It’s as synonymous with the Bond movies as a martini cocktail – shaken, not stirred.

SEEN the latest Aston Martin film yet?

It’s a cracker: Four iconic models from past, present and future … plus this amazing character by the name of Bond. James Bond.

Screening – outside of Level Three coronavirus areas, at least - of the latest and last Daniel Craig-involved Bond epic, No Time To Die, delivers a continuation of familiar high octane Aston action.

Bond's highly-anticipated return to cinema marks the first time four different models have appeared in a 007 film: the DB5, the classic Aston Martin V8, the brand's super GT – DBS and the Aston Martin Valhalla – the forthcoming mid-engined hypercar.

Almost half of the 25 Bond films made to date have featured an Aston Martin, more than any other brand.

The make has thoughtfully provided a comprehensive list of every Aston Martin Britain's finest special agent has driven prior to the latest instalment. Plus there’s a bonus feature video in which Aston Martin Chief Creative Officer Marek Reichman talks about all the Aston Martin cars that appear in the movies and all the awesome gadgets. 

Aston Martin DB5

Let’s start at the beginning. While Bentley may have been the first car driven by James Bond in the novels, Fleming introduced the Aston Martin DB3 in Goldfinger following a suggestion from a fan; 007 and Aston Martin have been entwined ever since.

In the novels, first released in the early 1950s, Bond drove the Aston Martin DB Mark III. But when it came to the film version of Goldfinger (1964), it was time to use a more contemporary machine. Step forward, the DB5.

The luxury tourer was advanced for its time, even without Bond gadgets. Featuring an all-aluminium, six-cylinder engine producing 210kW, the DB5 could hit 230kmh.

Featuring famous gadgets such as machine guns, an ejector seat and revolving licence plates, the DB5 became synonymous with Bond.

The DB5 has also featured in Thunderball, GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, Casino Royale, Skyfall and Spectre, with No Time to Die becoming its eighth Bond film appearance. 

Aston Martin DBS (1969)

Like actor George Lazenby, this incarnation of the Aston Martin DBS - the one on the right in our image, seen with the 2006 DBS (which we get to in a moment) - starred in just one Bond film: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969).

In the real world, the DBS was the successor to the DB6, taking on more modern styling including a fastback style rear and a more muscular front design that was a new direction from the more traditional 'DB' series of Aston Martins.

The DBS did not play the typical role of a Bond car, going wheel-to-wheel in chases fitted with the latest gadgets, but it did play a key part in the reviving a cornerstone of the spy series legacy.

The car was draped in flowers for 007's wedding to Tracy, who is tragically killed later in the film.

While it was never to be a Bond car again, it did make a very brief cameo in 1971's Diamonds are Forever, where the eagle-eyed fan can see it in the background at the Q Branch workshop undergoing alterations.

Aston Martin V8 and Volante

After nearly two decades, the Aston Martin V8 was the car that reignited the pairing of Bond and Aston Martin. 

Starring in 1987's The Living Daylights, Timothy Dalton’s James Bond was the man behind the wheel.

Hailed as Britain’s first supercar, boosted by a Ferrari Daytona-beating 0-100kmh time, the V8 was the ideal Bond car, fitted with missiles, lasers, a futuristic heads-up display, and rockets.

The choice to pair Bond with the winter-spec Aston Martin V8 led to a thrilling chase sequence as 007 powered through the mountains on the run from the KGB and local police to create a thrilling chase sequence.

 Bond’s machine is first introduced as the V8 Volante convertible, and the Aston Martin in the scene belonged to then Aston Martin Lagonda Chairman Victor Gauntlett.

It then 'becomes' the V8 when Q 'winterises' the car, notably making it a hardtop, meaning Bond technically drives two different models in this film.

Aston Martin V12 Vanquish

Pierce Brosnan’s run as James Bond featured a variety of Aston Martins, including the V12 Vanquish that appeared in 2002's Die Another Day. 

The V12 Vanquish was the star of one of Bond’s most iconic car chases, and is famously the Aston Martin that could turn invisible through adaptive camouflage.

Its array of gadgets proved crucial in Bond's battle with assassin and terrorist Zao, with quick-thinking allowing the spy to flip the Vanquish right-side up.

Weapons such as autocannons, rockets and ice-gripping spikes helped Bond come out on top in one of the best car chase scenes in Bond history.

Hitting speeds of 300kmh and 0-100kmh in under five seconds, this was a cutting-edge Aston Martin for a company that was now very much on the rise.

Aston Martin DBS (2006)

Casino Royale (2006) was a pivotal moment for the Bond franchise, returning 007 to his roots in a film based upon the first novel, while introducing a new lead in Daniel Craig.

Pairing Craig with the debut of the DBS certainly helped, as Casino Royale became the first Bond film to have two different Aston Martins actively feature in the same film.

 The DBS would meet an inglorious end. As Bond swerved away from impacting Eva Green’s character, Vesper Lynd, his Aston Martin rolled seven times, setting a Guinness World Record for the most cannon rolls in a car in the process.

Aston Martin provided four hand-built DBS prototypes for the film, playing its part in revitalising Bond for the modern audience.

The model would continue into the sequel Quantum of Solace, and took a star turn in a thrilling car chase around Italy's Lake Garda, helping the film begin with a thrilling opening sequence.

Aston Martin DB10

The Aston Martin DB10 was exclusively developed for Spectre (2015), and helped celebrate 50 years of Aston Martin and James Bond, tracing all the way back to the DB5 in Goldfinger.

Only 10 were ever built by the team in Gaydon, with eight used in Spectre, and it was later revealed that the DB10 was heavily influenced by the then-unrevealed 2017 Vantage.

 Its design cues, overseen by Chief Creative Officer Marek Reichman, can be seen in the more recent road car range.

 In Spectre, Q reveals that the DB10 has a "few tricks up its sleeve" before the car is reassigned to 009. 

Bond then "borrows" the car and travels to Rome, leading to a spectacular chase through the historic city, as assassin Mr Hinx pursues.

The car's flamethrowers save the day, as Bond ejects from the car moments before it flies into the Tiber River.