Daniel Craig meets Prince William at Quantum of Solace premiere

After a year of feverish anticipation and a run of lukewarm early reviews, the latest Bond movie, Quantum of Solace, received its world premiere last night at the London Film Festival. Joining the 007 actor Daniel Craig on the red carpet at Leicester Square were Princes William (pictured with Craig) and Harry, who attracted as many cat-calls from fans as the cast, which includes Bond girls Olga Kurylenko and Gemma Arterton, and the actress who plays M, Dame Judi Dench.

Arterton, who wore a revealing purple dress, appeared more impressed by being in the company of the heir to the throne than attending the event itself. She said: "I never thought I'd meet royalty so I've had to scrub up and be on my best behaviour."

Craig, who was with long-time partner Satsuki Mitchell, has certainly won over many of his early sceptics. Times film critic James Christopher believes "he has defined himself as a darker and more bare-knuckle Bond than any of his elegant predecessors". Commenting on this more macho version on Wednesday, his predecessor Sir Roger Moore said: "I was a lover - Daniel craig is a killer."

Also in attendance was Jack White, of the White Stripes and The Raconteurs, who along with Alicia Keys supplied the soundtrack song, Another Way To Die. However, their combined talents have failed to make much of an impression on the charts. The song is currently at number 18.

Named after a short story by Bond creator Ian Fleming, Quantum Of Solace is reported to have cost $230m to make. Despite the so-so reviews – while praising Craig’s interpretation of secret agent 007, they have described the new film variously as “witless” and even “boring” - it is widely expected to eclipse the success of 2006's Casino Royale, which took $594m at the box office worldwide, when it goes on general release on Friday.