He was raised in a two-bedroom house with no bathroom and left school at 13 to push barrows for a little over £1 a week.

After rising from such humble beginnings to become a fabulously-rich movie star, it is perhaps unsurprising that Sir Sean Connery wanted his son to have the same work ethic.

According to his former wife, Diane Cilento, the former James Bond actor told his son Jason that he would never receive a penny of his £85million fortune.

Sir Sean Connery and Jason: 'Difficult relationship'

She said Connery was determined that Jason should pursue a career and earn his own living, rather than sponging off his father.

But Miss Cilento, who was married to Connery for 11 years before their bitter divorce in 1973, said Connery's determination to cut Jason off financially meant they had a difficult relationship.

She claims that at one stage Jason, who now works as an actor and film director, threatened to change his name after Connery accused him of cashing in on his father's fame.

Australian-born Miss Cilento told the Sunday Times: 'Sean said, "You only got this (acting) job because your name's Connery." 'Jason said, "Well, I'll change it to something else." Sean said, "If you do that I'll f****** kill you."

'Jason loves him but Sean has a problem about relationships, as everybody round him knows. Jason is a very devoted son  -  when Sean is sick he rushes there. They play golf together.'

Connery with his former wife Diane Cilento and Jason aged four

Connery, 77, is due next month to publish his long-awaited autobiography, Being A Scot.

It details his upbringing in the industrial end of Edinburgh by his mother and father, a cleaner and truck driver respectively.

There was no bathroom and the family had to use a communal toilet outside.

Aged 14 he earned 21 shillings (£1.05) a week as a barrow pusher before working as a lorry driver, labourer, coffin polisher and artist's model.

Before landing the part of James Bond in the 1962 film Dr No, Connery spent some time as a milkman.

Connery in a scene from the film The Presidio in 1988

Jason, 45, is Connery's only child and developed an interest in acting while a boarder at Gordonstoun.

He was accepted to the Bristol Old Vic drama school and the Perth Repertory Company, where, as well as acting he worked as an assistant stage manager to earn his Equity card.

According to friends, Jason, who is best known for the title role in the 1985 television series Robin of Sherwood, was so poor in the early 1980s that he relied on handouts from other actors to survive.

Jason, who has recently finished directing his second film, an action thriller which stars Cuba Gooding Jnr and Ray Winstone, refused to comment on his mother's revelations.

Connery, who lives in the Bahamas, has also declined to reveal if his son will inherit any of his fortune.

However, the 007 star, who was knighted by the Queen in his home city in July 2000, is one of a growing number of wealthy individuals who have refused to subsidise their children and have forced them to stand on their own two feet.

Body Shop founder Anita Roddick gave her £51million fortune away before her death at the age of 64 last year, without passing any of her money on to her daughters, Sam and Justine.

Billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Barron Hilton  -  Paris Hilton's rich grandfather  -  and Nigella Lawson have all said their children will not receive the majority of their fortunes on their deaths.