More time-travel TV enjoyment coming right up. Can you hear the 007 music in the background?

You've seen the latest Bond film. But do you know the first on-screen appearance of James Bond, Agent 007?

Bet you don't. It was on US TV in 1954. Yes, in his first screen appearance, Bond was an American.

Barry Nelson played the man with the licence to kill. Peter Lorre played the bad guy, Le Chiffre. The whole thing was filmed live on a show called Climax!. (Quiet in the back.)

Climax! had its moments, since many of its episodes were filmed live. Its version of Raymond Chandler's The Long Goodbye made TV history when the corpse (played by the aptly-named Tristram Coffin) got up and left while the cameras were still running. Oh, the joy.

In this production, admire the elegance. Note the hot Bond girl – what a babe in her New Look gown.

Note the suavity of our superspy. We only regret the lack of helicopters and CGI-enhanced lift crashes. In this one, nobody drowns in an aesthetically pleasing way, while Venice crumbles. Oh, well, can't have everything. At least Lorre attempts to off Bond in a suitably ridiculous manner. Hang on for the bathtub scene, it's worth it.

Those who wish to complete their collection of Bond material will see this performance as a 'must-have'. The rest of you may view this as an amusing television oddity.

Me, I think I'd rather go back and watch Dr Bashir in the holosuite. He was the coolest. Cue 'The Hawk'. . .

PS If you can't get enough of Climax!, you might want to watch Gore Vidal's version of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The moral: never drink anything you mixed in a lab. We mean it.