And it made perfect sense: his good looks, roguish charm and physical presence established the character. He battled some of the best villains, enjoyed some of the most memorable female company, had the best gadgets and was in one of the best movies in the series, Goldfinger.

Connery could act, too. Which is not true of every actor who has played Bond in the 24 "official" movies from Dr No to Spectre.

But now that Daniel Craig has shot four movies, it's time to rank the six actors who have played him.

Let's count them down …

6. George Lazenby​

​The sole Australian to play 007 admitted in a Sydney public appearance a while back that he was a car salesman who talked his way into On Her Majesty's Secret Service in 1969.

But Lazenby fell out with director Peter Hunt so badly that the filmmaker wouldn't talk to him on set. He even left his own birthday party when the actor arrived, so Lazenby kept the fur coat he was planning to give him.

He left playing Bond believing there were better movies in store. There weren't. ​

5. Timothy Dalton

Timothy Dalton in a Licence To Kill with Carey Lowell. 

He shot just two Bond movies – The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence to Kill (1989).

A dark, troubled Bond – a stark contrast to the flippancy of Roger Moore's earlier 007 – Dalton could certainly act but brought neither warmth nor wit to the role. 

4. Roger Moore

Roger Moore, in For Your Eyes Only, brought comedy to the role.

Took over from Sean Connery for 1973's Live and Let Die and shot seven movies with more comedy – and moments of ludicrous camp – than any other 007. In Octopussy, he defused a nuclear bomb while wearing a clown suit.

While Moore had a warm charm, he was a very unlikely love interest for Grace Jones by 1985's A View to a Kill.

3. Pierce Brosnan

Pierce Brosnan in Die Another Day. 

From 1995's Goldeneye to 2002's Die Another Day, Brosnan's four outings as Bond saw the series expand to modern blockbuster scale.

The action was often outlandish, as was the product placement, but Brosnan brought a suave charm to the role. 

2. Sean Connery​

Sean Connery with Shirley Eaton in Goldfinger.

The original and, for many, still the best Bond.

He shot six movies and has been the only Bond actor to have a strong career after stepping aside from the role – even winning an Oscar. For a witty riposte or a knowing look, there is no one better.

But even for 007, time has moved on. 

1. Daniel Craig 

Daniel Craig in Casino Royale.

His first outing as 007, 2006's Casino Royale, is arguably the best movie in the entire series for action, wit, glamour and entertaining story.

Craig was a convincing cold-blooded killer who could carry off a parkour chase, wear a tuxedo and banter brilliantly with Vesper. "Skewered," he admitted. "One sympathises."

As a follow-up, Quantum of Solace was a Matrix-sequels style disappointment.

But the scale and character development in Skyfall and now Spectre have established Craig as the new definitive Bond … charismatic, witty, bristling with physicality and darkly brooding as required.