Dame Stella Rimington, MI5’s first female director general, has died, her family have said.
Dame Stella, who headed the security service from 1992 to 1996, was widely credited as being the model for Dame Judi Dench’s M in the James Bond films.
She joined MI5 full time in 1969, and served as deputy director general in 1991 before being promoted to director general a year later.
After retiring from the service, Dame Stella began a career as a novelist.
In a statement, her family said: “She died surrounded by her beloved family and dogs and determinedly held on to the life she loved until her last breath.”
Dame Stella was the first director general to be publicly identified when appointed – and when a newspaper published a photo of her house, she and her family had to move to a covert location for their own protection
Paying tribute, current MI5 director general Sir Ken McCallum said his predecessor, as the first publicly stated female head of any intelligence agency in the world, “broke through long-standing barriers and was a visible example of the importance of diversity in leadership”.
“Her leadership ushered in a new era of openness and transparency about the work MI5 does to keep this country safe, a legacy that continues to this day,” he said.
In a statement on its website, MI5 said Dame Stella had a varied career in the service “including roles in counter-subversion, counter-espionage and counter-terrorism”.
“MI5 underwent far-reaching transformation under Dame Stella’s leadership,” it said.
“She oversaw MI5 taking lead responsibility for countering Irish republican terrorism in Great Britain, the move of MI5’s headquarters to Thames House, and instituted a policy of greater public openness to demystify the work of MI5 including beginning a programme of releasing MI5 files to The National Archives.”
