Iconic British 4×4 Land Rover – star of film, TV and music video
James Bond loves a martini, shaken not stirred of course, but 007 and British car fanatics also love the 4×4 icon that is the Land Rover.
More famed for driving the Aston Martin DB7, British 4×4 Land Rover derivatives have appeared in no less than eight 007 movies.
Its latest escapade came in No Time to Die in 2021 for which a Defender was given a dramatic makeover.
In 2015’s Spectre, a Land Rover Defender SUX was modified with 37-inch tyres, extra power and improved suspension. The double cab pick-up was modified for a dramatic car chase through the Austrian Alps.
Another Bond movie to feature the British 4×4 off-roader is Skyfall which sees Naomie Harris burning rubber in a Land Rover Defender Double Cab.
Range Rovers also appeared in Octopussy, The Living Daylights, Tomorrow Never Dies, Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace.
British 4×4 Land Rover starred in eight Bond movies
That’s more starring roles as the most prolific James Bond actors Sean Connery and Roger Moore – who have appeared as the world’s best-known secret agent seven times each!
But it’s not just the James Bond franchise that loves the British 4×4 Land Rover.
Models have appeared in hundreds of movies and TV shows. Here are the Adrian Flux favourite five on screen Land Rover 4x4s:
The Land Rover Defender TD5 110 in Tomb Raider
The Defender was customised to be driven by Angelina Jolie as heroine Lara Croft. Notable extras included diamond plate trimming and an underwater snorkel – for serious off-road action.
Land Rover Series IIA Station Wagon in The Italian Job
The triumphant triumvirate of magnificent Mini Coopers steal the show but the Station Wagon makes a wonderful cameo navigating the backstreets or Turin before Michael Caine and his cohorts lift the gold bullion.
Land Rover 109 Series II Station Wagon in Get Carter
Another Caine classic from 1971 and another classic Landie Station Wagon. This time the British 4×4 is put through its paces by criminals chasing gangster Jack Carter and later the same car is used by police trying to nab crime boss Cyril Kinnear.
Land Rover Defender 110 in The Da Vinci Code
The Defender whisks our hero Robert Langdon to safety through a forest, at night time, with no lights on so as to avoid capture. A piece of cake for the Defender! Interestingly in the original Dan Brown book the escape car was not a Defender but a Range Rover.
Land Rover Defender in Vera
Brenda Blethyn stars as Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope in this slow-burning TV crime drama set in rugged Northumberland. What else would she choose but a battered old Landie, an off-roader built for purpose? The model she drives is automatic because she doesn’t have a manual licence, but she pretends to change gear for filming. She also does her own stunts because the show’s stunt driver is a man with a ginger beard.
There’s more for the British 4×4
The Land Rover’s appeal is not restricted to film and TV. It has been used in a number of music videos including, briefly, the Cranberries’ 1994 single, Zombie.
If this film, TV and video collection has tempted you to invest in a British 4×4 talk to the off-road experts at Adrian Flux who can tell you how little it will cost to get Land Rover insurance. Call today on 0800 369 8590 or request a callback at a time that is more convenient to you.
