TO CELEBRATE the centenary of the birth of James Bond creator Ian Fleming, the Imperial War Museum is launching an exhibition dedicated to his life and work.

It will examine the extent to which the books and films about the legendary secret agent reflect the reality of the Cold War and how far they were a product of Fleming's imagination.

The exhibits include a selection of annotated Bond manuscripts and Fleming's Colt Python .357 Magnum revolver, the blood-splattered' shirt worn by the latest screen Bond Daniel Craig in Casino Royale, along with prototypes of Rosa Klebb's flick knife shoes in From Russia with Love and Halle Berry's bikini from Die Another Day.

The exhibition opens for a year from April 17.

Tickets: £8, £7(concs), £4 (children) and £19 (two adults and two children).