Stella Rimington
Encyclopedia
Dame Stella Rimington, DCB
(born 13 May 1935) is a British author
, who was the Director General of MI5 from 1992 to 1996. She was the first female DG of MI5
, and the first DG whose name was publicised on appointment. In 1993, Stella Rimington became the first DG of MI5 to pose openly for cameras at the launch of a brochure outlining the organisation's activities.
, England, Rimington's family moved from South Norwood
to Essex
in 1939, due to the danger of living in London during World War II
. Her father got a job as chief draughtsman at a steel works in Barrow-in-Furness
in Cumbria
, and the family moved there after spending some time in Wallasey
. When her father got a job in Ilkeston
, Derbyshire
, the family moved to the Midlands
, where Stella attended Nottingham High School for Girls
. She spent her last summer of secondary school working as an au pair
in Paris, France, before enrolling at the University of Edinburgh
in 1954 to study English
. By chance, she met her future husband, John Rimington, whom she had known from Nottingham
.
Completing her degree in 1958, she studied archive administration at the University of Liverpool
, before beginning work as an archivist
at the County Record Office in Worcester
in 1959. In 1961, she married John Rimington and moved to London, where she successfully applied for a position at the India Office
Library.
In 1965, her husband was offered an overseas posting as First Secretary (Economic) for the British High Commission in New Delhi
, India
, and the couple sailed to India in September.
). Gaining her security clearance, Rimington worked in the MI5 office for nearly two years, until the she and her husband returned to London in 1969, where she decided to apply for a permanent position at MI5.
Between 1969 and 1990, Rimington worked in all three branches of the Security Service: counter espionage, counter subversion, and counter terrorism. In 1984, she and her husband John separated, with Stella retaining custody of their two daughters. In 1990, she was promoted to one of the Service's two Deputy Director-General positions, where she oversaw MI5's move to Thames House
. In December 1991, she made a visit to Moscow
to make the first friendly contact between the British intelligence services and their old enemies the KGB
. On her return from Russia
, she was told she had been promoted to Director-General.
and The Independent
had obtained and published covert photographs of her, despite which Rimington oversaw a (largely successful) public relations campaign to improve the openness
of the Service and increase public transparency. On 16 July 1993, MI5 (with the reluctant approval of the British Government) published a 36-page booklet titled The Security Service, which revealed publicly, for the first time, details of MI5's activities, operations and duties, as well as the identity and even photographs of Rimington as Director-General.
Stella Rimington retired from MI5 in 1996. She was made a Dame Commander of Order of the Bath
(DCB) in the New Year Honours List
in 1996.
and BG Group
.
Rimington controversially continued her policy of openness about the Service by publishing her memoir
s, entitled Open Secret, in 2001. In July 2004, her first novel, At Risk, about a female intelligence officer, was published. Her other novels are Secret Asset (August 2006), Illegal Action (August 2007), Dead Line (October 2008), Present Danger (September 2009), and Rip Tide (July 2011). Her novels are part of a new trend of "insider" spy fiction
appearing in both the U.K. and in the U.S.A.
In 2004, she continued her interest in archives, fostered by her early career, through involvement with the Archives Task Force, where she visited a number of archives through the country and contributed to the report for the future strategy of archives in the UK.
In November, 2005 she spoke out against national ID cards
. She has also described the U.S. response to the 9/11 attacks as a "huge overreaction." In remarks reported in 2009, Rimington expressed concerns that the Brown administration was not "recognizing that there are risks, rather than frightening people in order to be able to pass laws which restrict civil liberties, precisely one of the objects of terrorism: that we live in fear and under a police state.”
On 5 October 2009 the BBC
broadcast a statement from Rimington who claimed that certain MI5 files collected by her predecessors had been destroyed, but without clarifying whether this took place during her appointment as Director-General, or as part of her later involvement with the Archives Task Force.
In 2009, Stella received an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science from Nottingham Trent University
in recognition of her support for openness about the work of the secret service.
In November 2010 it was revealed that she would be chairing the 2011 Man Booker Prize
.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(born 13 May 1935) is a British author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, who was the Director General of MI5 from 1992 to 1996. She was the first female DG of MI5
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
, and the first DG whose name was publicised on appointment. In 1993, Stella Rimington became the first DG of MI5 to pose openly for cameras at the launch of a brochure outlining the organisation's activities.
Early life
Born Stella Whitehouse in south LondonSouth London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
, England, Rimington's family moved from South Norwood
South Norwood
South Norwood is an urban town and in south London, England, in the London Borough of Croydon. It is a suburban development 7.8 miles south-east of Charing Cross. South Norwood is an electoral with a resident population in 2001 of just over 14,000...
to Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
in 1939, due to the danger of living in London during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Her father got a job as chief draughtsman at a steel works in Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is an industrial town and seaport which forms about half the territory of the wider Borough of Barrow-in-Furness in the county of Cumbria, England. It lies north of Liverpool, northwest of Manchester and southwest from the county town of Carlisle...
in Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, and the family moved there after spending some time in Wallasey
Wallasey
Wallasey is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England, on the mouth of the River Mersey, at the northeastern corner of the Wirral Peninsula...
. When her father got a job in Ilkeston
Ilkeston
Ilkeston is a town within the Borough of Erewash, in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the River Erewash, from which the local borough takes its name. Its population at the 2001 census was 37,550...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, the family moved to the Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
, where Stella attended Nottingham High School for Girls
Nottingham High School for Girls
Nottingham Girls' High School is an independent fee-paying girls' private school, part of the Girls' Day School Trust, founded in 1875, situated just north of Nottingham city centre.-Facilities:...
. She spent her last summer of secondary school working as an au pair
Au pair
An au pair is a domestic assistant from a foreign country working for, and living as part of, a host family. Typically, au pairs take on a share of the family's responsibility for childcare as well as some housework, and receive a small monetary allowance for personal use...
in Paris, France, before enrolling at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
in 1954 to study English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. By chance, she met her future husband, John Rimington, whom she had known from Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
.
Completing her degree in 1958, she studied archive administration at the University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
, before beginning work as an archivist
Archivist
An archivist is a professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to information determined to have long-term value. The information maintained by an archivist can be any form of media...
at the County Record Office in Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
in 1959. In 1961, she married John Rimington and moved to London, where she successfully applied for a position at the India Office
India Office
The India Office was a British government department created in 1858 to oversee the colonial administration of India, i.e. the modern-day nations of Bangladesh, Burma, India, and Pakistan, as well as territories in South-east and Central Asia, the Middle East, and parts of the east coast of Africa...
Library.
In 1965, her husband was offered an overseas posting as First Secretary (Economic) for the British High Commission in New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, and the couple sailed to India in September.
India and MI5
In 1967, after two years in India, Rimington was asked to assist one of the First Secretaries at the High Commission with his office work. She agreed, and when she began, discovered that he was the representative in India of the British Security Service (MI5MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
). Gaining her security clearance, Rimington worked in the MI5 office for nearly two years, until the she and her husband returned to London in 1969, where she decided to apply for a permanent position at MI5.
Between 1969 and 1990, Rimington worked in all three branches of the Security Service: counter espionage, counter subversion, and counter terrorism. In 1984, she and her husband John separated, with Stella retaining custody of their two daughters. In 1990, she was promoted to one of the Service's two Deputy Director-General positions, where she oversaw MI5's move to Thames House
Thames House
Thames House is an office development in Millbank, London, on the north bank of the River Thames adjacent to Lambeth Bridge, designed originally as commercial head offices...
. In December 1991, she made a visit to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
to make the first friendly contact between the British intelligence services and their old enemies the KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
. On her return from Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, she was told she had been promoted to Director-General.
Director-General
In her first months as Director-General, Rimington was subject to a determined campaign by the British press to identify her. The New StatesmanNew Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
and The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
had obtained and published covert photographs of her, despite which Rimington oversaw a (largely successful) public relations campaign to improve the openness
Openness
Openness is the quality of being open. It sometimes refers to a very general philosophical position from which some individuals and organizations operate, often highlighted by a decision-making process recognizing communal management by distributed stakeholders rather than a centralized authority...
of the Service and increase public transparency. On 16 July 1993, MI5 (with the reluctant approval of the British Government) published a 36-page booklet titled The Security Service, which revealed publicly, for the first time, details of MI5's activities, operations and duties, as well as the identity and even photographs of Rimington as Director-General.
Stella Rimington retired from MI5 in 1996. She was made a Dame Commander of Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(DCB) in the New Year Honours List
British honours system
The British honours system is a means of rewarding individuals' personal bravery, achievement, or service to the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories...
in 1996.
Post-MI5
Rimington's work after leaving MI5 has been as a non-executive director for companies such as Marks & SpencerMarks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer plc is a British retailer headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, with over 700 stores in the United Kingdom and over 300 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It specialises in the selling of clothing and luxury food products...
and BG Group
BG Group
BG Group plc is a global oil and gas company headquartered in Reading, United Kingdom. It has operations in 25 countries across Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, North America and South America and produces around 680,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. It has a major Liquefied Natural Gas ...
.
Rimington controversially continued her policy of openness about the Service by publishing her memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
s, entitled Open Secret, in 2001. In July 2004, her first novel, At Risk, about a female intelligence officer, was published. Her other novels are Secret Asset (August 2006), Illegal Action (August 2007), Dead Line (October 2008), Present Danger (September 2009), and Rip Tide (July 2011). Her novels are part of a new trend of "insider" spy fiction
Spy fiction
Spy fiction, literature concerning the forms of espionage, was a sub-genre derived from the novel during the nineteenth century, which then evolved into a discrete genre before the First World War , when governments established modern intelligence agencies in the early twentieth century...
appearing in both the U.K. and in the U.S.A.
In 2004, she continued her interest in archives, fostered by her early career, through involvement with the Archives Task Force, where she visited a number of archives through the country and contributed to the report for the future strategy of archives in the UK.
In November, 2005 she spoke out against national ID cards
British national identity card
The Identity Cards Act 2006 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It provided for National Identity Cards, a personal identification document and European Union travel document, linked to a database known as the National Identity Register .The introduction of the scheme was much...
. She has also described the U.S. response to the 9/11 attacks as a "huge overreaction." In remarks reported in 2009, Rimington expressed concerns that the Brown administration was not "recognizing that there are risks, rather than frightening people in order to be able to pass laws which restrict civil liberties, precisely one of the objects of terrorism: that we live in fear and under a police state.”
On 5 October 2009 the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
broadcast a statement from Rimington who claimed that certain MI5 files collected by her predecessors had been destroyed, but without clarifying whether this took place during her appointment as Director-General, or as part of her later involvement with the Archives Task Force.
In 2009, Stella received an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science from Nottingham Trent University
Nottingham Trent University
Nottingham Trent University is a public teaching and research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as a new university in 1992 from the existing Trent Polytechnic , however it can trace its roots back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham Government School of Design...
in recognition of her support for openness about the work of the secret service.
In November 2010 it was revealed that she would be chairing the 2011 Man Booker Prize
Man Booker Prize
The Man Booker Prize for Fiction is a literary prize awarded each year for the best original full-length novel, written in the English language, by a citizen of the Commonwealth of Nations, Ireland, or Zimbabwe. The winner of the Man Booker Prize is generally assured of international renown and...
.
At Risk
At Risk is the first novel by Stella Rimington, the former Director General of MI5, and brings her knowledge of spy operations to the thriller genre. Her heroine, 34-year-old Liz Carlyle, an MI5 intelligence officer, receives information that a terrorist threat is imminent, and that it will be assisted by an "invisible" young British woman who can easily blend into the background and cross borders easily. Liz must not only deal with the impending crisis, but she must put up with the patronizing sexist attitude from her MI6 partner. Danger lurks constantly for both Liz and the "invisible" woman as their paths come closer to each other. At Risk has received positive reviews with The Telegraph saying, "At Risk is breezily told, seldom pompous, and the plot, though every bit as hokey as you'd expect, winds its threads together very entertainingly."External links
- ABC.Net.au, Stella Rimington talks about her life and writing spy fiction.
- BBC.co.uk, 1993: Secret Service goes public.
- TrashOtron.com, Stella Rimington Interview at The Agony Column Podcast with Rick Kleffel on 25 July 2008