Aside from giving us a chance to hone our acting skills, we love a spy flick because the protagonists are always so bloody well-dressed. The gadgets and the girls may change, but a spy’s sense of style is unflinching. Ahead of the release of Kingsman: The Secret Services, here’s our run-down of movie land's most dapper men of mystery.

1. Harry Hart, Kingsman: The Secret Service

Gone are Colin Firth’s wooly jumper days. As Harry Hart in British spy film Kingsman, Firth is so suave that his wardrobe has now inspired a real-life clothing line. The collection has been developed by the film’s director, Matthew Vaughn, alongside costume designer Arianna Phillips and clothing site Mr Porter, and it features 60 items of clothing from the film. We’ll look forward to seeing a sea of Harry Hart wannabes waltzing around Waitrose soon, then.

2. Peter Guillam, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Tinker Tailor, Soldier, Spy’s Peter Guillam – played by Benedict Cumberbatch – embodies everything that’s great about 1970s style, without being too OTT. You won’t find any oversized collars or sequins here; instead the finesse of Guillam’s style is all in the small details and fine tailoring. And the ever-cool Cumberbatch proved he was ahead of the style pack once again: with a 1970s fashion revival on its way this season, Guillam’s electric blue ties and wide-leg trousers are just so 2015.

3. Harry Palmer, The Ipcress File

Michael Caine’s Harry Palmer is the anti-Bond: a skint M15 agent who lives on his own, has a cat and wears glasses. He may not sound like the king of cool, but Caine’s rebel-without-a-cause character proved that British style doesn’t need to revolve around a Savile Row suit – though let’s be honest, that’s never a bad place to start. Instead, Palmer is inspired by understated 1960s style, which celebrates homegrown brands such as Oliver Goldsmith and Aquascutum. The combination of Palmer’s beige overcoat and thick-rimmed glasses might sound a bit pervy, but in The Ipcress File, Caine makes the look nothing less than iconic.

4. James Bond, various

No one rocks blacktie like Bond. Fact. It’s how we first meet him in Doctor No: wearing an Anthony Sinclair Conduit Cut midnight blue dinner jacket with a satin collar. But what makes Bond the spy-style king is his versatility: from Roger Moore’s ski attire in The Spy Who Loved Me (who else can pull off a canary yellow all-in one?) to Connery’s classic trilby and flannel blazer in Goldfinger, to Daniel Craig’s eye-wateringly tight swim trunks in Casino Royale (no, you couldn’t pull off that look), Bond’s always impeccably dressed, whatever the occasion.

5. Arthur, Inception

When you’re watching a film by director genius Christopher Nolan nothing is accidental. Played by off-screen style magnet, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Arthur’s classic structured suits reflect his measured personality and attention to detail. His slim fit, grey coordinating three-piece numbers and slicked back hair are timelessly debonair. And Arthur does casual just as well, wearing a tan leather jacket with a mute check shirt and cotton chinos. Or did you just dream all that? I guess we’ll never know?

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