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Bond was conceived in an age of post-war austerity, of exchange controls and rationing and so in a way he was Britain's ambassador to a world of indulgence reporting back on the better times to come.

The butter on his broiled lobster oozed and dribbled on behalf of us all. The astringency of the shavings of lemon peel in his martini refreshed the nation.

Firm of jaw and purpose, hard of heart and stomach, 007 was a coded signal to the United States that clapped-out, threadbare old Britain remained a force to be reckoned with in the post-war world. A supplier of courage, ingenuity and experience to set alongside American stockpiles of guns, money and broiled lobster.