THERE’S more to Sir Roger Moore than the seven Bond movies he made in the seventies and eighties, and enthusiastic applause welcomed him to the beautiful Leeds Grand as he took a seat (complete with Union Flag cushions), with his biographer Gareth Owen, to chat about his life.

Witty, quick, and endlessly self-deprecating, within minutes he has let the audience in on his secret: “I was given an Equity card which proved I was an actor, and I’ve been getting away with it for over 60 years.”

Taking in his short-lived career as an animator for War Office films, and his early stage performances prior to his television success with Ivanhoe and The Saint, the 86-year-old is charming as well as funny, and speaks fondly of the debacle on Broadway of A Pin To See The Peep Show, with the revelation “the title of the play was longer than the show’s run”.

Though he needs the occasional prompt from Owen, the stories are never dull, and his eyes light up while recounting tales of Oliver Reed trying to steal his limelight while a bit player on The Saint, or Curtis, his Persuaders co-star and anti-smoking campaigner, being arrested for possession of marijuana on his arrival in the UK.

By the interval, he’s performed spot-on impersonations of friends and co-stars David Niven, Tony Curtis and Christopher Lee, and more follow, including Hervé Villechaize, as his Bond career makes up the second half.

The usual questions from the crowd make up a Q&A session - the Lotus Esprit was a nightmare, the gadgets weren’t real, Sean (“who?”) Connery was the best Bond until Daniel Craig came along, and he has nothing nice to say about Grace Jones, so he won’t say anything at all.

They are stories that have been well rehearsed on chat shows for 40-odd years, but listening Sir Roger Moore speak with passion about the work of UNICEF and the many friends he has lost, show a side which effortlessly brought the audience to their feet.