The British legend starred as 007 for 12 years, and appeared in such classics as Moonraker, Octopussy and The Spy Who Loved Me.

However, despite guns being part of his job playing James Bond, Moore reveals he struggled to hide his nerves whenever he pulled the trigger.

When asked about the most challenging aspect of playing the secret agent, Moore says, ""Probably having to fire a gun and not blink.

""I'm a total coward so often blinked before I pulled the trigger.""

Because of his successful television shows, in particular the long-lasting series The Saint, Roger Moore was unavailable for the James Bond franchise for a considerable time. His participation in The Saint was not only as actor, but also as a producer and director, and he also became involved in developing the series The Persuaders! As Roger Moore frankly explains in his autobiography My Word Is My Bond (2008) on page 172, he had neither been approached to play James Bond in Dr. No, nor had he felt that he had been considered.

It was only after Sean Connery had declared that he would not play Bond any longer that Moore became aware that he might be a contender for the role. But after George Lazenby was cast instead and then Sean Connery played Bond again, he didn't consider the possibility until it seemed abundantly clear that Connery had in fact stepped down as Bond for good. At that point he was indeed approached and accepted the producer's offer in August 1972. Moore says in his autobiography he had to cut his hair and to lose weight, but although he resented that, he was finally cast as James Bond in Live and Let Die (1973).