Dame Stella Rimington

Dame Stella was formerly Director General of the Security Service (MI5). She is invited to speak at a wide range of events for audiences including major corporate clients, business professionals, public and private sectors, trades associations and schools. Her straightforward approach and friendly manner are combined with an informed view and intelligent judgement. She tailors her speech and is excellent at Q&A.

Born in 1935 and educated at Nottingham High School for Girls and Edinburgh University, she gained a postgraduate diploma in the Study of Records and the Administration of Archives at Liverpool University, and worked in the Worcester County Record Office and the India Office Library, London. In 1965 she accompanied her husband on a posting to the British High Commission. Whilst there, she worked part-time for the Security Service at their office in New Delhi and joined the Service full-time on her return to the UK. She worked in all three main fields of the Service - counter-subversion, counter-espionage and counter-terrorism, becoming successively Director of all three branches. Appointed Director General of MI5 in 1992, Stella Rimington was the first woman to take the post and the first Director General to be publicly named. She retired in April 1996.

Made a Dame Commander of the Bath in the 1996 New Year Honours List, she has received Honorary Degrees from Nottingham and Exeter Universities. She was formerly Non-Executive Director of Marks & Spencer Plc and BG Group Plc, Chairman of the Institute of Cancer Research and Trustee of the Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Trust. Dame Stella was Honorary Air Commodore of 7006 (VR) Intelligence Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force and a Trustee of the RAF Museum.

Her autobiography Open Secret has been followed by a series of acclaimed thriller novels featuring MI5 agent Liz Carlyle. In 2012, Dame Stella chaired the Judging Panel for the Booker Prize for Fiction.

Dame Stella is known to billions of people worldwide as she was the role model for the character of “M” played by Dame Judi Dench in the James Bond 007 films.

To book Dame Stella for your event please call a Prime Performers Booking Agent on 020 3500 3331 or email us at info@primeperformers.co.uk