4. Brian Blessed
Never seriously (is anything serious with Brian Blessed) linked to the Bond role, he made a damned good Vultan in Flash Gordon, and an even better Richard IV in Blackadder. His Caesar Augustus in I,Caudius wasnt bad either. So how would his Bond be? Booming, you would have to presume. Bond!!!James Bond!!!!! So sonorously original is Blesseds dulcet tonality that it has even been used as Satnav directions, And who says 007 cant be a big man with a beard? Famed for his larger-than-life, often regal portrayals of maniacal men, Blessed would have easily slid into the over-the-top, stereotypes of the Bond world. Okay, Blessed may have taken the Bond franchise toward the direction of Austin Powers-style spoofs but would be the perfect antidote to the overly serious portrayals offered by Craig and Brosnan. Somehow, the comedy elements exited the Bond persona after Connery and Moore departed. Blessed would have injected it all back in. And how refreshing it might have been to see big Brian Blessed jumping over crocodiles to escape his death (whose mouth opens the widest for a start), or to hear the big mans response to, No Mr Bond, I expect you to die.