Wonderfully Charming Story About Actor Roger Moore That You Must Read

Many of us were saddened to hear the news of Roger Moore's passing. We here at GeekTyrant wrote a small piece about it that you can find here. But we aren't the only ones wishing him well into the afterlife. So is much of Hollywood.

As I viewed much of the Twitterverse and Instagram, seeing wonderful tributes to Roger Moore from artists who had worked with him like Jane Seymour, Pierce Brosnan, Paul McCartney and Michael Caine, to people inspired by his work like Russell Crowe, Edgar Wright, and James Wan. There was a story that caught my eye that really embodied a man who I wish I had known more. It's stories like these that make you grateful for actors who spark the imagination of children and adults. 

It tells the story of a young boy who got to meet James Bond and years later while working with him was dazzled all over again. I don't want to ruin too much, but check out the story below with the Facebook post. It really makes you feel good. I think Roger Moore is a wonderful actor and from the sounds of it, a wonderful, caring person who really understood what it means to play an iconic character like James Bond.

As an seven year old in about 1983, in the days before First Class Lounges at airports, I was with my grandad in Nice Airport and saw Roger Moore sitting at the departure gate, reading a paper. I told my granddad I'd just seen James Bond and asked if we could go over so I could get his autograph. My grandad had no idea who James Bond or Roger Moore were, so we walked over and he popped me in front of Roger Moore, with the words "my grandson says you're famous. Can you sign this?"

As charming as you'd expect, Roger asks my name and duly signs the back of my plane ticket, a fulsome note full of best wishes. I'm ecstatic, but as we head back to our seats, I glance down at the signature. It's hard to decipher it but it definitely doesn't say 'James Bond'. My grandad looks at it, half figures out it says 'Roger Moore' - I have absolutely no idea who that is, and my hearts sinks. I tell my grandad he's signed it wrong, that he's put someone else's name - so my grandad heads back to Roger Moore, holding the ticket which he's only just signed.

I remember staying by our seats and my grandad saying "he says you've signed the wrong name. He says your name is James Bond." Roger Moore's face crinkled up with realization and he beckoned me over. When I was by his knee, he leant over, looked from side to side, raised an eyebrow and in a hushed voice said to me, "I have to sign my name as 'Roger Moore' because otherwise...Blofeld might find out I was here." He asked me not to tell anyone that I'd just seen James Bond, and he thanked me for keeping his secret. I went back to our seats, my nerves absolutely jangling with delight. My grandad asked me if he'd signed 'James Bond.' No, I said. I'd got it wrong. I was working with James Bond now.

Many, many years later, I was working as a scriptwriter on a recording that involved UNICEF, and Roger Moore was doing a piece to camera as an ambassador. He was completely lovely and while the cameramen were setting up, I told him in passing the story of when I met him in Nice Airport. He was happy to hear it, and he had a chuckle and said "Well, I don't remember but I'm glad you got to meet James Bond." So that was lovely.

And then he did something so brilliant. After the filming, he walked past me in the corridor, heading out to his car - but as he got level, he paused, looked both ways, raised an eyebrow and in a hushed voice said, "Of course I remember our meeting in Nice. But I didn't say anything in there, because those cameramen - any one of them could be working for Blofeld."

I was as delighted at 30 as I had been at 7. What a man. What a tremendous man.