Stella Rimington, First Female Head of MI5, Dies

Stella Rimington, the first woman to head Britain's MI5 counter-intelligence service, has died at the age of 90.

Rimington took office in 1992 and remained head of the service for four years. She was also the first head of the service to be publicly named.

Her family announced that she died surrounded by her loved ones. She is considered to have been the inspiration for the role of M in the James Bond films, played by Judi Dench.

In addition to her career in the secret service, Rimington was also an author.