Their Programming Is Their Bond

Three and Jones! are responding to news of Sir Roger Moore’s death by programming commemorative specials for the 007 star at the weekend.

Three will pre-empt its May 27 network movie premiere of Britney Ever After (which will now screen June 3) with the HD broadcast of The Spy Who Loved Me.

Reportedly, this was Moore’s favourite James Bond movie, “even though he was hurt filming the climatic scene.

“He said he got four holes in his rear end ‘but I was getting into my stride on my comedic approach to James Bond.'”

“I think The Spy Who Loved Me was the best, or rather the one I enjoyed doing the most,” Moore told AFP in an email interview in 2007. “It had great locations. And I was exceedingly happy working with Lewis Gilbert, the director.”

Sky’s Jones!, meanwhile, will mark the star’s passing with select episodes of his pre-007 TV roles on The Persuaders! and The Saint.

Five of the most memorable Persuaders episodes, including Greensleeves, A Home of One’s Own and Five Miles To Midnight, will screen from 2pm on Saturday.

And from 7pm, five consecutive episodes of The Saint will air, including The King of the Beggars, with guest star Ronnie Corbett, and Starring The Saint, with Jackie Collins.

Incidentally, Sky today announced it would launch a Jones! sister channel, Jones! too.

Its retro programming from the 1960s to the 1990s will include weekend marathons of classic content dedicated to a TV icon or celebrated series and “new” content that hasn’t been on Jones! as well as library favourites like Laverne & Shirley, Get Smart, Hart to Hart and MacGyver.

Rachel Thomson, Sky’s manager of general entertainment channels, says the new channel has been the result of overwhelming customer feedback.

“There’s been an enormous amount of positive sentiment around the Jones! brand since the 2013 launch and the channel is consistently amongst Sky’s most watched.

“Being able to offer an even wider selection of nostalgic and escapist classic content to our customers, on Jones! too, is a no-brainer.”

Premiering to celebrate the July 1 launch of JONES! too will be The Golden Girls, Moonlighting, The Greatest American Hero and One Day at a Time with weekend marathons of  The Good Life, Frasier, Mission: Impossible, Jeeves & Wooster and Columbo.