james-bond

CLASSIFICATION:  GOLD LEVEL (FOR YOUR EYES ONLY) SUBJECT:  MEMORANDUM #10 – LEAVING MI6

/ Vaseem Khan / Leave a comment

Dear colleagues,

It is with a heavy heart that I inform you of my imminent departure from Q Branch. After almost three decades at MI6, I find myself ‘moving on’. I will draw a discreet veil over the precise reason for my exit, but let us, in the interests of expediency, employ that comforting euphemism ‘personal reasons’. Instead of dwelling on the matter, I shall instead use this moment to thank you for your support over the years and to reflect on my time in the Secret Intelligence Service.

Where do I begin? As a young army engineer scouted by the redoubtable M – the man that recruited me? Suffice to say that M made me an offer I could not refuse – the opportunity to apply my love of science and technology to the defence of my country. He neglected, of course, to inform me that the fruits of my labours would be placed into the hands of field agents whose idea of ‘handle with care’ would put a psychotic toddler to shame.

Having said that, it would be churlish of me not to acknowledge the work of said agents, in particular 007, a man whose daredevil missions have defined my own life. When all is said and done, Bond is a man willing to lay down his life for others – and that is no small thing. Yet 007 and his fellow agents will never be feted. They may die in the line of duty, but their sacrifice will never be properly acknowledged. Instead, their lot – and ours – is to suffer the brickbats of self-serving politicians and lickspittle bureaucrats. Our budgets are cut on mindless whims; we are censured for actions sanctioned by civil servants; we are accused of failing to care. Through it all, we persevere. For king and country, for democracy, for a way of life we hold dear. In the words of William Ernest Henley’s Invictus, we remain bloody, but unbowed.

And where next for me, the artist formerly known as Q? For now, I am contemplating a return to my home town, Wickstone-on-Water, a small place less than two hours from London. I am drawn back by the sudden death of a childhood friend. I have not been home for nigh on three decades. I am uncertain what awaits me, but I know that, like a lost salmon, I must now return to my beginnings.

I leave you now with a final thought: trust no one and believe nothing, except in yourself. 

Finally, congratulations to James B. for correctly ascertaining the answer to the puzzle in my previous memo, and for being fortunate enough to be picked at random from all the correct entries. The answer, of course, was 1940 – the year that Captain America Comics #1 was published (though the cover date was March 1941 – apparently that sort of thing was common!). Below you will find this edition’s puzzle. Good luck! 

Sincerely,

Major Boothroyd

Head of Q Branch

P.S. Here is this edition’s puzzle. One ‘winner’ shall be picked at random from all correct entries and will be mentioned in my following memo. MI6 Archives shall rustle up a book to send to you* Pot luck, I’m afraid! Fill in this form to enter . . . This month’s puzzle is as follows:

What does MI6’s motto ‘SEMPER OCCULTUS’ mean?

*UK entrants only, alas!

NOTE FROM VASEEM KHAN

This ‘memorandum’ is one of a series that we will be publishing, celebrating the launch of Quantum of Menace, the first mystery featuring Major Boothroyd, Head of Q Branch (aka Q) from the James Bond universe. Pre-orders are very important to a new series, so we would be immensely grateful if you considered pre-ordering the novel. Buy from bookshops big and small and online. Click here for some options.

To keep updated on the progress of Quantum of Menace, and to receive competitions and giveaways with prizes from the Bond-verse, simply register for my newsletter here. 

You can also receive these updates by registering for the Ian Fleming newsletter by clicking here. 

CLASSIFICATION:  GOLD LEVEL (FOR YOUR EYES ONLY) – SUBJECT: MEMORANDUM #7 – INVASION OF THE KILLER ROBOTS

/ Vaseem Khan / Leave a comment

Dear colleagues,

With the new M now firmly in place, it is back to business as usual here at Q Branch. Many of you will have noticed the arrival this week of half a dozen assorted robots, varying from vaguely humanoid in form to distinctly canine. Creative naming is already underway with early offerings including Mrs Thatcher, Bono and Lassie. Our unusual guests are, of course, part of a new programme of testing, to determine the threat level posed by the advent of so-called ‘social robots’. 

Social robots are already active in many theatres. Tens of thousands have been deployed in school settings, in care homes and in military environments. Increasingly, humankind is moving past its fear of a ‘Terminator Armageddon’, the idea that we might all be slaughtered in our beds by robots that resemble Austrian bodybuilders in stolen leather jackets and bad haircuts.

But the truth is that there is much to fear. Robots are, essentially, a mass of circuitry powered by artificial intelligence. They can be hacked. They can be re-tasked to perform nefarious acts. And then there is the ultimate horror scenario. The word robot comes from the Czech word robata meaning forced servitude. How long will intelligent robots decide they’ve had enough of serving their ‘meat-sack’ human masters, inferior in almost every respect? And what will we do about it when the time comes? A question that it is now ourjob to answer. After all, as 007 pointed out to me just yesterday, you cannot incapacitate a robot by ‘kicking it in the bollocks’. 

Finally, congratulations to ANDREW W. for correctly ascertaining the answer to the puzzle in my previous memo, and for being fortunate enough to be picked at random from all the correct entries. The answer, of course, was BERNARD LEE. Below you will find this edition’s puzzle. Good luck!  

Sincerely,

Major Boothroyd

Head of Q Branch

P.S. Here is this edition’s puzzle. One ‘winner’ shall be picked at random from all correct entries and will be mentioned in my following memo. MI6 Archives shall rustle up a book to send to you* Pot luck, I’m afraid! Fill in this form to enter . . . This month’s puzzle is as follows: 

In the 1951 science fiction film, The Day The Earth Stood Still, an alien visitor named Klaatu has a robot companion. What was its name?

*UK entrants only, alas!

NOTE FROM VASEEM KHAN

This ‘memorandum’ is one of a series of 12 that we will be publishing, celebrating the launch of Quantum of Menace, the first mystery featuring Major Boothroyd, Head of Q Branch (aka Q) from the James Bond universe. Pre-orders are very important to a new series, so we would be immensely grateful if you considered pre-ordering the novel. Buy from bookshops big and small and online. Click here for some options.

To keep updated on the progress of Quantum of Menace, and to receive competitions and giveaways with prizes from the Bond-verse, simply register for my newsletter here. 

You can also receive these updates by registering for the Ian Fleming newsletter by clicking here. 

CLASSIFICATION:  GOLD LEVEL (FOR YOUR EYES ONLY) – SUBJECT:  MEMORANDUM #3 – ENGLAND EXPECTS

/ Vaseem Khan / Leave a comment

Dear colleagues,

Patriotism. Here in the security services it is taken as given that we stand for something greater than ourselves. Call it a love of King and Country or a set of values that enshrine our democratic ideals. But where does such belief come from? How do we hold on to it as the very concept becomes ever more politically charged?

When I was young, I spent a lot of time in the library. No surprises there. It was here that I first came across a copy of Nelson by Richard Hough. If ever there was a story to instil a sense of patriotism in a young man, it was the heroic tale of our greatest naval officer. Yes, Nelson may have lost a few too many body parts along the way to said greatness, and his eye for the ladies – or one lady, in particular – may have seen him tarred and feathered in today’s age, but Nelson’s famous signal, sent just before the Battle of Trafalgar – namely: England expects that every man will do his duty – fired my imagination and, dare I say, the imagination of countless servicemen and women since. 

Nelson lived up to his own expectations. The battle was won, securing Britain’s supremacy over the seas for a century. Nelson perished and ascended to the pantheon.

As most of you know, in my office hangs a reprint of The Death of Nelson by Benjamin West. It has long been taken as gospel that, as he lay dying, Nelson said to his flag captain, Vice-Admiral Thomas Hardy, ‘Kiss me, Hardy.’ Recent evidence suggests otherwise. Nelson’s parting words might actually have been ‘Thank God, I have done my duty.’ Frankly, this sounds far more likely. (I am fairly certain that should I be mortally wounded in action with the Double Os, my last words would not be ‘Kiss me, Bond.’) 

At any rate, Nelson’s example inspired me to consider a career in the navy, but the fact that I tend to get nauseous in the bathtub ruled otherwise. (Fun fact: Nelson himself suffered terribly from seasickness.) Instead, I joined the army – the Royal Engineers – and from there MI6 and Q Branch.

More than two decades on, I still draw inspiration from Nelson’s example. He remains my greatest hero. 

On another note, it will not have escaped your attention that several grey-suited individuals have taken up residence in the conference room. They represent an unwelcome follow-up to the recent Spending Review of the security services. Once again, we can expect to be given the third degree by the oversight committee’s grim-faced apparatchiks. I can only hope that our paperclip-obsessed guests might be imbued with the same sense of duty that propelled Nelson. England expects.  

Finally, congratulations to RICHARD N. for correctly ascertaining the answer to the puzzle in my previous memo, and for being fortunate enough to be picked at random from all the correct entries. The answer, of course, was the NAUTILUS, Captain Nemo’s submarine from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. (The last line of the puzzle referred to the name given to Argonauts, an octopus species known as paper nautili). Below you will find this edition’s puzzle. Good luck!  

Sincerely,

Major Boothroyd

Head of Q Branch

P.S. Here is this edition’s puzzle. One ‘winner’ shall be picked at random from all correct entries and will be mentioned in my following memo. MI6 Archives shall rustle up a book to send to you* Pot luck, I’m afraid! Fill in this form to enter . . . This month’s puzzle is as follows: To who am I referring below? Clue: the answer relates to Nelson and requires a four-pawed rearranging of these two words:

SUE LIN

*UK entrants only, alas!

NOTE FROM VASEEM KHAN

WOULD YOU LIKE TO PRE-ORDER QUANTUM OF MENACE – OUT ON 23 OCTOBER 2025?

This ‘memorandum’ is one of a series of 12 that we will be publishing, celebrating the launch of Quantum of Menace, the first mystery featuring Major Boothroyd, Head of Q Branch (aka Q) from the James Bond universe. Pre-orders are very important to a new series, so we would be immensely grateful if you considered pre-ordering the novel. Buy from bookshops big and small and online. Click here for some options.

To keep updated on the progress of Quantum of Menace, and to receive competitions and giveaways with prizes from the Bond-verse, simply register for my newsletter here. 

You can also receive these updates by registering for the Ian Fleming newsletter by clicking here. 

CLASSIFICATION:  GOLD LEVEL (FOR YOUR EYES ONLY) SUBJECT: MEMORANDUM #1 – A Q BRANCH MUSEUM?

/ Vaseem Khan / Leave a comment

Dear colleagues,

The start of a new year. A time for resolutions. Including several dictated to us from on high. It won’t have escaped your notice that the recent Spending Review has left Q Branch leaner, greener, and, decidedly, meaner. It has further been suggested that we “foster a culture where EQ – Emotional Quotient – and not merely IQ – is employed as a metric of success.” I recently discussed this with M.

M’s contention is that agents trained to eliminate – with extreme prejudice – our enemies don’t need to be mollycoddled. His exact words were “Q, I don’t expect our Double Os to sit around holding hands singing “Kumbaya”, before putting a bullet through the likes of Blofeld.”

Nevertheless, this is the ideal moment to re-evaluate our role as the research and development division of the British Secret Service. The fact is that we have long been invaluable to our nation’s intelligence apparatus. On a recent trip to the archives, the idea of a Q Branch museum was mooted. Splendid notion. 

Looking back, I am astounded by the inventiveness of our predecessors. 

Take, for instance, the ‘pigeon camera’, a device designed to be strapped to Lord Nelson’s least favourite bird. In between dodging bombs and bullets, these adventurous pigeon pilots took thousands of critical reconnaissance photos during WW1. So effective were they that several went on to the status of war hero. I note here one such medallist: Cher Ami – “dear friend” to the linguistically challenged – awarded the Croix de Guerre by the French government. His stuffed remains may now be found in the Smithsonian Institute. 

From the sublime to the ridiculous. 

Back in the 1970s, our old friends across the pond, the CIA, developed what would become known as the T1151 “Dog Doo” transmitter. Deployed during the Vietnam War, this homing beacon was used to track supply movements along the Ho Chi Minh trail. The beacon was camouflaged to resemble a medium-sized faecal dropping. How’s that for lateral thinking?

This memo constitutes the first of a monthly series. My own attempt to get a little more “touchy-feely”, in line with HQ’s diktat. To this end, I shall set a puzzle in each memo, a means of promoting a little Q Branch esprit de corps. See postscript below for this month’s brain teaser. 

Finally, I need not remind everyone that our mission here at Q Branch remains to develop the tech that keeps our field agents safe and operational. As ever, we work behind the scenes. Not for us the power and the glory. Nevertheless, we may take great pride in what we do. So, whatever your new year’s resolution, be it to learn to play “Ode to Joy” on the kazoo or to run the London Marathon in a Godzilla suit, I wish more power to your elbow, and a productive new year. 

Sincerely,

Major Boothroyd

Head of Q Branch

P.S. Here is your first puzzle. One “winner” shall be picked at random from all correct entries and will be mentioned in my following memo. Perhaps MI6 Archives might even stretch to rustling up a book to send you?* Pot luck, I’m afraid! Fill in this form to enter . . . This month’s puzzle is as follows: To whom am I referring below?

A headless corpse, this spy leaves behind.

And disputed legacy, now out of mind.

Enchantress once of men of state.

A byword now for quisling’s fate.

P.P.S. In light of the recent mishap with 007’s Bentley, no further vehicles are to be authorised to Double O agents without my express approval.

*UK entrants only, I’m afraid!

NOTE FROM VASEEM KHAN

This ‘memorandum’ is one of a series of 12 that we will be publishing, celebrating the launch of QUANTUM OF MENACE, the first mystery featuring Major Boothroyd, Head of Q Branch (a.k.a Q) from the James Bond universe. Pre-orders are very important to a new series, so we would be immensely grateful if you considered pre-ordering the novel. Buy from bookshops big and small and online. Click here for some options.

To keep updated on the progress of Quantum of Menace, and to receive competitions and giveaways with prizes from the Bond-verse, simply register for my newsletter here. 

You can also receive these updates by registering for the Ian Fleming newsletter by clicking here. 

Quantum of Menace: a new series with Q from Bond

/ Vaseem Khan / 8 Comments

OK. The news is finally out. I am writing a series of mystery novels featuring my reimagining of Q from the James Bond franchise. Exciting and terrifying, in equal measure. First book: QUANTUM OF MENACE, out Oct 2025. You can pre-order the book here.

It’s been a year-long journey to this point, fittingly, in almost complete secrecy. Thank you to Ian Fleming Publications Limited and publisher Kelly Rose Smith at Zaffre Books (an imprint of Bonnier Books) for trusting me with this mission. I’m having a riot writing the first book. This is a Q that will be both familiar and new, a Q that will appeal to fans of the Bond franchise and to wider readers who enjoy crime fiction that challenges the intellect, served up with a dose of dry humour. As a lifelong Bond and Q fan, this is a dream gig. The Ian Fleming estate were very open to me creating the Q that I wished to, a Q that made sense for the series, a fully rounded character with a backstory. And, yes, Bond will be making guest appearances… I confess, it felt surreal writing a scene with James Bond. Could I have imagined that, all those years ago when I wrote my first (unpublished) book aged seventeen? Not in a million years!

The first book is about the death of a quantum computing scientist. If you don’t know what a quantum computer is, you soon will…And you thought AI was terrifying? Q has been forced out of MI6 and returns to his hometown of Wickstone-on-Water where his childhood friend, Pete Napier, is dead. The police think Napier killed himself, but Q isn’t so sure… I would be extremely grateful if you could pre-order a copy. Pre-orders really help to get a new series off the ground by signalling to booksellers that readers are interested. Thank you!