When I first learned that Daniel Craig was going to be the next actor to play James Bond, in the movie adaptation of Casino Royale the phrase Blond Bond-shell lodged in my mind.

I was intrigued to hear that Craig would be taking up the fallen baton of Pierce Brosnan's European-businessman/Irish rogue Bond. The UK media, however, seized upon Craig's blondness, Bond-shell or otherwise, and its effect on his supposed suitability for the Bond mantle. In a flurry of blogs, newspaper and magazine and website editorials, all the "Bond aficionados" wriggled out of the woodwork. They claimed the higher ground, they claimed to be purists, and they claimed they knew best. The self-proclaimed experts noisily trumpeted their theories: Craig would kill Bond, not the bad guys; Craig was blond, not dark, and he didn't have the steely, classically handsome sheen of his predecessors. All the dross was trotted out, the cliché machine took over and the fanboys with too much time on their hands continued to batter each other in online newsgroups with their poorly written vitriol.

Daniel Craig was an unknown quantity for many. Brosnan, prior to his ascension to the role, had been in the frame for ten years ever since Roger Moore retired as Bond in 1985. Brosnan would've swept in then if not for his Remington Steele contract. When he finally did get the keys to the Aston Martin in 1995's Goldeneye it was like the prodigal son had returned home. But Craig, that broadly talented, earthy, likeable but distant actor was an outsider. Many of the fans saw him as a devil-child thrust into the fold to destroy the future and legacy of the James Bond movie franchise.

I had been a fan of Craig's work ever since he'd appeared in the 1996 BBC drama Our Friends in the North (if you see ever have the chance to watch it, do; you won't be disappointed). He is an actor of real depth, passion, and range..

Craig's edgy, prickly demeanour in Our Friends in the North was off set by a warm vulnerability. He could be explosive on screen and in seconds be subtle and demure. Further evidence can be seen in the film The Mother (2003), in which Craig's confused, morally-dubious, lost-soul seducer is a revelation. I knew that he would bring something good to the screen as Bond, and I waited to see the results; eager, but mute.

The internet nay-sayers continued to fret, Sometimes people worry far too much. They get too bogged-down in knee jerk reactions and flailing responses. Bond is blond. Deal with it.

I can admit that I've lived my life, since as long as I can remember, with a faint tinge of Bond added to it as best as I was able. I've traveled a fair bit around the world, been to the occasional casino, tried skiing whilst humming the theme from On Her Majesty's Secret Service (which works well; by the way), tried to throw out the witty Roger Moore line now and then, and I can't recall ever not being a Bond fan. I can admit it. Mea culpa. I'm a James Bond geek. I'm a big fan; but I'm not an obsessive. I know where to draw the line; which is why, when Casino Royale finally hit screens last year, I was ecstatic but pragmatic. Craig is new, it's a new movie, and Bond is renewed. I reserved judgement. If you get all steamed over the little things then you miss the point. The new Casino Royale is a revamp, and nearly a prequel. It is a reinvention; a reassessment; call it what you will. I waited for the result, and I knew whatever Daniel Craig delivered, it would be interesting.

I saw Casino Royale with another ardent lifelong Bond fan. We stayed in the cinema, like school kids again, through the credits just so we could see the words JAMES BOND WILL RETURN at the very end. The movie completely revitalised the way I feel about James Bond movies. I liked Brosnan, and I felt his movies were enjoyable and they were part of the Bond world. But Craig's Bond and Casino Royale are greater than the sum of their parts. The film makes this old Bond fan, who always loved Bond films and books, realise how lucky he is to have stuck by the films and the James Bond world for so long. Many hate Bond, many love it too much. I again feel vindicated for liking Bond. When the producers, director, and multitude of creative talent (not least Daniel Craig) can make me feel like I've discovered something brand new and fresh, I want James Bond to remain a part of my movie-going, book-reading life.

I am thankful to Craig for his great performance; for justifying my faith in his talents; for bringing something totally new to the potentially-hackneyed James Bond role; and for proving all the whiny little bandwagon-jumpers who cursed his name entirely wrong. I walked out of the cinema feeling taller than I went in. I felt proud to be British, I felt more inclined than ever to spend money on fine suits, fast cars, casinos, and vacations in tropical destinations. I had known Daniel Craig would do a fine job, but I (and the rest of the world) was just so pleased that he did such an excellent one. I will buy the DVD and I will do so with absolute pleasure.

I have one childish, spiteful thing to say to all those people who claimed Daniel Craig would kill James Bond: Now who feels stupid?

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