Seiko M354 5019 Memory-Bank Calendar

The Seiko M354 5019 model SFX003 Memory-Bank Calendar was used by James Bond (Roger Moore) in the 1979 movie Moonraker.

The Seiko watch is a gadget watch: it is equipped with explosives and a remote detonator, which Bond uses to escape from the Moonraker launch platform.

Just like the Seiko 0674 LC watch worn in the previous film The Spy Who Loved Me, Bond wears his Seiko throughout the whole movie.

It looks like Bond wears the watch since the first scene after the credits, as it peaks out from under his sleeves now and then, but the watch is not seen fully until much later. After he makes love with Dr. Holly Goodhead (Lois Chiles) and leaves her hotel room in Venice, we see Bond pick up his watch from the bed side table while Goodhead is (pretending to be) asleep. He puts the watch on his wrist while taking a last look at her. Starting with the boat chase in Brazil, up until he arrives in Drax lair, Bond wears a safari shirt with rolled up sleeves so the watch is seen more, especially when he climbs out of the pond where he kills the python. And then of course during his miraculous escape from the Moonraker launching pad, when he finally uses the watch.

When he and Holly Goodhead are locked up at the Moonraker launch pad, we finally get a fantastic close-up of the watch. The time is ticking at 10:08:20 on Wednesday, 2 December.

The next shot shows Bond opening the case of the watch to reveal the detonation device. We can see that now this is a prop watch, as the seconds have stopped moving at 10:08:42 - it's a prop screen. Interestingly, the digital screen is set to the exact same time and date as seen in the Seiko M354 user manual (see pictures on the left). Again the exact same screen and time are seen in the final moment when Bond presses the detonation button.

When Bond and Holly Goodhead escape the launching pad, Bond is wearing the watch again.

When he wears the yellow space suit, the watch is not seen at all, but then in the final moments, when Bond and Goodhead are making out in the space shuttle, the watch can just be seen floating around as well.

This Seiko M354 watch is, like all the Seiko's used in Bond movies, quite rare. Beware of sellers on eBay offering similar Seiko models, claiming it to be the Bond watch, and make sure to get the silver coloured version and not the gold coloured version, which is also available.

Find the Seiko M354 on eBay.

Bracelet
In the film, the bracelet of the watch is not the standard bracelet that came with the watch in stores. The standard bracelet has a deployment clasp, but the movie watch seems to have a two-part separate bracelet (can be seen when he grabs the watch from the Venice hotel bedside table, and when it's floating in the space ship(. After looking at vintage Seiko bracelets, I think the most similar is a bracelet that's also spotted on the Seiko 0634 LC (a model very close to the Seiko 0674 LC from The Spy Who Loved Me), but I'm not sure if it has the same size and would fit the M354. Some Seiko Quartz analog watches from 1978 have similar bracelets as well and Grand Seiko bracelets are also similar but have a deployment clasp.

Trivia
The days of the week of this Seiko M354 digital watch are pre-programmed from January 1930 up to December 2009, including leap years, making this watch not as practical today as it used to be. 2009 must have seem like a distant future in the 1970s, but currently (this page was last updated in July 2020) we are way past that date. Why it was pre-programmed from the 1930s upwards and not longer after 2009 might remain a mystery. The watch can actually still be used of course, especially since the year is not shown on the regular screen. You just have to find a year that has the same day/date combination as the current year.

In the closing credits, "Seiko Watches" are mentioned as one of the partners.

In the film, a large Seiko roadside billboard can be seen in the Rio De Janeiro scene. On the billboard, the gold Seiko 0903-8109 and Seiko 0439-5007 models are prominently advertised.

There's a great promotional photo of Roger Moore wearing the watch (se images on the left) and Seiko released several posters and ads featuring Seiko models and the Moonraker artwork.

Roger Moore as James Bond wore many other Seiko watches in his films.

Affordable alternatives
Check the new Bond Lifestyle article about affordable alternatives to the James Bond Seiko watches.