He had a licence to charm on screen, with his sultry voice and suave, chiselled good looks. But in private, actor Sir Roger Moore – who played James Bond in seven films – was equally as comfortable behind the camera.
A new documentary to air on Christmas Day will reveal never-before-seen home video footage, filmed by Sir Roger himself, of his family and very famous friends – including actor Kirk Douglas and singer Olivia Newton-John.
A young Sir Elton John is also spotted descending from the skies in a helicopter ready for lunch with Sir Roger and other celebrity guests – the likes of Joan Collins and David Attenborough.
Sir Roger’s son Geoffrey, who found the old video cassettes in the cupboards and garage at his family’s home in Switzerland, remembers the gathering in France well.
He played a game of tennis with Sir Elton, he recalls, in an exclusive interview for News, before the singer flew off to Cannes to film the music video for his hit song, I’m Still Standing.
Sir Roger also got behind the camera to film much more intimate occasions with his three children – Geoffrey, Deborah and Christian – and their mother, his third wife, Italian actress Luisa Mattioli.
Bringing the memories of the past back to life again on screen proved poignant for Geoffrey and his siblings.
“I think the way he was just filming was as any father would film his children. It was just a family guy recording, documenting a time,” says Geoffrey.
“I think it was also because [the camera] was a new toy, so he wanted to use it.”
Growing up, being surrounded by stars from the silver screen was normal for Geoffrey.
“I mean [Frank] Sinatra was very close to the family and we used to spend a lot of Thanksgivings and Easters together. Kirk Douglas, Cary Grant, Gregory Peck, they were all very, very dear friends.”
Sir Roger’s daughter Deborah remembers her father couldn’t keep up with Frank Sinatra’s drinking and would secretly pour his whisky into the plant pots.
The family would watch comedy duo Morecambe and Wise on TV on a Friday night, says Geoffrey, and then Eric and Ernie would come over for Sunday lunch.
He also remembers meeting Clint Eastwood and Sean Connery – the first James Bond – as well as stars from Hollywood’s golden age, such as Fred Astaire and Olivia De Havilland.
“I mean, if I think about how lucky we were… to the point where even Roger would say, ‘Goodness, look at that, we’ve got Gene Kelly sitting there. Isn’t that wonderful!'”.
But despite being surrounded by stardom, Sir Roger was very “self-deprecating”, says Geoffrey.
“I always say, the bigger the talent, the smaller the limousine. And he was incredibly humble,” he says.
At the end of a day’s filming, Sir Roger would simply enjoy watching TV with his family in his dressing gown and slippers.
“His treat was baked beans on toast,” says Geoffrey. “He didn’t need caviar.”
Sir Roger came from humble beginnings. He grew up in Stockwell in south London. His father was a police officer and his mother worked in a tearoom. He crafted his aristocratic English accent at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Rada) and earned money modelling knitting patterns.
His big break came in 1962, playing Simon Templar in the TV series, The Saint.
Geoffrey recalls the phone call his father received when he found out he had been chosen to take over the role of Britain’s most famous secret agent.
The last three digits of Sir Roger’s phone number just happened to be 007.
“He answered the phone with ‘007’, because that’s what you do, and the voice said, ‘That you are Roger,'” says Geoffrey.
Sean Connery was the closest to author Ian Fleming’s depiction of the character in his spy novels, says Geoffrey, as in “I’m going to sleep with you and kill your boss tomorrow”.
“Whereas, Roger didn’t want to fire a gun really,” says Geoffrey, “he just sort of killed them with charm.”
He always had a very sardonic approach, says Geoffrey, and that was his interpretation, he adds.
“Let’s make James Bond Roger Moore,” he says, “[as] opposed to Roger having to play a hired gun who is licensed to kill. And I think he was more like ‘licensed to thrill.'”
This took an enormous amount of talent, says Geoffrey.
Of the Bond films that starred Sir Roger, Geoffrey says his father’s favourite was The Spy Who Loved Me.
Growing up on movie sets was fantastic, recalls Geoffrey, but having James Bond as your father attracted quite a bit of attention on the school run.
When Sir Roger came to pick him up from school one day, he remembers the car was suddenly surrounded by pupils – keen to catch a glimpse of the star.
“I thought, ‘Oh, okay, he’s known, I’m not the only one that sees him on the box,'” he says.
But living in the public eye could be difficult when there was a scandal.
Geoffrey recalls a phone call his father made to him one morning, letting him know the papers had got hold of the story that he was leaving his mother.
“I said, ‘Well, thanks for the heads up! How long have I got?'” says Geoffrey.
The press had already surrounded his mother’s house. It creates “a small scar to see that your pain is exposed,” says Geoffrey. “I think that’s the worst part of being famous.”
After his split from Luisa, Sir Roger went on to marry his fourth wife, Kristina Tholstrup, otherwise known as Kiki. He had also been previously married to actress and professional ice skater Doorn van Steyn and singer Dorothy Squires.
Sir Roger died in 2017 at the age of 89. In his later years, actress Audrey Hepburn had asked him to take on her humanitarian work for the children’s charity Unicef, says Geoffrey.
“It says a lot about his love for humanity, his love for children. And that, I think, is probably his greatest role.”
From Roger Moore with Love will be broadcast on Wednesday 25 December at 21:00 GMT on Two and iPlayer.
