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Top 5 Sean Connery impressions by celebrities on TV including Liam Neeson, Darrell Hammond and Julia Ormond

Here is our round-up of the most famous and spot-on celeb impressions of his iconic voice that often became part of extended parody skits, comedy sketches and tributes to the man himself

Sean Connery will always remain immortal not only for his role as 007 James Bond but also because of his voice. Just like the other greats, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, Sean Connery's distinctive voice and cadence made him a part of enduring popular culture.

So much so that most celebrities have tried to mimic his thick Scottish brogue that the actor was once told was too difficult for listeners to understand. Here is our round-up of the most famous and spot-on celeb impressions of his iconic voice that often became part of extended parody skits, comedy sketches and tributes to the man himself.

Eddie Izzard

It takes guts to do a Sean Connery in front of Sean Connery. But that is exactly what Eddie Izzard did in 2006 when he introduced Connery, the recipient of that year's American Film Institute's 'Lifetime Achievement' award. In his bit, besides employing his Connery impression in several 007-type situations, he spoke about how many people did impressions of Connery. This included him, but in French no less, during his sets in Paris.

Darrell Hammond

One of Darrell Hammond's most famous impressions on 'Saturday Night Live' was Sean Connery. However, while he nailed the voice and accent, Hammond only did the impression for the 'Celebrity Jeopardy!' sketches in which he took delight in insulting the host played by Will Ferrell. Hammond paid tribute to Connery by posting a link to one of these sketches, writing: "Sorry to hear of the passing of #SeanConnery, my condolences to his family. Always loved doing my silly impressions of him, RIP". He then quoted the absurd lines in the sketch. After Ferrell says, "Mr Connery you wear me out!", Hammond says, “You didn’t say that last night when I was pumping moo goo gai pan all over your tonsils!”

Liam Neeson

Before he got his own iconic line from the film 'Taken' -- "I will find you and I will kill you" -- Liam Neeson famously used his Connery impression to get people to answer their phones quicker. He spilled the beans on 'The Graham Norton Show' saying that he would sometimes call up his agent pretending to be Connery in order to get through faster. Later in his career, Neeson himself would be "heavily courted" to play 007 himself but turned down the role after his wife-to-be, Natasha Richardson, said that she wouldn't' marry him if he took the role. But can you imagine how much more iconic his impression of Connery would be if he was cast as Bond?

Craig Ferguson

Another late night entrant to the Sean Connery impression club was fellow-Scotsman Craig Ferguson. While he pulled out the accent often enough in his conversations with his beloved Geoff the robot skeleton and even during his monologues, he did something special in 2008. In a special skit with Jim Parsons playing the villain with an eye patch, Ferguson transformed into Bond (Connery style) with an almost unintelligible take on the actor's voice. Who else could do Connery's Scottish brogue better than a man who famously didn't lose his Scottish accent in all his years on American television? 

 Julia Ormond

As the only female impressionist of Sean Connery on a public platform, Julia Ormond earns her slot. She soaked in Connery's brogue after starring with him in 1995’s 'First Knight', playing Guinevere to Connery’s Arthur. She, like Izzard, was paying tribute to Connery and she mouthed the iconic line from 'Casino Royale', "My Name is Bond, James Bond" and revealed that as a 16-year-old, she discovered the meaning of sexy by rewinding and playing that scene over and over again. As she put it, some icons never age.