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Where is M's Office?


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#1 NVT

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 09:57 AM

Assuming that the ending in Skyfall in M's new office was not a temporary one while they repair, where would it be located now?

It looks like one of the buildings down Whitehall, does this mean that 6 is moving to another location in the Bond world, or just the 00 section, does M no longer run 6 but just deals with the 00 section.

Whats going on?

Is is a plot hole demed suitable to move the series along?



#2 Sir Godfrey

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 04:07 PM

Seeing M at the end of Skyfall at Whitehall is a very good idea but I don't think Mallory will stay there in Bond 24.
If you look behind him, there is a painting (or a photo, I don(t know) of the Vauxhall Building and my opinion is that in Bond 24, M will be back at Vauxhall.



#3 tdalton

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 04:12 PM

While I'm sure that it won't happen, I'd like to see them set up shop in a building other than the SIS building and use the Universal Exports cover as a means to actually operate in the shadows, as they kept referring to in Skyfall.  It's hard to operate in total secrecy when you work in a massive fortress right on the river.



#4 Dustin

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 04:46 PM

While I'm sure that it won't happen, I'd like to see them set up shop in a building other than the SIS building and use the Universal Exports cover as a means to actually operate in the shadows, as they kept referring to in Skyfall. It's hard to operate in total secrecy when you work in a massive fortress right on the river.


In operational terms it's difficult having an intelligence service's HQ as a major landmark in one of the world's most frequented tourist hot spots. But I suspect the SIS building houses mainly technical staff and analysis departments, whereas field personnel probably is distributed over a number of smaller installations.

I could well imagine a return of various nondescript SW1 sites posing as Secret Service HQ again in future films.

#5 tdalton

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 04:47 PM

While I'm sure that it won't happen, I'd like to see them set up shop in a building other than the SIS building and use the Universal Exports cover as a means to actually operate in the shadows, as they kept referring to in Skyfall. It's hard to operate in total secrecy when you work in a massive fortress right on the river.


In operational terms it's difficult having an intelligence service's HQ as a major landmark in one of the world's most frequented tourist hot spots. But I suspect the SIS building houses mainly technical staff and analysis departments, whereas field personnel probably is distributed over a number of smaller installations.

I could well imagine a return of various nondescript SW1 sites posing as Secret Service HQ again in future films.

 

I'm sure that's the case in real life, with the SIS building probably not housing those that necessitate total anonymity in order to do their work.  If only the films would approach it in that fashion, though.  



#6 thecasinoroyale

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 06:20 PM

I've always loved the MI6 building as a London landmark, a symbol of British Intelligence and the whole secrey about it. Hence why I was dissapointed to be teased with the HQ in 'The World Is Not Enough' , 'GoldenEye' and 'Skyfall' enough to want to see even more of the Bond universe that takes place in there.

 

I hope to see the return of operations from Vauxhall, as you say now the world know they operate from there, that is just the way it is, but EON could use artistic licence to create the world inside the building, as they did so well in the above mentioned films, and populate with our new M, Moneypenny and Q et al.



#7 TheManwiththeWaltherPPK

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 07:03 PM

As I said in another thread on this topic, everything in Skyfall seems to suggest to me that EON is done with Vauxhall Cross.  The way Tanner told Bond that the building was declared a security risk seemed to suggest that it was done for.  Further, the painting of Legoland in M's new office had a decidedly memorial-like appearance to it.  To me, that suggests that the painting is there as a token of remembrance for something permanently lost.  Why commission a somber, memorial painting of a place you are going to move back into in a month or two?  Finally, why have Mallory move into yet another office if the new one is just temporary?  He could just use his Chairman office or M's bunker office until the repairs were finished.  I think Vauxhall Cross has gone the way of Bond's P99.  They were nice attempts to modernize aspects of the Bond canon, but in the end, sometimes the old ways are best.



#8 Dustin

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 08:14 PM

Yes, the impression I got was that from now on it's probably the old/'classic' pattern of anteroom with Moneypenny and double doors with M behind them, all done in a stylishly old fashioned early 20th century Empire'/art nouveau deco. To tie-in on the past you could use a short scene in Bond's own office with that hideously ugly porcelain dog on the desk, showing how much Bond cares in having that bloody thing voluntarily on a daily basis in his eyesight.

Upside would be it would give much more of a homely atmosphere, the premises of M's office practically being a trusted character of its own, saving Eon a lot of money in coming up with another postmodern award-winning architectural designer set for every new film [something previously reserved for the Blofeld-league of Bond villains].

Downside would be it might easily lead to a drowsy atmosphere of complacency. In familiar surrounding surprising events are much less likely to happen. Question is, would we like to be surprised from time to time?

#9 THX-007

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 08:45 PM

Assuming that the ending in Skyfall in M's new office was not a temporary one while they repair, where would it be located now?

It looks like one of the buildings down Whitehall, does this mean that 6 is moving to another location in the Bond world, or just the 00 section, does M no longer run 6 but just deals with the 00 section.

Whats going on?

Is is a plot hole demed suitable to move the series along?

The building they're in now is the Old War Office Building which served as MI6 HQ / Universal Exports from Octopussy to LTK. Before it was vague about which building housed MI6. Usually there was just a overview shot of London or a close-up of the Universal Export sign. 

Octopussy+Mi6+Whitehall.jpg

 

Old_war_office.jpg

 

In Skyfall

skyfall-daniel-craig-james-bond-2012.jpg



#10 TheManwiththeWaltherPPK

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 08:53 PM

Yes, the impression I got was that from now on it's probably the old/'classic' pattern of anteroom with Moneypenny and double doors with M behind them, all done in a stylishly old fashioned early 20th century Empire'/art nouveau deco. To tie-in on the past you could use a short scene in Bond's own office with that hideously ugly porcelain dog on the desk, showing how much Bond cares in having that bloody thing voluntarily on a daily basis in his eyesight.

Upside would be it would give much more of a homely atmosphere, the premises of M's office practically being a trusted character of its own, saving Eon a lot of money in coming up with another postmodern award-winning architectural designer set for every new film [something previously reserved for the Blofeld-league of Bond villains].

Downside would be it might easily lead to a drowsy atmosphere of complacency. In familiar surrounding surprising events are much less likely to happen. Question is, would we like to be surprised from time to time?

I think the key is to use the setting in new ways.  The classic Bond comes into the office scenes tended to be formulaic since the set did not extend past Moneypenny's anteroom.   You had Bond come in, toss his hat on the rack, flirt with Moneypenny and then go in to see M.  I'd love to see a continuous long shot of the rooms and corridors outside the famous office as Bond moves from either his office or the parking garage up to M's office when summoned - like Mendes did with Tanner bringing Bond into the new digs in Skyfall.  Given EON's increased budget and production value, they could really explore the old HQ in new and exciting ways now.  


Assuming that the ending in Skyfall in M's new office was not a temporary one while they repair, where would it be located now?

It looks like one of the buildings down Whitehall, does this mean that 6 is moving to another location in the Bond world, or just the 00 section, does M no longer run 6 but just deals with the 00 section.

Whats going on?

Is is a plot hole demed suitable to move the series along?

The building they're in now is the Old War Office Building which served as MI6 HQ / Universal Exports from Octopussy to LTK. Before it was vague about which building housed MI6. Usually there was just a overview shot of London or a close-up of the Universal Export sign. 

Interesting.  I don't know how accurate the dialogue in Skyfall was, but would not Tanner's line about them using part of Churchill's old bunker suggest that the MI6 Bunker in Skyfall is possibly below/attached to the Old War Office building?  Making it perfectly logical to retain a more permanently renovated version of the bunker sets as the new HQ?  Great possibilities with the new status quo in my opinion.


Edited by TheManwiththeWaltherPPK, 16 March 2013 - 08:54 PM.


#11 Dustin

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 09:03 PM


Yes, the impression I got was that from now on it's probably the old/'classic' pattern of anteroom with Moneypenny and double doors with M behind them, all done in a stylishly old fashioned early 20th century Empire'/art nouveau deco. To tie-in on the past you could use a short scene in Bond's own office with that hideously ugly porcelain dog on the desk, showing how much Bond cares in having that bloody thing voluntarily on a daily basis in his eyesight.

Upside would be it would give much more of a homely atmosphere, the premises of M's office practically being a trusted character of its own, saving Eon a lot of money in coming up with another postmodern award-winning architectural designer set for every new film [something previously reserved for the Blofeld-league of Bond villains].

Downside would be it might easily lead to a drowsy atmosphere of complacency. In familiar surrounding surprising events are much less likely to happen. Question is, would we like to be surprised from time to time?

I think the key is to use the setting in new ways. The classic Bond comes into the office scenes tended to be formulaic since the set did not extend past Moneypenny's anteroom. You had Bond come in, toss his hat on the rack, flirt with Moneypenny and then go in to see M. I'd love to see a continuous long shot of the rooms and corridors outside the famous office as Bond moves from either his office or the parking garage up to M's office when summoned - like Mendes did with Tanner bringing Bond into the new digs in Skyfall. Given EON's increased budget and production value, they could really explore the old HQ in new and exciting ways now.

Yes, something like that would be welcome. One could also imagine Bond on 'night-duty', using several different offices within HQ, including his own and M's perhaps.

#12 Vauxhall

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Posted 16 March 2013 - 10:00 PM

I see the office at the end of SKYFALL as a temporary location while Vauxhall Cross is being renovated, which also usefully serves as an homage to the first 16 films. We'll probably be back in more modern surroundings for BOND 24.

#13 FlemingBond

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Posted 17 March 2013 - 03:50 PM

i just really doubt they'd bring back that iconic office, and then ditch it in the next movie . we'll see.



#14 AgenttiNollaNollaSeitsemän

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Posted 17 March 2013 - 07:05 PM

We'll probably be back in more modern surroundings for BOND 24.

Hopefully not.



#15 THX-007

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Posted 18 March 2013 - 05:22 AM

I think they should stick with the Classic office / Old War Office Building setting for now. Just for a change in scenery.



#16 Leon

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Posted 20 March 2013 - 01:28 AM

As I said in another thread on this topic, everything in Skyfall seems to suggest to me that EON is done with Vauxhall Cross.  The way Tanner told Bond that the building was declared a security risk seemed to suggest that it was done for.  Further, the painting of Legoland in M's new office had a decidedly memorial-like appearance to it.  To me, that suggests that the painting is there as a token of remembrance for something permanently lost.  Why commission a somber, memorial painting of a place you are going to move back into in a month or two?  Finally, why have Mallory move into yet another office if the new one is just temporary?  He could just use his Chairman office or M's bunker office until the repairs were finished.  I think Vauxhall Cross has gone the way of Bond's P99.  They were nice attempts to modernize aspects of the Bond canon, but in the end, sometimes the old ways are best.

 

 

In operational terms it's difficult having an intelligence service's HQ as a major landmark in one of the world's most frequented tourist hot spots. But I suspect the SIS building houses mainly technical staff and analysis departments, whereas field personnel probably is distributed over a number of smaller installations.

I could well imagine a return of various nondescript SW1 sites posing as Secret Service HQ again in future films.

 

Agreed.



#17 Vauxhall

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Posted 20 March 2013 - 07:45 AM



Assuming that the ending in Skyfall in M's new office was not a temporary one while they repair, where would it be located now?
It looks like one of the buildings down Whitehall, does this mean that 6 is moving to another location in the Bond world, or just the 00 section, does M no longer run 6 but just deals with the 00 section.
Whats going on?
Is is a plot hole demed suitable to move the series along?

The building they're in now is the Old War Office Building which served as MI6 HQ / Universal Exports from Octopussy to LTK. Before it was vague about which building housed MI6. Usually there was just a overview shot of London or a close-up of the Universal Export sign.
Technically, in SKYFALL, the rooftop used was opposite the Old War Office Building, looking towards it. They used the roof of the Department of Energy and Climate Change for filming.

However, the Old War Office Building is reportedly still Ministry of Defence property so that would be a good fictional choice if EON were to return M's office to Whitehall permanently.