20 Things You Didn’t Know About Thunderball (1965)

15. Do Bring It Back In One Piece, Double-0 Seven

Thunderball Domino
MGM/UA

To assist him Double-0 Seven in tracking down the two stolen NATO atomic bombs, Q (Desmond Llewelyn) equips him with a wristwatch that doubles as a Geiger counter. The timepiece was a Breitling Top Time Reference 2002 that had been made in 1962.

Whilst it is seen a few times in the film, it was to have been heavily showcased during a scene in which Emilio Largo and Domino Derval give Bond a guided tour of the Disco Volante. Much like the other scenes in which it features, James Bond used it to determine that the bombs were not onboard by glancing at it from time to time. These scenes were cut from the film and only survive as still photographs whilst their conclusion with Bond and Felix Leiter driving away in a motorboat still appears in the movie.

The Breitling wristwatch vanished during filming and only resurfaced in 2013 when it was sold at a car boot sale for a mere £25. Once it had been authenticated by Breitling and several experts, the timepiece sold at Christie’s for £103,875!

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.