Joanna Lumley has said that she believes the role of James Bond shouldn’t be offered to Idris Elba as he doesn’t fit the ‘clear’ description of the character from the original novels.

Elba has long been linked with the coveted acting role, and with current Bond actor Daniel Craig yet to commit his future to 007, the Dark Tower actor remains firmly in the running to sign up to the franchise.

While no official announcement has been made by either Bond producers or Elba, Lumley has had her say on the latter’s chances of landing the role. The actress, who starred in the 1969 Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, gave her opinion when asked by the Radio Times if she’d rather star with Craig or Elba in a Bond movie.

“Idris Elba is stunning – and was, incidentally, in Absolutely Fabulous – but I don’t think [he] is right for Bond, who is quite clearly described in the book,” she said. “I’m colour-blind when it comes to acting, but Idris Elba is just a zonking great star anyway.”

Lumley then added: “I think ‘Idris Elba for fab new fabness‘ is what I would say.”

Back in September 2015, Bond writer Anthony Horowitz apologised after facing a backlash over his labelling of Elba as “too street” for the role of 007.

The post Joanna Lumley says Idris Elba doesn’t fit the description to play James Bond appeared first on NME.

Keep up to date with all the best music and entertainment happenings by visiting our News page.