London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) Book Group - Goldfinger by Ian Fleming
- Date: Wednesday 8 June 2022, 18:00 – 19:00
- Location: Online
- Cost: free
Join the London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) Book Group in June as we read Ian Fleming's Bond classic: Goldfinger.
London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) Book Group - June 2022
Join us as we meet online to discuss Goldfinger by Ian Fleming, published as part of the inimitable James Bond series in 1959. This is a collaborative event between LMA Book Group and Leeds University's Security on Sale project, which is exploring the rich archives of Chubb & Son held at LMA.
"I have been in love with gold. I love its colour, its brilliance, its divine heaviness. I love the texture of gold, that soft sliminess that I have learnt to gauge so accurately by touch that I can estimate the fineness of a bar to within one carat." - Auric Goldfinger
In this James Bond outing, Bond encounters the curious Auric Goldfinger, an ostentatious millionaire who may be funnelling money to the shady Soviet SMERSH organisation. After very nearly meeting his match on the golf course, and chasing him through Europe, Bond becomes enmeshed in Goldfinger's spectacular plan to steal gold from the US bullion depository at Fort Knox.
Many readers may have already seen the 1964 film of the same name - you may want to think about how the film relates to the book. We will be exploring ideas of security in the novel, as well as how it fits within broader ideas relating to the development of the security industry.
Researchers David Churchill and Miranda Clow from the School of Law at the University of Leeds will present a presentation of archive material relating to their work at LMA. Find out more about their research on their website here.
Content warning: Fleming's novel contains racist and sexist language and attitudes which are not condoned by LMA. We will be exploring these in relation to Britain in the post-war period and Fleming's portrayal of masculinity.
We will be meeting on Zoom on Wednesday 8 June 2022 at 6pm. You do not need to download the Zoom app to attend. A meeting invitation will be sent to you in advance of the meeting.
Two other events relating to the Chubb and Sons project will be happening at LMA over the summer -
- Security on Screen, a film showing of archive films from the Chubb Collection, on 22 June
- Security on Show, a drop-in display taking place on 8 July of highlights from the Chubb and Sons collection, including previously unseen uncatalogued material. This material will include drawings, photographs and scrapbooks which illuminate how security products have been made and sold over 200 years and how they have changed the way we think about crime, fire and risk.