Charles Robinson is an MI6 aide and Deputy Chief of Staff who appears in the James Bond films Tomorrow Never Dies (1998), The World Is Not Enough (1999) and Die Another Day (2002). He is portrayed by Colin Salmon.
Film biography
Little is known about Robinson other than him being shown briefing and giving Bond vital information prior to his missions and often being seen by M's side while observing the missions that take place via satellite surveillance.
Tomorrow Never Dies
Robinson is first introduced and primarily seen at the very beginning of the film as Bond escapes from a Russian base after successfully stealing some key information.
The World Is Not Enough
Robinson is seen here and there but mainly visible near the end of the film when he, R (who has just become the new Q) and M all notice via satellite footage that Bond is having a rather erotic encounter in a hotel with Christmas Jones.
Die Another Day
Robinson appears at the beginning during a realistic training simulation that Bond is participating in and later reappears near the end of the film while working with the NSA and M to help diffuse the growing threats by the main antagonists.
Behind the scenes
Initially Charles Robinson was intended as a replacement for the character of Bill Tanner when Michael Kitchen was unavailable to reprise his role from GoldenEye. However, since his performance in Tomorrow Never Dies, he went on to appear in three consecutive films as a regular.
Colin Salmon, who played the character, had strongly voiced his desire to take on the role of James Bond following Eon's decision to recast the role for 2006's Casino Royale. British bookmakers at one point stopped taking bets on Salmon becoming 007 #6 due to the volume of press speculation. He repeatedly received the backing of outgoing 007 Pierce Brosnan - although he believed the producers didn't "have the bottle" to go down that route. Salmon said of the praise, "It's the ultimate accolade. There are some great candidates out there, but Pierce has watched me do five or six screen tests, and he knows I can do it".