Sep 12, 1913

Newport, South Wales, UK

Desmond Llewelyn was born in South Wales in 1913, the son of a coal mining engineer. In high school, he worked as a stagehand in the school's productions and then picked up sporadic small parts. His family would not give up their effort to prevent him from a life on stage, so an uncle who was a high ranking police officer arranged for Llewelyn to take the department's physical exam. After failing the police exam, Llewelyn thought about becoming a minister, realizing after a week-long retreat of ... ... (read more...) quiet and meditation that the ministry "was definitely not for me." Llewelyn persevered in his acting quest, and was accepted to the Royal Academy for the Dramatic Arts in the mid 1930s. The outbreak of World War II in September 1939, halted his acting career, and Llewelyn was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the British army. Llewelyn was once captured, and held as a prisoner of war for five years. After the war, Llewelyn returned to London and revived his career, eventually being cast in his trademark part, Q, in From Russia with Love (1963). Since 1963, Llewelyn has appeared as Q in every Bond film, except Live and Let Die (1973). Fans, however, missed Q, and Llewelyn got a call shortly after the release of the film telling him that he would be in the next Bond film. He passed away in an auto accident in 1999.