Robert Brown was born in Dorset, UK, in 1921, and had a varied film and television acting career in the UK. Some of his roles were in the TV series Ivanhoe (alongside Roger Moore), The Saint (again alongside Roger Moore) and in The Avengers. Robert Brown also had numerous roles in the movies Ben Hur, The 300 Spartans, and One Million Years B.C.
However it was his roles in the James Bond films for which he would be most known for. His first Bond film was 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me, in which he played the role of Admiral Hargreaves.
Robert Brown missed the following 2 Bond films, Moonraker and For Your Eyes Only, but was cast as the new M in Octopussy (1983). It's unclear whether Robert Brown's M is the same man as Bernard Lee's M, or if Admiral Hargreaves had been promoted to the position after Bernard Lee's death.
He also starred in Roger Moore's final outing as Bond in A View To A Kill (1985). In 1987 he helped usher in a new Bond to the franchise in Timothy Dalton's The Living Daylights, and in 1989 he fired James Bond for his reckless pursuit of drug lord Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi) in Licence To Kill.
When the Bond films suffered from legal troubles in the early 1990's, Robert Brown's acting roles unfortunately dried up as a consequence. When the franchise was re-ignited in 1995's Goldeneye, the producers introduced a new Bond (Pierce Brosnan) and a new M (Judy Dench). Therefore Robert Brown's M was retired without explanation.
Now onto the autograph. In the early 2000's I wrote to Robert Brown in the UK, and in early 2003 I received this wonderfully inscribed photo, with a handwritten apology for the delay in his reply on the reverse.
Until next time!
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