Sean Connery Slept in Coffin until Workmate Gave Him Room — After ‘James Bond’ Fame They Still Met

Sir Sean Connery made history as “James Bond,” but he had almost a zero chance of getting the role as producers didn’t want an actor from the “working class.” However, Sean never feared hard work, as he’d left school at 13 to start working. A young Sean had to sleep in a coffin at the place he worked after being homeless.

In October 2020, Sir Sean Connery died at age 90, with his son, Jason Connery, sharing how the actor had passed on peacefully in his sleep. The star’s son revealed that his father had been unwell for a while before his death in Nassau in the Bahamas.

Jason revealed how the late actor had family around him when he died. He shared how the family was learning to deal with the passing and that it was a sad day for those who knew and loved Sean.

Sean Connery at the 35th AFI Life Achievement Award tribute to Al Pacino on June 7, 2007, in Hollywood, California | Source: Getty Images

The star left behind two sons, Stephane and Jason, and his wife of 47 years, Micheline Roquebrune. Sean was best known for his role as “James Bond” but always hated Hollywood’s lifestyle and preferred being at his Portugal, Spain, and Caribbean homes.

Sean Connery, his wife Micheline, son Jason, Suzy, Stephane, and Tania in Paris in 1992 | Source: Getty Images

The actor, who met Roquebrune in Morocco, enjoyed playing golf when he was home. Sean‘s choice not to live out in luxury might have been solidified by the hard times he had before he became famous.

Sean Was a Milkman, Mariner, and Coffin Cleaner before Becoming “James Bond”

On August 25, 1930, Thomas Sean Connery was born to a Catholic factory worker and a Protestant domestic cleaner in Fountainbridge, Edinburgh. He grew up in a one-room home with no hot water and had to share a toilet.

The future star left school when he was 13 and had to work delivering milk as he had no qualifications. At age 14, on July 20, 1944, Sean started working as a Corstorphine Dairy barrow worker.

He later joined the Royal Navy at 16 after being drafted, and three years later, he was invalided due to stomach ulcers. At one point, the future star learned French polishing and had no place to stay. He stayed overnight in Haddington at a coffin maker’s workshop, and before becoming famous, he was known by his first name.

Fortune Avenue, Haddington’s Tommy Wark recalled how Sean was known as “Tom.” Wark worked on the joinery side of things while Sean polished caskets with two women, adding:

“He came there to start work about 1950 and had nowhere to stay. I know he spent a few nights sleeping in a coffin just after he started.”

Sean Connery was given his first chance in a leading role when he was cast as Mountain McLintock in “Requiem for a Heavyweight” in March 1957 | Source: Getty Images

Even after becoming famous, the actor never forgot the kindness he received from the family, and from time to time, he’d visit them. Sean’s road to becoming an actor was also not easy, and he faced rejection.

Connery Became a Legendary Actor despite Producers Seeing Him as a “Working-Class Scot”

Sean once recalled growing up with no expectation of having a career, with acting being the farthest thing on his mind. The star revealed how he’d never planned to become an actor, and it was all “happenstance.”

Sean Connery on the set of “Dr. No” in 1963 | Source: Getty Images

His first passion was bodybuilding; in 1953, he attended a London bodybuilding competition. While there, another bodybuilder said “South Pacific” auditions were being held at the King’s Theatre.

The star [Sir Sean Connery] never did a screen test having proved how masculine, confident, and assertive he was to the producers.

Sean went with and initially got a position in the chorus but worked his way up to the understudy of the lead star as he had natural talent. He was chosen for small parts in several diverse movies throughout the next decade.

Sean Connery, as James Bond, in January 1968 | Source: Getty Images

While working to make a name for himself, producers Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli and Harry Saltzman were looking for the man who’d play James Bond in “Dr. No.” Sean was a decade younger than the other actors auditioning for the role, and he didn’t have their experience.

He was described as “the working-class Scot,” and Ian Fleming, the writer of the “007” novels, told the producers he was looking for “Commander Bond, not an overgrown stunt man.” However, the producers still met with Sean for lunch.

Sean Connery, as James Bond, in 1966 | Source: Getty Images

His first impression wasn’t the best as he came looking disheveled with unironed clothes. However, Brocolli’s wife had convinced him to give the 32-year-old actor a chance, and at the end of the meal, Sean had gotten the part.

The star never did a screen test, having proved how masculine, confident, and assertive he was to the producers. Sean sealed the deal, glided out to his car, and was watched by the producers, who loved how he moved “like a jungle cat.” He ended up making history by starring in six Bond films!

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