Real-life James Bond Was 'Archivist' In Communist Poland

Newly published archives reveal he was posted to the communist bloc two years after the first Bond film came out

A British agent named James Bond was posted to the communist bloc two years after the first Bond film came out, according to newly published archives from Poland's Institute of National Remembrance.

Bond arrived in Warsaw on February 18, 1964 and his official position was archivist at the British embassy, according to documents from communist Poland's counter-intelligence service.

The Bond described in the documents bears little resemblance to his eponymous fictional counterpart, best known for his fondness for vodka martinis and womanising.

Polish agents noted that Bond was "interested in women" but was "very careful" and did not make any contact with Polish citizens, according to the documents published on Facebook this week.

The Institute of National Remembrance said he was "a low-level operative with a high-profile name" since even communist agents would have been familiar with the fictional hero.

In October and November 1964 he attempted to travel to "military installations" in Bialystok and Olsztyn in northeastern Poland, close to the border of the Soviet Union, the institute said.

Apparently unsuccessful, the real-life Bond left Poland on January 21, 1965.

Bond writer Ian Fleming, himself a former agent, always said he came up with the name of his hero from a book about Caribbean birds by US ornithologist James Bond.