Former Directors General

Former Directors General

The former Directors General of MI5

Between 1909, when the MI5 was founded (as the Secret Service Bureau) and the present day, there have been 17 Directors General (simply called “Directors” until 1941). Until 1993, the Prime Minister appointed them in secret, and their names and roles were not disclosed to the general public.

The first Director General to be publicly named was Dame Stella Rimington, although the names of several previous DGs had become public knowledge before then.

Since 1993, it has been MI5's policy to name its Directors General. Ken McCallum is the current Director General. In recent years, our Directors General have tended to serve for 5-7 years.

Sir Andrew Parker

Director General 2013 - 20

Former Director General, Jonathan Evans

Director General 2007 - 13

Sir Stephen Lander

Director General 1996 - 2002

Dame Stella Rimington

Director General 1992 - 96

Sir Patrick Walker

Director General 1987 - 92

Picture of Sir Antony Duff

Director General 1985 - 88

Headshot of Sir John Jones

Director General 1981 - 85

Picture of Sir Howard Smith

Director General 1978 - 81

Photo of Sir Michael Hanley

Director General 1972 - 76

Portrait of Sir Martin Furnival Jones

Director General 1965 - 72

Portrait of Sir Roger Hollis

Director General 1956 - 65

Portrait of Sir Dick White

Director General 1953 - 56

Portrait of Sir Percy Sillitoe

Director General 1946 - 53

Portrait of Sir David Petrie

Director General 1941 - 46

Portrait of Brigadier Oswald Allen Harker

Director General 1940 - 41

Portrait of Major-General Sir Vernon Kell

Director General 1909 - 40