The news that the James Bond franchise will be taken on by Amazon has reignited one of pop culture’s favourite debates: after more than half a century being portrayed as a man sleuthing glamorously around the world, should the next Bond be a woman? And if so, are we supposed to be… grateful?

If you ask me, women deserve better than a hand-me-down hero – what’s more, to suggest that swapping James for Jane would wipe clean the spy’s chauvinist slate is not only patronising but insulting. Gender swapping classic characters can be a powerful way to represent broader identities than cliched archetypes had previously allowed. But the gesture can also be trite, flippantly purporting to resolve a whole host of societal hang ups with one simple switch .

If only it were so easy: I promise, su

See Full Page