Goldeneye, birthplace of 007, eyes $50M expansion
KINGSTON, Jamaica ñ The luxurious Goldeneye retreat, where British author Ian Fleming created the literary and cinematic super spy James Bond, will undergo a $50 million expansion, the estate’s owner said Sunday.
Music and hotel mogul Chris Blackwell said in a statement that 11 beachfront cottages and a restaurant will be built at the sprawling property, which overlooks a harbor in St. Mary parish in eastern Jamaica.
Blackwell ó who founded the Island Records label that launched Bob Marley to international stardom and who also owns luxury hotelier Island Outpost ó said the work should be completed by 2013.
Fleming bought Goldeneye in the mid-1940s and wrote several books there, including “Casino Royale,” the first Bond novel. Fleming died in 1964, and some of his memorabilia are kept at the expanded site.
Several 007 movies including “Live and Let Die” and “Dr. No” were filmed near the estate, and it shares a name with the 1995 Bond film “GoldenEye.”
The property was also briefly owned by the late reggae great Marley, who bought Goldeneye in 1976 and sold it the following year to Blackwell.
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