The killer vehicles of James Bond

With the possible exception of Inspector Gadget, there is no better known or loved fictional gadget fiend than James Bond. Employing personal technology to achieve clandestine professional goals, Her Majesty's favorite secret agent has fascinated readers and film audiences for over half a century now.

While trendy and forward-thinking in their time, Bond movies have since grown into valuable historic artifacts, portraying our evolving vision of near-future innovations. From the first car phones and GPS systems to jet packs and invisibility cloaks, they've offered an entertaining mix of the feasible and the far-fetched.

The recently opened Bond in Motion exhibition at London's Film Museum pays homage to the films' technological legacy, with a particular focus on transportation. All the iconic Bond cars are present, with BMWs, Aston Martins, and Rolls Royces joined by a selection of alternative vehicles. 007's amphibious Lotus Esprit, nicknamed Wet Nellie, sits alongside his Little Nellie single-seat gyrocopter and a selection of aggressively styled motorbikes. There are also speedboats, model helicopters and trains, plus some amusing memorabilia like Bond's evaluation report from 2012's Skyfall. As a whole, the collection offers a captivating journey into the futures we once imagined.

The Bond in Motion exhibition is open now and will run until the end of the year. All images courtesy of the London Film Museum.