300 Spectre Limited Edition. I love the simplicity of this watch; the matte dial, the vintage lume, lollipop seconds hand, and the incredibly comfortable Omega NATO strap. This watch oozes the calm confidence of a simple and elegant tool watch, and to me, was a return to the type of watch that should be on Bond’s wrist.

 Which Watch Reigns Supreme?

Which watch should one choose as the ultimate Bond watch? There is no denying the appeal of the Rolex Submariner No-Date, especially when worn on a NATO strap. Nothing is as “classically Bond” in my opinion. But the quartz crisis was a real threat to the Swiss watch industry and remains an incredible part of its history. I would be remiss to rule out Bond’s various quartz Seikos, recognizing today how far the industry has come since its impending extinction in the 70’s and early 80’s. That being said, I love the era of quartz Seikos worn by Sir Roger Moore. Not only does it tell us something about the era; it tells us about the watch industry and the way the style-conscious Bond thought the watch world was moving.

All considered I am grateful that Bond is again wearing a mechanical watch. In an era when Bond, a dinosaur who lives in the shadows, could easily wear a modern GPS smartwatch, I am grateful to Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson for continuing the tradition of mechanical timepieces in the Bond franchise. I find it delightfully reassuring that the stodginess of the character, and of the Swiss watch industry, remains.