Connery follows Moore in Bond battle of the books

James Bond legends Sean Connery and Roger Moore will go head to head with rival books this autumn, after Weidenfeld cajoled Connery into telling his story, and Michael O'Mara won the battle for Moore's memoirs - reports TheBookSeller

Connery had initially been signed by HarperCollins to write his autobiography, but pulled out in 2005 after reluctance to discuss certain areas of his private life. A chance encounter at the Edinburgh Festival between Weidenfeld publisher Alan Samson and Connery's co-writer, Murray Grigor, led to Samson signing Connery's Being a Scot, for publication on 25th August.

Billed as "an intensely personal account", the book will fuse Connery's own experiences, including his acting career, with his efforts to track down what Scots have given to the world in art, science and sport. "Sean Connery is not calling it an autobiography but it's probably the nearest we will get to it," said Samson. "He's a legend—one of the absolute, out and out, movie stars."

Samson paid a six-figure sum for UK and Commonwealth rights through Claire Paterson at Janklow & Nesbit UK. The 100,000-word book will be published by W&N's illustrated division, complete with hundreds of illustrations and photographs, many of them previously unseen.

Meanwhile, a high-profile auction for 80-year-old Moore's My Word is My Bond was concluded this week, with Michael O'Mara emerging as the surprise victor. Ghost written by Gareth Owen, Moore's personal assistant, the book is due in October 2008—meaning both Bond books will be in the shops for Christmas, a head-to-head confrontation the two Bonds never achieved in the cinema.

O'Mara promised a "frank, funny and charming" look at Moore's life, with personal anecdotes about such luminaries as Noël Coward, Cary Grant—and Connery himself. UK & Commonwealth rights were acquired from Lesley Pollinger, with US rights going to HarperCollins US for almost $1m (£510,000). Pollinger said she was "on her way" to the £1m she had initially been asking for world rights, with deals struck in Sweden, Norway and Holland, and serial rights lined up.

"We are all delirious with anticipation," said Michael O'Mara. "What I have read so far bubbles with wit and is peopled by a ‘Who's Who' of Hollywood. Roger's book will clearly be the jewel in our crown for 2008."

Thanks to `Mark Hazard` for the alert.

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