James Bond himself would have been thrilled with Pierce Brosnan’s latest disguise, as heavy make-up transforms him into a war veteran.
The 69-year-old former 007 is playing Bernard Jordan, 89, who absconded from his care home to join D-Day celebrations in France in 2014.
The real life “naughty and secretive” escapade captured the nation’s imagination and is now being turned into movie The Last Rifleman – with the help of some serious prosthetics.
The former Royal Navy Lieutenant decided he must be part of the 75th anniversary of the landings in Normandy to pay his final respects to his best friend and find the courage to face the ghosts of his past.
He told staff at The Pines care home in Hove, East Sussex he was “popping down to the shops” on June 5, 2014, but instead he walked to Brighton, boarded a bus for Portsmouth and from there bought a one-way ferry ticket to Caen.
The hero who had braved the Atlantic and Arctic convoys in his time later said: “In the months leading up to the anniversary I was trying to get an official trip to Normandy but I didn’t have the necessary passes.
“Then, the day before D-Day I saw all the TV coverage and thought, ‘I have to go and be part of it.’ I was naughty and secretive.”
Writer Kevin Fitzpatrick said: “His daring journey caught the nation’s attention and highlighted the spirit that epitomised the Second World War generation.
“I was enthralled by the motives that drive a man near the end of his life to a place that must hold only painful memories.”
Mr Jordan was made an honorary life member of the Veterans Association UK and died a year after his adventure, aged 90.
The £12million movie is being filmed in County Antrim, close to where leading man Brosnan grew up.
Antrim residents say there was “buzz and excitement” around the town as the Market Square area was transformed into a French village.
