GERMANY – Hamburg, Mönckebergstraße // Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

In Hamburg James Bond sent a car flying – only to crash-land it on one of Germany’s finest shopping boulevards. The stunt had been filmed on three locations – why for the shopping fever, there are some more places to visit.

Why Bond was here
James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) visits the new newspaper headquarter of media mogul Elliot Carver (Jonathan Pryce) in Hamburg, from where Carver wants to set up a war between China and the United Kingdom. After uncovering his plans, Carver sends torture expert Dr. Kaufmann to kill Bond in his suite at the noble Hotel Atlantic. 007 shoots Kaufmann and escapes onto the roof. As several henchmen follow him, a car chase in the hotels parking block ensues.
Bond uses a remote-controlled BMW to get rid of his pursuers. After some circles in the garage he elegantly “parks” the car with crashing it into the window front of a rental company – from the neighboring garages roof.

The parking deck of “Saturn” with the Hamburg train station in the back…

How you gonna get there
The climax of the car chase had been staged in Hamburgs shopping boulevard Mönckebergstraße No. 3. The window of the rental company is in reality a display window of the “Karstadt”, a famous German department store. The actual location is on the cross of Mönckebergstraße with Lange Mühren street. The car came flying from the building No. 6, now location of a “Peek & Cloppenburg”. Across of both buildings is electronics mega store “Saturn”. The upper deck of its parking block had been used for the scenes prior to the jump. A sign of the “Hotel Atlantic” – that in reality is some 600 meters up north and doesn’t have a parking block at all – had been prepped on to it. But visiting the “Saturn” garage is not needed – all interior scenes of the car chase had been filmed home in London.
Prior to the chase, Bond has his car parked at the other end of Mönckebergstraße in front of Saint Peters Church – with the town hall of Hamburg visible in the back. He then drives along Lombardsbrücke, talking to Carver via phone. The Binnenalster and the Jungfernstieg are visible in the back.

…and the BMW’s jump across Mönckebergstraße into the “Kaufhaus” store

Good to know
The Mönckebergstraße and close-by Jungfernstieg are two of Germany’s most popular shopping boulevards – almost comparable with London’s Oxford Street. Close to the “Karstadt” is the “Levantehaus”, a nostalgic shopping mall filled with noble shops and tailors. A bronze centaur statue guards the entry. Close-by “Anson’s” is a man’s clothier, while “Appelrath & Cüpper” serves ladies. Traditional hatter “Werner Eisenberg” makes hats Sean Connery would be proud of and “Ladage & Oelke” specializes in shoe making. Need old Bond soundtracks on vinyl? Try “Michelle” for a fine selection of rare music.
Besides shopping, the area is also home of some of Hamburgs best museums, like the Kunsthalle, the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe (MK&G) or the Deichtorhallen. The Kunsthalle has a wide range of German artists like Caspar David Friedrich or Cranach and French impressionists like Renoir or Gauguin. The MK&G displays manufactured and modeled art from ancient times to the modern ages, including Japanese swords, Venetian musical instruments or Islamic carpets. Lovers of contemporary art and photography should go to the Deichtorhallen with their ever-changing exhibition on both well-known and fresh artists.

Besides all the high-end clothiers, Hamburg is famous for it’s coffee tradition. Being one of world’s biggest harbors, fine coffee beans arrived at the city since centuries. Excellent Roasters are everywhere, filling up the city’s air with the fine tart scent of grounded coffee. We opt for “Die Rösterei” on Steinstraße – but don’t forget to try their sweets as well.

© 2015 Huntingbond (1,4), © 1997 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation (2,3)