Martine Beswick was born in Jamaica, but her parents were British. In 1958, she won a beauty contest, but sold her prize (a new car!) to help pay for her to come to England to study acting.
Martine has appeared in two Bond films with Sean Connery. In her very first film From Russia With Love (1963) she is a gypsy girl called Zora who fights Vida in an argument over a man! This scene was considered quite shocking at the time, before female wrestling had become an accepted sport. In Thunderball (1965) she plays Paula Caplan, who helps Bond with his investigations. She commits suicide by taking cyanide, after being captured by one of Largo's henchmen, 007 arriving too late to save her
Martine later appeared in a number of Hammer horror films, notably Dr Jekyll & Sister Hyde (1971). Her last film was Night of the Scarecrow (1995).
Below is a link to the excellent website 'Brian's Drive-In Theater', where you can see some good images taken from some of Martine's films.
It is widely thought that Martine was one of the dancers in the opening credits of Dr No (1962) but in an interview for mi6 (see link below), she denies this.
This photograph was taken when I met Martine Beswick at the Starcon convention at Kempton Park racecourse in September 2006. She was very smitten by my Jeff Marshall lithograph, which you can see her signing below.
Martine Beswick as Paula Caplan in Thunderball
Martine signed this photo of her as Zora in her wrestling
scene from From Russia With Love
Two images of Martine Beswick in
Dr Jekyll & Sister Hyde
With Martine Beswick, Luciana Paluzzi & Mollie Peters in April 2008
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Martine Beswick