No Time For COVID!

It seems even Bond couldn’t escape COVID. No Time To Die was originally intended to hit cinemas in April 2020 - the London premiere was cancelled (along with everything else) when cases began to overtake the UK. Thankfully, after months of delays, the latest Bond installation is just around the corner, with a new release date confirmed for October 8, 2021. Good news for Bond’s birthplace - the UK will be able to get a first look at the latest adventure on September 30!

Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, with a script co-written by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, it’s Daniel Craig’s fifth and final tour of duty as the iconic spy. It promises to be quite the swan-song, with Craig noting, "I just want to go out on a high note, and I can't wait.” He is still oozing enough style to leave the audience breathless and anticipation is at fever pitch! With fans starved of their hero for so long, there has been much speculation, multiple trailers, clips, hints and interviews.

Producer Barbara Broccoli has revealed that No Time To Die is “a culmination of everything that his [Bond] portrayal of the character has been through, and it ties up all the storylines. It’s a pretty epic film, I have to say.” There’s plenty to talk about – so let’s jump right into it!

In the beginning, there was… Jamaica!

The opening of the film seems to find a rather chilled James enjoying some much-deserved R’R in Jamaica with Ms. Swann, the French psychologist and daughter of mysterious SPECTRE member, Mr. White. Bond seems to have found some Zen in retirement, blissfully in love, living a tranquil life. Unfortunately, events don’t bode well for Bond, who just can’t seem to catch a break, poor guy! The peace is shattered when Felix Leiter, an old friend from the CIA, arrives asking for help…

Valdo Obruchev, a scientist of some kind, seems to have disappeared and only our beloved 007 is equipped to sort it all out! Of course, Valdo didn’t get lost walking his dog in the park – he has been abducted, and Bond must confront a scheming villain whose evil machinations could result in the death of millions. The plot involves some sort of new and mysterious technology that, rumour has it, involves genetic warfare. If this is all sounding frighteningly familiar, we hear you! Here’s hoping it’s not the next variant of the Corona Virus!

Betrayal, an evil Rami Malek and a new 007!

No Time To Die will carry on directly from Spectre with heavy themes of betrayal thrown into the mix! The trailer presents Bond addressing Madeline Swann with the delectable line ‘We all have our secrets… we just didn’t get to yours yet!’ Ooooh … interesting!

There is a new villain to look forward to (cue maniacal laughter) in the form of ‘Safin’, played by the delightfully talented Rami Malek – who seems to really be relishing the role of the bad guy. “I promise you all I will be making sure Mr Bond does not have an easy ride of it in this, his 25th outing”, Malek quips. We can’t wait… there also seems to be a Blofeld return! Other familiar faces include Ralph Fiennes (M), Ben Whishaw (Q), Naomie Harris (Moneypenny), Rory Kinnear (Tanner) and Jeffrey Wright (Felix Leiter).

Hang on! A new 007?

There is also a 007 that’s not Bond - fresh out of whatever dark vault MI6 seems to keep their agents! When it was announced that there would be a new 007, rumours swirled that Daniel Craig’s replacement was, in fact, a woman. That wasn’t entirely true – the woman in question will NOT be playing the new Bond. Instead, she took over his secret agent number (007) after he left MI6 at the end of Spectre.

Nomi, played by British actress Lashana Lynch, is the new ‘007’– a formidable spy, well-versed in witty retorts, who whole-heartedly takes on the role. One of the most important characters in No Time To Die, she also embraces many of the 007 tropes, driving a black Aston Martin, and is totally in her element as a smooth operator at glitzy events. From the few snippets we’ve seen, she keeps up nicely with Bond!

What about the song? Enter Billie Eilish!

“Fool me once, fool me twice. Are you death or paradise?” … so croons Billie Eilish in the theme song for No Time To Die. The lyrics tantalisingly imply more deceit and betrayal for poor James in a very dramatic ballad! At 18, Eilish is the youngest singer to record a song for the franchise.  "Now you'll never see me cry," she concludes. "There's just no time to die." The spine-tingling words seem to confirm the theory that Daniel Craig's final tour as Bond will see him double-crossed by Madeleine Swann.

BOND voyage Daniel!

As the curtain draws to a close on Daniel Craig’s legacy as Bond, here’s hoping all questions are answered and he leaves us with some form of closure on the emotional character arc that began with 2006’s Casino Royal.

If you are a Bond super-fan, and let’s face it, if you’ve read this far you are, you need the awesome, James Bond Official Coin Collection in your life. Indulge in some nostalgia with a subscription collection of 25 pure silver coins struck by the Perth Mint, honouring all the iconic Bond films. Each coin comes with its own Certificate of Authenticity, featuring the original official poster artwork. A sweeping piece of cinematic history, all the blockbusters are included – From Russia With Love all the way to the Daniel Craig’s last, No Time To Die.

One thing’s for sure – whoever comes next as 007 has some pretty spectacular shoes to fill!

‘Bond, James Bond’ is perhaps one of the most recognizable lines in film history. Known for his impeccable style and charm, fast cars, and fancy gadgets – James Bond has dominated the spy genre.

For decades, people have queued to see the latest James Bond film. The thrill of seeing his latest adventure unfold is a multi-generational experience that millions of fans have enjoyed.

Licence to Collect.

Macquarie Mint is proud to introduce the Official James Bond Coin Collection. Struck by The Perth Mint, each 99.9% pure silver coin is struck to proof quality.
Precisely enhanced with full colour – each coin design features the original poster art from each one of the James Bond film. 

Your first two coins feature ‘Dr. No’ and ‘From Russia With Love’ and are available for the special price of just $99.90 plus FREE shipping! You will also receive two official ‘007’ presentation folders to house your collection – FREE for subscribers. Plus, each coin is issued with a Certificate of Authenticity featuring the full original movie poster artwork.

Highly exclusive, the Official James Bond Coin Collection has a limited mintage of just 12,007!

Don’t miss out!

Just subscribe now and you’ll receive two new coins in the Official James Bond Coin Collection each month! Fuss-free and affordable, just relax and enjoy reliable deliveries direct to your door each month.

FIND OUT MORE

Donning cloaks and drawing daggers, the Royal Canadian Mint issued the first colour coin for circulation, the Canadian 2004 Coloured Poppy 25c. Given that Australia has just had its first circulating colour coin issue the 2012 $2 Remembrance Day commemorative – which also features a poppy and has been garnering a lot of attention – what better time to explore the inadvertently clandestine past of Canada’s infamous ‘Spy Coin’?

Issued in 2004, the Canadian quarter featured a brand new technology for circulating coins; colour! This unique concept so startled some travelling American army intelligence contractors that in 2007 they not-so-intelligently feared the coins were some sort of advanced espionage tool powered by nanotechnology. For those of us not embroiled in the world of tiny gadgets and secret agents, nanotechnology is any technology that manipulates matter on an atomic or molecular scale, usually meaning the manufacture of very tiny devices or structures. The contractors feared that the coins had some kind of tracking or listening device embedded in them, with some going so far as to claim that some of the dastardly coins had been planted on them! The confusion caused somewhat of an international incident and a flurry of concerned emails on both sides.

Eventually the mess was sorted out and American spies accepted that the coins were nothing more than an innovative tribute for Remembrance Day, honouring fallen soldiers, much like Australia’s recent $2 featuring a colour poppy. What may startle some spies today is the existence of a coin that really does feature nanotechnology! The 2012 $10 Nano Earth Silver Proof has a tiny yet extremely detailed map of the world embedded in it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlmfxWelbIk

It’s so tiny, in fact, that you need a microscope to fully appreciate it in all its detail! The legal tender coin also features a full colour picture of the earth and is struck from 50g of sterling silver. Given the remarkable nature of the coin and a mintage almost smaller than the map itself – at only 1000 struck worldwide – this coin is sure to make a perfect conversation piece over a martini (shaken, not stirred, of course)! If you are interested in securing your own cutting-edge ‘spy’ coin, there are a limited supply at Downies.com – and don’t forget to pick up a microscope while you’re at it!

Demonstrating that the Deadly & Dangerous 1oz Silver Proof Series is far from dead, the latest edition – the 2012 $1 Funnel Web 1oz Silver proof – has sold out in what may well be the quickest time of all coins in the series thus far! The seventh coin in this incredibly popular series, the Funnel Web was actually all but sold out before Downies headed to the Melbourne ANDA coin show last weekend with the remaining 20 coins in hand. Of course, those coins were snapped up very quickly and thus every last one of the 5,000 coin mintage had been allocated.

Now, however, the sell-out is officially announced, and all collector minds begin to consider – will there be an eighth Deadly & Dangerous coin in 2013? And, how can I guarantee that I secure one for my collection? The answer…

Stay tuned to Downies.com!

Spectacularly sought after, the 2011 Beijing International Coin Exposition 2-coin set has left hungry collectors frantically searching to secure their ‘East Meets West’ souvenir.

A culturally combined issue, the Perth Mint has intricately united elements of Beijing and Australia – delivering one of the most popular 2-coin sets of the year.

Struck from ½ ounce of .999 pure silver, each coin has been endorsed as official Australian Legal Tender and is fittingly presented within an illustrated envelope. Housing the signature Perth Mint Year of the Dragon coin issued for the highly anticipated arrival of 2012, the second coin pays tribute to an Australian Koala asleep in a eucalyptus tree.

With a tiny global mintage of just 2,888 sets, of which nearly two thirds walked out the doors in Beijing, we are currently trying to secure an allocation directly from the mint. For those interested in trying to attain what has been one of the hottest 2-coin releases of 2011, stay tuned to www.downies.com for further information on our allocations!

Majestic, Exclusive & Stunningly Rare!

An extremely exclusive tribute to a renowned Australian species, the second release in the sold out ‘Extinct and Endangered’ series pays tribute to one of the most distinctive birds of prey – the Tasmanian Wedge-Tailed Eagle.

Spectacularly powerful, forcefully independent and the ruler of the sky, the Tasmanian Wedge-Tailed Eagle is one of the most extraordinary creatures found within open plains, forests and mountains of Tasmania. Classified as endangered by both the Commonwealth and Tasmanian Governments, the Tasmanian Wedge-Tailed Eagle faces the brutal realities of extinction. With an estimated population of 1,500 with only 130 pairs capable of breeding, fierce efforts are being put into place to maintain this majestic creature in our skies.

Struck to Proof quality from .999 fine silver, the full-colour obverse portrays this remarkable animal surrounded by the rustic terrain of the Tasmanian Highlands. Superbly crafted from The Perth Mint’s highest minting standards, this 40mm Proof is housed within a glossy ‘birds-eye’ wood grain presentation case and accompanying numbered Certificate of Authenticity.

A truly spectacular second release, this official Australian legal tender coin is restricted to a tiny mintage of just 5,000. Available for purchase online, head on over to Downies.com!

For more information or to purchase online, please click on the appropriate link:

Australia

North America

A legendary battle that instigated Medieval England

Celebrating the 75^th Anniversary of the notorious Three Kings of 1936, comes the .  Issued in remembrance of a series of chain reactions that saw the passing of George V, voluntary abdication of Edward VIII and finally the crowning of George VI, the Three Kings of 1936 was an extraordinary event in Great Britain’s Monarchy. However as history would have it, for the English Throne it was history repeating itself…

1066, a year that historian’s celebrate as the beginning of Medieval England and the first year in which the Kingdom of England welcomed four kings to the throne.

With the passing of Edward the Confessor (1042-66), Edgar, the closest living relative of Edward was proclaimed. Whilst extraordinarily young and spending much of his time in Hungary, the people of England knew very little of Edgar – a critical measure that ultimately lead to his default in being crowned King of England, enabling Harold Godwinson to step in and take the throne. The most powerful nobleman in England and the Earl of Wessex, Harold Godwinson claimed that Edward had promised the throne to him on his deathbed. With the noblemen in the country agreeing to the change in power, Harold was crowned King just two days after the death of Edward the Confessor.

Once news spread that Harold Godwinson was the new King of England, William the Conqueror decided to claim what he believed to be rightfully his. With a promise being made two years prior to the death of Edward, in 1064 Harold was placed in captivity by Count Guy de Ponthieu. With a choice to take the payment from William for his freedom and pass up the opportunity to be King upon the death of Edward or spend the rest of his life in captivity, Harold chose freedom – returning to England to resume his life as a nobleman.

With no written evidence of this agreement, Harold defended his actions by claiming that William had blackmailed him into passing up the throne, and therefore his claim was not valid. For further complications, the King of Norway and Denmark Harold Hardrada came forward indicating that the Danes had in the past conquered England and therefore the throne was rightfully his.

With three men claiming that they were the rightful heir to Edward, two battles were played out – the Battle of Stamford and the Battle of Hastings, which ultimately led to the death of both Harold Godwinson and Harold Hardrada and the crowning of King William I on Christmas Day 1066.

A tale that the English Throne witnessed a further three times and experienced again in 1936 – these stunning chronicles shaped the future and fate of the British nation. The 2011 Three Kings of 1936 Silver Proof is available for purchase at www.downies.com.

Developed as a Government Initiative to raise awareness of our endangered species, National Threatened Species Day is an annual event held throughout Australia on September 7. Founded in 1996 to commemorate the date of the death of the last known Tasmanian tiger held in captivity in Hobart in 1936, National Threatened Species Day supports numerous activities geared to protect and conserve our immediate environment.

The perfect commemorative to celebrate this national campaign, the Niue 2011 $1 Last Tasmanian Tiger Lenticular Gold Plated Proof Like coin depicts ‘Benjamin’ in a stunning 8-part moving image design. Using original video footage of the last known Tasmanian tiger from 1936 - this tribute is struck as official Australian legal tender.

With a perfect partner also available in a 1oz 99.9% Silver Proof, each 2011 release forms the ideal tribute to one of Australia’s most famous icons!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uibIqRXVZXs

Collectible STAR WARS™ legal tender coins coming to a universe near you

One of cinema’s most enduring and beloved franchises, the Star Wars Saga has made its imprint on books, TV, toys, soft goods, kitchen wares, video games, comic books and much, much more—but never as a legal tender coin set available in the U.S.

Until now!

After obtaining the rights to this incredible property, S&A Partners turned to the only mint in the world with the creative know-how and resources to manufacture sets of gold, silver and base metal coins featuring the characters from this hugely popular series. And now, New Zealand’s precious metal specialist, New Zealand Mint, has been commissioned to manufacture legal tender coins for the successful franchise.

“When discussing the marketing potential of this property — the enthusiasm and willingness to share information and ideas made the decision to work with the New Zealand Mint an easy choice,” said Steven Harris, Managing Partner at S&A.

The first Star Wars coins to be released were launched in August at the American Numismatics Association Show in Chicago, and will include eight 1oz silver coins and 10 Silver Plated base metal coins depicting the characters of the Star Wars movies. The effigy used for these coins will be the Government of Niue.

Further releases are planned annually, into the first half of 2014.

The timing couldn’t be better according to New Zealand Mint Vice President of USA Operations, Chris Kirkness.

“Lucasfilm is launching the complete Star Wars Saga on Blu-ray in September this year. Plus, in February of 2012 they will be releasing Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace in 3D, so there’s a lot happening around the franchise,” said Kirkness. “The coin programme release will coincide with this global activity and it’s tipped to be a best-seller. Of course, we are absolutely delighted to be involved with such an amazing franchise.”

Harris added, “The presentation and packaging developed by New Zealand Mint is always clever and such high-quality. We look forward to working with them to offer an incredible set of products that will definitely ’wow’ both Star Wars fans and the entire coin-collecting community!”

Australian Star Wars devotees can get their coin fix exclusively from Downies:

• By phone Toll free 1300 788 358
• Downies, PO Box 888 , Abbotsford Vic 3067 or
• by email: orders@downies.com

About the Coins:

The first release includes two (2) uniquely packaged 4 x 1oz Silver coin sets and 10 individual Silver Plated base metal coins.

2011 $1 Tasmanian Tiger Lenticular Gold-Plated Prooflike

Celebrating one of the true icons of Australia’s natural and cultural history with the latest in 21st century minting techniques, this stunning tribute to the Tasmanian Tiger is most notable for its sensational Lenticular Moving Image. The reverse design features the very last of the species to die in captivity and has been created with the last known film footage of a live Tasmanian Tiger!

An animal like no other, the thylacine resembled a large short-haired dog with a head like a wolf, a backward facing pouch like a wombat, a stiff tail similar to that of a kangaroo, and a striped body that gave it the name ‘Tasmanian Tiger’.

The impact of human activity significantly contributed to the disappearance of the Tasmanian Tiger population, with disease, hunting and incursion into its natural habitat all having an effect. Considered a major threat to livestock, the last Tasmanian Tiger in the wild was shot by a farmer in 1933. It was in the same year that the last known surviving Tasmanian Tiger was captured and transported to Hobart Zoo and named ‘Benjamin’. The Tasmanian Tiger was notorious for its inability to survive long in captivity, and Benjamin died after only three years at the Zoo, passing away on the 7th of September 1936.The ideal subject for the application of Lenticular minting technology, this spectacular 40mm gold-plated legal tender coin captures perfectly the great beauty and fierce appearance of this intriguing, distinctive Australian marsupial. Enshrining a crucial artefact of Australia’s natural history within genuine legal tender, the vivid Moving Image design was created using footage of Benjamin taken by noted naturalist David Fleay at the Hobart Zoo in 1933. Given the employment of Fleay’s historic film, you could hardly imagine a more authentic, more eye-catching commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the death of the last known Tasmanian Tiger. A fantastic opportunity for our clients to enjoy this compelling combination of Australian history and state-of-the-art minting, the 2011 $1 Tasmanian Tiger gold-plated Prooflike coin represents outstanding value-for-money at the Official Issue Price of just $29.95!

• A stunning Lenticular legal tender tribute to the
  iconic Tasmanian Tiger
• Features Moving Image design - created using
  original footage of the last Tassie Tiger!
• Measuring 40mm in diameter, each Prooflike copper
  coin is finished in 24-carat gold!
• Set in an informative, attractive full-colour pack
• Very affordable at Official Issue Price!

2011 $5 Tasmanian Tiger Lenticular Silver Proof

Defined by a sensational Lenticular design, official legal tender status and flawless Silver Proof quality, this prestigious tribute to the 75th anniversary of the last Tasmanian Tiger is also notable for extremely limited availability. The mintage has been set at a crazy 3,000 coins! Like it’s gold-plated counterpart, the broad 40mm flan of this precious metal Proof features a vibrant ‘Moving Image’ design of Benjamin - the last known Tasmanian Tiger. A powerful illustration of the best in modern minting, this seamless, flowing Lenticular motif has been created from actual film footage of Benjamin taken by naturalist David Fleay! Complete with a Certificate of Authenticity attesting to the surprisingly low mintage of 3,000 - sure to sell-out at speed - this exclusive 25g sterling silver Proof is set in a plush case.

The original footage which was used to produce the lenticular design!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uibIqRXVZXs?rel=0&w=490&h=397]