The latest incident has left a stuntman in a coma after the shooting for the opening scene went wrong for a second time. It involves a villain chasing Bond¹s DBS in an Alfa Romeo 159.

The Greek stuntman, Aris Comninos, suffered a fractured cranium after colliding with a lorry and is currently described as stable. He was involved in a crash a week ago filming the same scene, with a re-shoot ordered after the production team weren¹t happy with the initial result.

Comninos has a heap of experience, winning a Screen Actors Guild award for his involvement with the Bourne Ultimatum ­ another film with an action-packed car chase as its highlight.

The second incident came on the penultimate day of shooting, with claims the film and its 40 stuntmen are cursed. It all began with scenes of the demolished DBS littering the newspapers after an Aston engineer spun it into the water while driving to a press event ­ incurring a speeding fine rom the Italian police in the process. Despite the drama, he got out and swam from the car unharmed.