Where was For Your Eyes Only filmed?
1981
City Locations
Buckinghamshire, England; Corfu, Greece; Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy
Location Types
Mediterranean, Cabins, Oceanview, Ship Docks, Religious, Hotels, Sports, Studio
Location Styles
Castle/Chateau, Classic Car, Factory/Manufacturing, Foreign, Greek/Neoclassical, Helicopter, Mediterranean, Resort, Sail, Shipping Yard/Dock
About For Your Eyes Only
Roger Moore returns as James Bond in the twelfth spy film in the James Bond series, For Your Eyes Only, released on the 26th of June 1981. With his fifth movie as the lead James Bond, viewers can see just how comfortable Roger Moore is in assuming his role as the suave M16 agent solving yet another intricate case. For Your Eyes Only sees a change of pace compared to the previous films in the series, returning to a more realistic storyline, using former Bond films like “From Russia with Love” and “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” as models for this movie.
For Your Eyes Only revolves around the retrieval of a missile command system or Automatic Targeting Attack Communicator (ATAC) that could be used for nefarious purposes should it fall into the wrong hands. Spoiler Alert: We’re going to cover some great scenes that occur throughout the film in this guide! With the location of the missing missile command system unknown, a marine biologist is assigned the task of finding the missing ship. However, he and his wife are murdered, and his daughter who witnesses the murder, Melina Havelock played by Carole Bouquet, vows to take revenge.
From this point onwards, Bond is assigned to locate the missile command system, but is caught in an intricate web of lies, deception and hidden motives. In his travels, Bond meets Melina Havelock and they both try to pinpoint who’s looking for the ATAC and who sent out the hit that got her parents killed. The film sees two main villains, mainly Emile Leopold Locque who was hired by Aris Kristatos who is working with the KGB, attempting to retrieve the device while stopping Bond and anyone helping him through any means possible.
In the riveting finale, Bond overcomes all adversity to achieve his goal of retrieving the ATAC. With everything seemingly working out in his favor, the KGB appear at the last second to apprehend the ATAC. Bond, thinking quickly, decides to destroy the ATAC so that neither the East nor West can have it.
For Your Eyes Only Locations
Bond films in the early 1980s made use of exotic locations to truly immerse the audience in the spy movie. With this film being a case that required Bond to travel, many countries were utilized in the filming of this movie. The filming took place in England, Italy, Greece, and the Bahamas. Moreover, the famous Pinewood Studios which hosted the famous 007 Stage was also used in filming For Your Eyes Only.
The introduction of the movie took place in England, with the later portions of the movie taking place in various areas throughout Italy and Greece. Underwater scenes for the movie were shot off the coast of the Bahamas but were meant to showcase the Ionian Sea, where the British spy ship sank. The finale takes place on the unique Meteora Mountains, which are currently included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites titled Meteora and are sure to be a worthwhile visit.
Many of the “underwater” closeups of Bond and Melina were shot on a dry soundstage and were later edited to give the illusion of being underwater because the actor playing Melina has a pre-existing health condition that prevented her from undertaking any underwater stunts.
Fun Fact:
Since the previous films revolved around Bond using fancy gadgets, the exploding Lotus in the beginning of the movie was a tacit statement that Bond would not be utilizing fancy gadgets in this movie.
The graveyard scene in For Your Eyes Only
St Giles Church, Buckinghamshire, England
The opening For Your Eyes Only film scene introduces us to James Bond visiting his wife’s grave at the back of a church. The vicar informs Mr. Bond that his office called and is sending a helicopter to his location because of some emergency. James Bond smoothly replies with the line, “It usually is. Thank you.” This scene brings us up to date with events that transpired in the previous film with his statement, “We have all the time in the world.” being placed on Tracy Bond’s epitaph.
The St Giles Church is located near Slough and is just a short drive down Church Lane. The church is unmissable from that point and provides you with a beautiful view of the nearby countryside. Nearby the church is a memorial garden that should not be missed if you happen to be visiting the church.
The helicopter scene in For Your Eyes Only
Beckton Gas Works, East London, England
The audience is plunged straight into action when the helicopter pilot is killed by electricity that surges through his headset and Bond is taunted once more by a familiar enemy whom he hears over the intercom built into the helicopter. Ernst Stavro Blofeld, an old nemesis of Bond, attempts to kill him by taking remote control of the helicopter.
With what he hopes to be his final words to Bond, Ernst tells James, “Good-bye, Mr. Bond. I trust you had a pleasant… fright.” With some quick thinking, Bond avoids his demise and avenges Tracy Bond by eventually taking control of the helicopter killing Ernst by dropping him down a smokestack.
This scene was shot in the historic Beckton Gas Works district in East London. Many buildings within the district no longer exist and the Beckton area is seeing a lot of redevelopments in recent years. To get to Beckton Gas Works, travel down the A1020 before making a turn on Armada Way to get to the location which served as one of the many For Your Eyes Only action scenes.
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The yellow car chase scene in For Your Eyes Only
Pagi Village, Corfu, Greec
After James Bond’s Lotus explodes when guards attempt to break into it, James Bond and Melina Havelock use her small yellow Citroën 2CV, in an intense car chase scene. This short but rather action-packed sequence takes us from the narrow streets of a small town to the various orchards located throughout the area. With the imminent approach of the pursuers within the city, a bus filled with passengers happens to coincidentally save the two from getting caught. James Bond asks Melina this question, “You don’t mind if I drive, do you?” to which they exchange seats and eventually drive to safety, evading their pursuers.
To reach the relatively small village of Pagi, which served as a filming location in For Your Eyes Only, you would have to travel along Epar.Od. Arkadades-Agiou Georgiou. Luckily there are smaller rests and points of interest along the route which includes the Pagi Waterfall. The Pagi Village is an especially great location for those who are looking for breathtaking sights.
The bouquet shop scene in For Your Eyes Only
Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy
Constantly attacked since his arrival in Cortina, Bond has successfully evaded his pursuers and heads to the business sector of Cortina where he sees Melina buying a crossbow. Seeking to hide from Melina, Bond enters a nearby Bouquet Shop where one of the florists asks Bond what he would like to buy. Moments after ordering a dozen lilies, Bond intercepts two attackers seeking to kill Milena and kills them instead. The florist comes out from the back of the shop just in time for Bond to tell her to use the flowers he ordered in a different manner telling her to, “Send them to the funeral, will you?”
The town of Cortina d’Ampezzo is in Northern Italy, close to the alps, and serves as a summer and winter sport resort. Known for hosting the Winter Olympics in 1956, Cortina d’Ampezzo had many facilities that the film utilized and was seen as the perfect winter location for some of the best scenes in For Your Eyes Only. To get to the resort town, traveling along the SS51 road will allow you to get to the heart of Cortina d’Ampezzo.
The motorbikes used to chase James Bond were fitted with special spike-laden tires to ensure they could grip the snowy surface while traveling at speeds of up to 50 mph.
Visit Video Shoot Locations
The casino scene in For Your Eyes Only
Achilleion Palace, Gastouri, Greece
In search of more information on how to find the missing ATAC, James Bond travels back to Greece to continue his investigation. It is at the casino where James Bond first meets Lisl von Schlaf, portrayed by Cassandra Harris, who is Milos Columbo’s mistress. Lisl encourages one of the gamblers to be more daring to which James Bond catches her attention by saying, “Courage is no match for an unfriendly shoe”.
The film shooting for the casino scene took place on a knoll near the Gastouri village which was used as the interior for the casino and aided in the For Your Eyes Only production. This allowed the producers to showcase the beauty of Corfu Bay while adding tension to the film. To get to Achilleion, you need to travel along EO Kerkiras Achiliou. Don’t worry about missing the destination, you’ll be sure it’s the Achilleion when you see it.
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The monastery scene in For Your Eyes Only
Meteora, Kalabaka, Greece
In the enthralling finale of For Your Eyes Only, we are transported to perhaps one of the most scenic locations of the film. With everything appearing too good to be true, misfortune strikes at the last moment when a helicopter lands at the monastery and exiting the helicopter is an armed assailant accompanying General Anatol Gogol who works for the KGB.
There is no trace of animosity as the general amiably requests Bond to hand over the ATAC. With no way to secure the ATAC and his own life, Bond throws the ATAC off the mountain where it breaks into many pieces. Bond humors Gogol by saying, “That’s détente, comrade. You don’t have it. I don’t have it.” With no further purpose, Gogol leaves feeling amused.
The monastery used in this scene is one of the many monasteries located within Meteora in Greece. These historic locations can be reached by traveling along Epar.Od. Meteoron-Kallitheas and then taking a left when you reach the intersection at the top of the mountain, just outside Meteora. The views are known to be very picturesque, and some monasteries still allow visitors to explore the indoor section of the building.
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Conclusion
Arguably one of James Moore’s best performances as James Bond, For Your Eyes Only is a film that presents viewers with a more realistic plotline that takes a break from the theatrics of gadgets and gizmos that the previous Bond films utilized. For Your Eyes Only explores a variety of locations that showcase the lavish yet dangerous line of work that 007 experienced and takes viewers on a trip filled with action and suspense.
If you happen to drop by any of these areas, take a closer look at the various locations used to film For Your Eyes Only, and with some pictures taken, who knows, you might find a hidden gem that you missed the first time you watched the film.