20 Things You Didn’t Know About Casino Royale (2006)

15. Oh You’re Mad, Do You Know That?

Casino Royale Daniel Craig
MGM/Columbia Pictures

When James Bond bests Le Chiffre's slimy associate, Alex Dimitrios (Simon Abkarian) in a Texas Hold ‘Em poker game at The Ocean Club on Paradise Island in Nassau, The Bahamas, the player sat on Dimitrios's right is portrayed by Diane Hartford.

She previously appeared as another bystander who crossed paths with Double-0 Seven (Sir Sean Connery) at Nassau's The Kiss Kiss Club in Thunderball.

On the run from Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi) and her SPECTRE assassins, James Bond ducked into the jazz club and started dancing with a surprised patron, luring her away from her friends before Volpe interrupted them. This innocent bystander was played by Diane Hartford, who accused Bond of being married when the sultry Fiona arrived.

Hartford, previously Diane Brown, was married from 1962 until 1970 to Huntington Hartford, who owned Paradise Island in The Bahamas, including The Ocean Club. He granted permission for Thunderball to be filmed on the island and received a special credit for doing so in that film’s end titles.

Tsai Chin, who portrayed Ling opposite Connery's Double-0 Seven in the pre-credits sequence of You Only Live Twice (1967), also features in several of this film's poker sequences as Madame Wu.

Contributor

I started writing for WhatCulture in July 2020. I have always enjoyed reading and writing. I have contributed to several short story competitions and I have occasionally been fortunate enough to have my work published. During the COVID-19 lockdown, I also started reviewing films on my Facebook page. Numerous friends and contacts suggested that I should start my own website for reviewing films, but I wanted something a bit more diverse - and so here I am! My interests focus on film and television mainly, but I also occasionally produce articles that venture into other areas as well. In particular, I am a fan of the under appreciated sequel (of which there are many), but I also like the classics and the mainstream too.