The JAMES BOND films: UK audience facts & figures

 

Sean Connery 

Dr. No
(1962, directed by Terence Young)

"There's never been a British film like Dr. No since...what?" 

Richard Whitehall, 'Films and Filming' November 1962.

BBFC classification: "A" - Adult (13 August 1962)
UK cinema release: 5 October 1962

Box office: n/k*

Admissions: n/k - at least 4 million

1962 total cinema admissions: 395 million

1962 average ticket price: 2 shillings 10½ pence (14p)

ITV premiere: Tue 28 October 1975, 8pm

Audience: 10,500,000 homes** (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

* "Within a few months, the picture practically recouped its production costs [approx. £400,000] in London alone" - 'When the Snow Melts: The Autobiography of Cubby Broccoli' with Donald Zec (Boxtree, 1998: p.177)

According to The Hollywood Reporter 14 Dec 1962, pic had grossed $1.66m (approx. £592k) in Britain in nine weeks of release, from 478 engagements.

** Until August 1977, weekly presentation of TV audience data in the UK was given in terms of millions of homes rather than individuals.

James Bond debuted on ITV in 1975 after a £850,000 deal with United Artists.  TV Times dated 25-31 October.

Sean Connery 

From Russia With Love
(1963, directed by Terence Young)

"The sequence before the credits is so good that anyone but the James Bond filmmakers might be frightened they couldn't top it."
Penelope Gilliatt, 'The Observer' 13 October 1963

BBFC classification: "A" (7 Oct 1963)

UK cinema release: Thursday 10 Oct 1963

Box office: n/k

Admissions: n/k

1963 total cinema admissions: 357.2 million

1963 average ticket price: 3s 1d. (15p)

ITV premiere: Sunday 2 May 1976, 7.55pm

Audience: 9,200,000 homes (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

TV Times 1-7 May 1976

From Russia With Love is to date the only Eon Productions Bond film to be screened by the BBC.  It was shown on BBC Two as part of a British Film season Sunday 29 July 2007 at 9pm, watched by 2.65m. 

Rogue production Never Say Never Again (1983), which saw Sean Connery return to the role of 007, was shown on BBC One a couple of times in the mid-90s.

Sean Connery
Goldfinger
(1964, directed by Guy Hamilton)

"The script by Richard Maibaum and Paul Dehn crackles with literate wit and Hitchcock surprises." 
Alexander Walker, 'Evening Standard' 17 September 1964

BBFC classification: "A" (31 August 1964)
UK cinema release: 17 September 1964

Box office (approx.): £2.33m

Admissions (approx.): 13.9 million

1964 total cinema admissions: 342.8 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 4.05%*]

1964 average ticket price: 3s 4¼d. (17p)

ITV premiere: Wed 3 November 1976, 8pm

Audience: 9,800,000 homes (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

* This figure can't possibly be accurate but it must be in the right direction.

The series continued to draw phenomenal audiences on ITV for decades.  A screening of Goldfinger on Sunday 21 April 1985 won 17.05m, and was No.2 in the ratings.

  

Sean Connery 
Thunderball
(1965, directed by Terence Young)

"The film is jolly to watch, especially in its submarine moments, but the toys have clearly taken over." 
Kenneth Tynan, 'The Observer' 2 January 1966

BBFC classification: "A" (7 December 1965)
UK cinema release: 29 December 1965

Box office (approx.): £2.95m

Admissions (approx.): 15.6 million

1966 total cinema admissions: 288.8 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 4.78%]

1966 average ticket price: 4s 9½d. (21p)

ITV premiere: Sat 26 February 1977, 8pm

Audience: 8,600,000 homes

(No. 7 in the week's ratings - not fully networked)

26 Feb-4 Mar 1977.  Main pic from Diamonds Are Forever, not Thunderball

Sean Connery
You Only Live Twice
(1967, directed by Lewis Gilbert)

"The picture's saving grace is Sean Connery, who ambles through the proceedings with the cheeky contempt of an arts sixth-former on a compulsory school tour of a nuclear power station." 
Philip French, 'The Observer' 18 June 1967

BBFC classification: "A" (18 May 1967)
UK cinema release: 12 June 1967

Box office (approx.): £1.81m

Admissions (approx.): 8.3 million

1967 total cinema admissions: 264.8 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 3.13%]
1967 average ticket price: 4s 4¼d. (22p)

ITV premiere: Sunday 20 Nov 1977, 7.45pm

Audience: 20,800,000 viewers (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

Never trust a man who doesn't like browsing old TV listings mags

George Lazenby
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
(1969, directed by Peter R. Hunt)

"[A] film with far more human action than in most recent Bonds.  And a lot more zip and pow, not to mention zowie, inside the action."
Alexander Walker, 'Evening Standard' 18 December 1969

BBFC classification: "A" (5 December 1969)
UK cinema release: 18 December 1969

Box office (approx.): £750,000 (No. 1 for 1970)
Admissions (approx.): 2.45 million
1970 total cinema admissions: 193 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 1.14%]

1970 average ticket price: 6s 1½d. (31p)

ITV premiere: Mon 4 September 1978, 7.30pm

Audience: 16,800,000 (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

Sean Connery

Diamonds Are Forever
(1971, directed by Guy Hamilton)

"Anyone who needs a story to enjoy this great rollicking fantasy would, no doubt, keep the stone and throw away the peach." 
Donald Zec, 'Daily Mirror' 30 December 1971

BBFC classification: "A" (6 December 1971)
UK cinema release: 30 December 1971

Box office: n/k (No. 1 for 1972)

Admissions: n/k

1972 total cinema admissions: 156.6 million

1972 average ticket price: 38p

ITV premiere: Christmas Day 1978, 6.45pm

Audience: 14,400,000 (No. 12 in the week's ratings)

Roger Moore

Live and Let Die
(1973, directed by Guy Hamilton)

"Will James Bond live on in the 1970s?  Not much longer, if this episode is anything to go by." 
John Russell Taylor, 'The Times' July 1973

BBFC classification: "A" (13 June 1973) 
UK cinema release: 6 July 1973

Box office (approx.): £3.89m (No. 1 for 1973)

Admissions (approx.): 9 million

1973 total cinema admissions: 134.2 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 6.71%]

1973 average ticket price: 43p

ITV premiere: Sun 20 January 1980, 7.45pm

Audience: 23,500,000 (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

The biggest TV audience of them all.  Well, it's such fun!

Roger Moore 

The Man with the Golden Gun
(1974, directed by Guy Hamilton)

"What Sean Connery used to achieve with a touch of sardonic sadism, Roger Moore conveys with roguish schoolboy charm and the odd, dry quip." 
Arthur Thirkell, 'Daily Mirror' 18 December 1974

BBFC classification: "A" (25 November 1974) 
UK cinema release: 19 December 1974

Box office: n/k (No. 3 for 1975)

Admissions: n/k

1975 total cinema admissions: 116.3 million

1975 average ticket price: 61p

ITV premiere: Christmas Day 1980, 6.10pm

Audience: 15,300,000 (No. 9 in the week's ratings)

Roger Moore 
The Spy Who Loved Me
(1977, directed by Lewis Gilbert)

"The star of the show...is not Roger Moore, nor the very edible Barbara Bach, nor even the camp amphibious Curt Jurgens as the super villain.  It is the designer Ken Adam."
Tim Radford, 'The Guardian' - 7 July 1977

BBFC classification: "A" (20 June 1977)
UK cinema release: 7 July 1977

Box office: £10.29m (No. 1 for 1977)

Admissions (approx.): 12.46 million

1977 total cinema admissions: 103.5 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 12.04%]

1977 average ticket price: 83p

ITV premiere: Sunday 28 March 1982, 7.15pm

Audience: 22,900,000 (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

Roger Moore

Moonraker
(1979, directed by Lewis Gilbert)

"All very repetitive and no longer more than faintly amusing."
Leslie Halliwell, 'Halliwell's Film Guide' Third Edition 1981

BBFC classification: "A" (31 May 1979)
UK cinema release: 26 June 1979

Box office: £10.66m
(No. 1 for 1979 - tie with Superman: The Movie)

Admissions (approx.): 9.41 million

1979 total cinema admissions: 111.9 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 8.41%]

1979 average ticket price: £1.13

ITV premiere: Sun 27 December 1982, 6.30pm

Audience: 15,500,000 (No. 1 in the week's ratings)

Roger Moore 

For Your Eyes Only
(1981, directed by John Glen)

"It isn't much of a plot, but it has a touch of credibility which is a welcome change from some of its predecessors." 
Ian Christie, 'Daily Express' 24 June 1981

BBFC classification: "A" (1 June 1981)
UK cinema release: 24 June 1981

Box office: £9.5m (No. 2 for 1981)

Admissions: 4.59 million

1981 total cinema admissions: 86 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 5.34%]
1981 average ticket price: £1.64

ITV premiere: Sunday 31 August 1986, 7.15pm

Audience: 14,700,000 (No. 2 in the week's ratings)

 

Roger Moore

Octopussy
(1983, directed by John Glen)

"The 13th Bond movie is unlikely to be the unlucky one at the box office." 
Derek Malcolm, 'The Guardian' 9 June 1983

BBFC classification: "PG" - Parental Guidance (17 May 1983)
UK cinema release: 6 June 1983

Box office: £8.31m (No. 3 for 1983)

Admissions (approx.): 4.31 million

1983 total cinema admissions: 65.7 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 6.67%]

1983 average ticket price: £1.90

ITV premiere: Sat 30 January 1988, 7.15pm

Audience: 15,900,000 (No. 5 in the week's ratings)

Sean Connery 

Never Say Never Again

(1983, directed by Irvin Kershner)

"There is an undeniable pleasure in watching Connery traverse the part again, effortlessly suggesting both the arrogance the part demands and the sly humour without which it could so easily become unbearable." 
Derek Malcolm, 'The Guardian' 15 December 1983

BBFC classification: "PG" (2 Dec 1983)
UK cinema release: 14 Dec 1983

Box office: £7.4m (No. 2 for 1984)

Admissions: 3.5 million

1984 total cinema admissions: 54 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 6.48%]

1984 average ticket price: £1.76

ITV premiere: Christmas Day 1986, 6.30pm

Audience: 11,530,000 (No. 33 in the week's ratings)*

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was the No. 1 film in the UK in 1984 with 4.85m admissions (box office £9.2m).

*The least watched Bond premiere in almost 25 years.  Scheduled opposite Only Fools and Horses.... with 18.76m.  However, its second and third screenings won 15m (No.3 placing) and 13.4m (No.5) respectively.

Roger Moore 

A View To A Kill
(1985, directed by John Glen)

"The Bond series must learn some new tricks or trumps if it isn't to become, after 14 outings to date, all formula and no content." 
Nigel Andrews, 'Financial Times' June 1985

BBFC classification: "PG" (22 May 1985)
UK cinema release: 13 June 1985

Box office: £8.08m (No. 2 for 1985)

Admissions: 4.05 million

1985 total cinema admissions: 72 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 5.63%]

1985 average ticket price: £1.74

ITV premiere: Wed 31 January 1990, 8pm

Audience: 16,900,000 (No. 7 in the week's ratings)

 

Timothy Dalton

The Living Daylights
(1987, directed by John Glen)

"You get the impression that since his last adventure, 007 has been rebuked for [his] light-hearted approach to the job by his boss, M." 
Ian Christie, 'Daily Express' 3 July 1987

BBFC classification: "PG" (17 June 1987)
UK cinema release: 29 June 1987

Box office: £8.16m (No. 2 for 1987)

Admissions (approx.): 3.8 million

1987 total cinema admissions: 78.5 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 5.07%]
1987 average ticket price: £2.15

ITV premiere: Sat 3 October 1992, 6.30pm

Audience: 12,440,000 (No. 15 in the week's ratings)

Timothy Dalton 

Licence to Kill
(1989, directed by John Glen)

"The fact that the villains...are tied up with extreme right-wing forces [shows] that the Bond myth is fairly flexible in an ideological sense."
Julian Petley, 'Monthly Film Bulletin' July 1989

BBFC classification: "15" (23 May 1989)
UK cinema release: 13 June 1989

Box office: £7.55m (No. 6 for 1989)

Admissions (approx.): 3.21 million

1989 total cinema admissions: 94.5 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 3.35%]

1989 average ticket price: £2.40

ITV premiere: Mon 3 January 1994, 8pm

Audience: 15,310,000 (No. 10 in the week's ratings)

Pierce Brosnan

GoldenEye
(1995, directed by Martin Campbell)

"This is the best Bond movie since On Her Majesty's Secret Service.  The shaken-not-stirred secret agent can more than hold his own against...any of the other action hero franchises." 
Kim Newman, 'Empire' #78, December 1995

BBFC classification: "12" (15 November 1995)
UK cinema release: 24 November 1995

Box office: £18.25m

Admissions (approx.): 5.32 million

1995 cinema admissions: 114.6 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 4.58%]
1995 average ticket price: £3.43

ITV premiere: Wed 10 March 1999, 8.35pm

Audience: 13,230,000 (No. 14 in the week's ratings)

Pierce Brosnan

Tomorrow Never Dies 

(1997, directed by Roger Spottiswoode)

"Not even the modern media trimmings of this movie can convince you that Bond is anything other than old news." 
Tom Shone, 'The Sunday Times' 14 December 1997

BBFC classification: "12" (24 November 1997)
UK cinema release: 12 December 1997

Box office: £19.88m

Admissions (approx.): 5.19 million

1998 total cinema admissions: 135.2 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 3.73%]
1998 average ticket price: £3.83

ITV premiere: Wed 13 October 1999, 8pm

Audience: 11,860,000 (No. 12 in the week's ratings)

Pierce Brosnan

The World Is Not Enough
(1999, directed by Michael Apted)

"This adventure will see Bond nicely into the millenium; but it's not the one I'd want to place in my time capsule." 
Alexander Walker, 'Evening Standard' 8 November 1999

BBFC classification: "12" (27 October 1999)
UK cinema release: 26 November 1999

Box office: £28.58m

Admissions: 8.99 million

1999 total cinema admissions: 139.1 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 6.46%]
1999 average ticket price: £3.80

ITV1 premiere: Wed 14 November 2001, 8.45pm

Audience: 9,800,000 (No. 16 in the week's ratings)

Pierce Brosnan

Die Another Day
(2002, directed by Lee Tamahori)

"[C]ritics who say "...it bores me" should consider turning in their own licences.  He who is tired of Bond, is tired of life." 
Alexander Walker, 'Evening Standard' 21 November 2002

BBFC classification: "12A" (8 November 2002)
UK cinema release: 20 November 2002

Box office: £36.04m (No. 3 for 2002)

Admissions: 7.86 million

2002 total cinema admissions: 175.9 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 4.47%]
2002 average ticket price: £4.29

ITV1 premiere: Wed 27 October 2004, 9pm

Audience: 7.55m (No. 22 in the week's ratings)

Daniel Craig
Casino Royale
(2006, directed by Martin Campbell)

"Daniel Craig has done more with James Bond in one film than some previous stars have done in multiple reprises." 
Kim Newman, Empire Online November 2006

BBFC classification: "12A" (30 October 2006)
UK cinema release: 16 November 2006

Box office: £55.6m (No. 1 for 2006)

Admissions (approx.): 11.4 million

2006 total cinema admissions: 156.6 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 7.28%]
2006 average ticket price: £4.87

ITV1 premiere: Sat 19 September 2009, 9.15pm

Audience: 4.82m (No. 36 in the week's ratings)*
* Figures do not include ITV1 HD

Daniel Craig

Quantum of Solace
(2008, directed by Marc Forster)

"In an era marked by sequel bloat, it is entirely admirable that [this] is the shortest Bond to date - it drops a great many of the long running series' mannerisms." 
Kim Newman, Empire Online October 2008

BBFC classification: "12A" (14 October 2008)
UK cinema release: 31 October 2008

Box office: £51.22m (No. 2 for 2008)

Admissions: 9.88 million

2008 total cinema admissions: 164.2 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 6.01%]
2008 average ticket price: £5.20

ITV1 premiere: Sat 26 March 2011, 9pm

Audience: 5.168m (No. 41 in the week's ratings*)

* Chart position does not include ITV1 HD

Daniel Craig

Skyfall
(2012, directed by Sam Mendes)

"[I]t's admirably staged, has a suitably sombre look, and the oddly moving final scenes have an elegiac grace and a tragic sense that the end of On Her Majesty's Secret Service only hints at." 

Philip French, "The Observer" 28 October 2012

BBFC classification "12A" (12 Oct 2012)
UK cinema release date: 26 Oct 2012
Box office: £102.9m* (No. 1 for 2012)
Admissions: 16.15 million

2012 total cinema admissions: 172.5 million

[Percentage of total admissions: 9%]
2012 average ticket price: £6.37

ITV premiere: Wednesday 24 Dec 2014, 8pm

Audience: 7.15m (No. 26 in the week's ratings, not including ITV HD)

*Officially highest grossing film in UK cinema history until overtaken by Star Wars: The Force Awakens in January 2015.

Daniel Craig

SPECTRE

(2015, directed by Sam Mendes)

"It’s deeply silly but uproariously entertaining. At the end, I almost felt guilty for enjoying it all quite so much – almost." 
Peter Bradshaw, "The Guardian" 21 October 2015

BBFC classification "12A" (21 Oct 2015)
UK cinema release date: Monday 26 Oct 2015
Box office: £95.2m (No. 2 for 2015)
Admissions: 13.14 million

2015 total cinema admissions: 171.9 million
[Percentage of total admissions: 7.7%]

2015 average ticket price: £7.21

ITV Premiere: Monday 1 January 2018 at 8.05pm
Audience: 5.68m (28 day figure, incl. ITV+1). No. 37 for the week.

Daniel Craig

NO TIME TO DIE

(2020, directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga)

"Craig's Bond swan song is hindered by an unconvincing emotional storyline and an underused ensemble cast." 
Kim Newman, "Sight and Sound" 29 September 2021

BBFC classification "12A" (21 Sept 2021)
UK cinema release date: Thursday 30 Sept 2021

Postponed from 2 Apr 2020; 12 Nov 2020; 2 Apr 2021 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic

Box office: £94.49m to 21 Nov, suggesting around 13mill admissions

And this concludes the updating of this blog because unfortunately, I hated No Time To Die so much it has killed my interest in all things James Bond.  Sad but true.