Stars And Royals Turn Out For The World Premiere Of 'Spectre' In London [Photos]
The world premiere of the new James Bond film 'Spectre' was a Royal affair last night (October 26th 2015), as the red carpet played host to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (aka Prince William and Kate Middleton) as well as the stellar cast led by Daniel Craig and a number of other superstar faces from Shirley Bassey to Martin Freeman.
The Royal Film Performance took place at the Royal Albert Hall in London in association with the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund (CTBF); a charity that raises money for people working behind the scenes in the movie and television industry who have suffered financial setbacks in their lives. As well as the future King and his wife, Prince Harry was also spotted at the event, while previous events have even seen the Queen herself in attendance.
More: Watch the trailer for 'Spectre'
'Spectre' star Daniel Craig released much of his ladies-man character on the red carpet as he posed alongside Bond girls Monica Bellucci and Léa Seydoux, while Christoph Waltz even managed to look nearly as menacing as his villainous alter-ego Franz Oberhauser upon his arrival.
Other cast arrivals included Ralph Fiennes, who plays Bond's boss M; Dave Bautista, who is evil assassin Mr Hinx; government agent Max Denbigh actor Andrew Scott; the glamorous Naomie Harris aka Eve Moneypenny; Ben Whishaw, who plays gadget man Q; and Stephanie Sigman, who is Estrella.
More: Read our review of 'Spectre'
Sam Smith also took to the red carpet for the world premiere. The Grammy winning popstar wrote and sang the new Bond theme 'Writing's On The Wall', which subsequently broke a Guinness World Record as the only Bond song to ever go to number one in UK charts. Co-written by previous collaborator Jimmy Napes and co-produced by long-time friends Disclosure, Smith said that song was a step away from his usual songwriting and entered a more 'classicly timeless' realm.
It was also a pleasure to see the ever-fabulous Shirley Bassey on the red carpet, who soon began trending on Twitter upon the release of 'Writing's On The Wall' when a few critics lamented that it didn't come close to matching the standards of her own theme songs for 'Goldfinger', 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'Moonraker'.
David Walliams made an appearance as he geared up to host the red carpet footage for the YouTube live stream of the event, for which he was joined by Susanna Reid and Rick Edwards. Other British presenters that were also at the Albert Hall included the likes of Chris Evans and 'Strictly Come Dancing' judge Darcey Bussell.
Meanwhile, Joan Collins brought some classic red carpet glamour to proceedings in a black gown teamed with a white fur wrap, whilst Britt Ekland glimmered in a silver ensemble and Natalie Imbruglia opted for a knee-length conservative number.
Director Sam Mendes showed his face of course, after standing at the helm of both 'Skyfall' and 'Spectre'. He's even rumoured to be jumping on board for the 25th James Bond movie, but that remains to be seen. More well-known guests at the showing were 'Sherlock' star Martin Freeman, Irish popstar Ronan Keating, 'The Voice' judge Will.i.am and British footbal hero Gary Lineker to name but a few.
More: See more pictures from the Royal Film Performance of 'Spectre'