Blog: Shaken? A bit.

Stirred? Not yet.

Confused? Completely.

No sooner is the green light given to a new James Bond film than the internet is filled with idle gossip and far-fetched, unfounded rumour.

Daniel Craig is making a return as 007 for his third adventure, which will be released in November next year to tie in with the 50th anniversary of the Bond movie series. It will be directed by Sam Mendes, and Judi Dench has been given the call to be on standby for a return as M.

Anything beyond that, though, is mere conjecture. We don’t even know what the film will be called.

Today’s far-fetched idea (which, actually, originally surfaced as far back as the summer of 2009) is that ace mimic Michael Sheen, who has lent his talents in the past to the likes of Tony Blair, Brian Clough and Kenneth Williams, is being lined up to take on the most famous 007 baddie of them all – cat-stroking megalomaniac Blofeld.

But this would seem frankly ludicrous, given that the bald-headed chief of SPECTRE was last seen being dropped down a chimney 30 years ago in For Your Eyes Only, and the Daniel Craig era has seen the emergence of a newer, far more shady organisation known as Quantum, where the chiefs don’t prance around in attention-grabbing neck-to-toe beige safari suits.

Not only that, but previous attempts to resurrect the Blofeld character have been mired in legal troubles, since there is some question over who actually owns the rights to the character, given that he appeared in Thunderball – a film which the late Kevin McClory earned the rights to remake after a dirty, and very public, courtroom battle.

Then there’s the Bond girls. Rachel Weisz is apparently the front runner . . . but then she would be, wouldn’t she, since she’s been seen hand-in-hand with Craig when they shared a romantic break together over the festive period.

Slumdog Millionaire star Freida Pinto and Harry Potter’s Emma Watson are also among the favourites with the bookies, who will even give you odds of 20-1 on Strictly Come Dancing champ Kara Tointon getting the nod. Ridiculous!

With Craig back on board, we’re surely in for another gritty, Jason Bourne-style Bond movie. Let us hope the producers learn the lesson from the frenetically edited, breathlessly confusing Quantum of Solace and give this one a little more time to breathe.

The Bond recipe which has kept the series going for half a century is built around suave style, terrific action, sumptuous locations . . . and comedy. Take one of these ingredients away, and it simply isn’t a Bond movie any more. Quantum of Solace may have raked in zillions at the box office, but it wasn’t a Bond movie.

So please, Mr Craig, lighten up a bit. I’m not suggesting a return to the OTT invisible cars of Die Another Day, or eyebrow-raising Roger Moore quips, but the audience needs to have a bit more fun.

One report which does appear to have a basis in truth is that Simon Russell Beale, familiar to TV fans from BBC1’s Spooks, may be involved somewhere along the line.

He’s made no secret of his desire to appear in a 007 film, is a big pal of director Mendes – and producer Barbara Broccoli has been spotted in the audience on a couple of occasions at his current West End play, Deathtrap.

Who’s to say once again, though, that we’re not putting two and two together and getting five. It could simply be such a good production that it’s worth a second viewing.

By Carl Jones