For 46 years, special agent James Bond has been making the world a safer place, armed with his Walther PPK pistol, a licence to kill and an endless stream of double entendres.

The girls, the gadgets, the villains - all come and go, but the dashing double agent keeps living to fight another day.

Seven actors have filled the famous tuxedo, reinventing the role to match the age - from the classy Connery and the boystrous Moore to the psychologically flawed Craig and the much-maligned Lazenby.

No one does it better than Bond but who has done Bond better than all the rest?

We want you to vote for your favourite Bond. To help you decide, here’s our own assessment. Click on the links to view trailers for the films.

SEAN CONNERY (1962-1971 and 1983)

It’s hard to believe now, but Bond’s creator Ian Fleming had serious reservations about Sean Connery taking on the role of 007.

Fleming favoured Cary Grant to play his debonaire secret agent in the first film adaptation, but the Hollywood star would have bust the budget.

Forty six years on, and the popularity of Connery’s Bond endures. A former Mr Universe finalist, Connery injected the character with an irresistible mix of rugged sexuality and cool sophistication.

From his debut in the 1962 Dr No onwards, Connery’s Bond was the epitome of 60s style. His Saville Row suit-wearing, Aston Martin-driving, Martini-drinking agent delivered those classic lines that still define the part.

Connery was 32 when he began and made a total of seven Bond films. At 6ft 2.4in, he is the tallest ever Bond, and along with David Nixen, one of only two Bond actors to have won an Oscar (though neither won for their Bond performances.) Connery went bald at the age of 21 and so sports a toupe in all seven films.

Twice he handed back his Walther PPK pistol, only to return for Diamonds Are Forever and a record-breaking fee in 1971 and then again in 1983 at a mature 53 for Never Say Never Again.

Explore Film

• Film Reviews

• Trailers

• DVD

• London Film Festival

Editor's choice

• The 100 Best Films of the Decade
• 70 facts you didn't know about Marvel
• The 50 Biggest Movies Of 2010