Screen secret agent James Bond is to defect – by leaving ITV after more than 30 years and heading to Sky Movies.

Sky has landed the rights to screen all the 007 films in HD ahead of the 50th anniversary of the release of the first Bond title Dr No later this year.

It will also screen the next movie in the series, Skyfall, starring Daniel Craig, in 2013.

The deal with MGM ends an unbroken run of deals with ITV going back to 1975, with the 007 films still continuing to be regularly screened on the network's digital channels.

The new deal kicks in from October, although its duration is not clear.

Ian Lewis, director of Sky Movies, said: "Everything about these films is iconic –whether it's the cars, the gadgets or catchphrases."