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Sir Roger Moore: The James Bond actor's connections to Gravesend, Bexley and Tunbridge Wells

Sir Roger Moore, who was known to millions as British spy James Bond, has died at the age of 89.

Many people in the Gravesend area believe Mr Moore lived in Shorne in the 1950s or 1960s, possibly in Peartree Lane.

He also lived in a mansion in Wansunt Road, Bexley, with his second wife, Welsh singer Dorothy Squires, also in the 1950s, and spent time in Tunbridge Wells.

Sir Roger Moore at Bluewater in 2012
Sir Roger Moore at Bluewater in 2012

Sir Roger’s three children, Deborah, Geoffrey and Christian, posted a statement on his official Twitter account today confirming their father’s death.

The siblings said: “It is with a heavy heart that we must announce our loving father, Sir Roger Moore, has passed away today in Switzerland after a short but brave battle with cancer.

“The love which he was surrounded in his final days was so great it cannot be quantified in words alone.

“We know our own love and admiration will be magnified many times over, across the world, by people who knew him for his films, his television shows, and his passionate work for UNICEF which he considered to be his greatest achievement.

Sir Roger Moore has died at the age of 89
Sir Roger Moore has died at the age of 89

“The affection our father felt whenever he walked on to a stage or in front of a camera buoyed him hugely and kept him busy working into his 90th year, through to his last appearance in November 2016 on stage at London’s Royal Festival Hall.

“The capacity crowd cheered him on and off stage, shaking the very foundations of the building just a short distance from where he was born.

“Thank you Pops for being you, and for being so very special to so many people.

“Our thoughts must now turn to supporting Kristina at this difficult time, and in accordance with our father’s wishes there will be a private funeral in Monaco.”

Sir Roger Moore as 007
Sir Roger Moore as 007

Kristina “Kiki” Tholstrup was Sir Roger’s fourth wife following divorces from Ms Squires, the trio’s mother Luisa Mattioli and actress and ice skater Doorn Van Steyn, who he married when he was just 18.

The actor, who was knighted in 2003, was born in Stockwell, south London, had homes in Switzerland and Monte Carlo.

He played 007 in seven Bond films, starting with Live and Let Die in 1973 and leaving the role 12 years later after A View to a Kill, aged 57.

But he found fame when he was cast as Simon Templar aka The Saint in the 1960s television series of the same name.

Do you remember Roger Moore living in Shorne or Bexley? Call the newsroom on 01474 564327 or email selvey@thekmgroup.co.uk

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