In the above scene from Casino Royale (2006), Judi Dench’s M and Daniel Craig’s James Bond have a heated exchange at her abode about his disastrous, headline-grabbing mission at the start of the movie. His sloppy parkour chase ended with an unarmed man (albeit an international terrorist bombmaker) killed and a headache for MI6.
After grilling him for a bit, M is also perplexed as to how Bond found out where she lived. To which Bond replies that it was just as easy as finding out what the M actually stood for. M quickly interjected her disdain and threat of murder (!). I remember this exchange piquing a lot of interest in Bond fans when Casino Royale came out, but much to our chagrin her name was never referenced again for the remainder of the movie.
In later Craig Bond movies, however, her name is referenced a few other times, albeit in different circumstances and still leading to more questions than answers.
Most notably:
- “Mum” – In Skyfall (2012), Bond oddly (affectionately?) refers to her as ‘mum’ on several occasions. Maybe this is an MI6 inside joke/reference to her being a woman M, so “mum”? Or just British slang or a drawl?
- Emma/Em – Also later in Skyfall, Kincaid brazenly refers to her as “Emma” – leaving the question open as to whether that’s her actual given name, or just another English play on words of the letter M? Or does he think Bond is shortening “Emma” to “Em” and doesn’t know that M is her MI6 code name
But, all is not so. As seen in the below screenshot, Dench’s M’s real name is actually revealed at the end of Skyfall (2012), where Moneypenny hands Bond a box containing the dreaded figurine of Jack, the Union Jack bulldog.
The real name of M (Judi Dench) is revealed in Skyfall (2012) as Olivia Mansfield
It’s a single frame, but you can clearly see M’s full name Olivia Mansfield visible and the package recipient’s name, James Bond (here it is zoomed in):
The real name of M (Judi Dench) is revealed in Skyfall (2012) as Olivia Mansfield
As Olivia Mansfield was deemed as canon by EON Productions, the name speculation is put to bed. Some fans have gone a bit further though, and deemed the name a play on words of the male-dominated field of espionage and the head of MI6 (code named “C” in real life actually) as a “man’s” “field.” It would have been interesting to have heard Dench’s M finally referred to as Mansfield for once, but oh well.
Regardless, if the above revelation didn’t happen, I still like to guess what name Dench’s M could have possibly have been. Here are my top 007 “M” guesses (all of which according to Google were the most popular girls names in the 1930s, the decade when Judi Dench was born):
- Margaret
- Mary
- Marilyn
- Martha
- Marie
- Mildred
- Marjorie
The Tomorrow Never Dies opening title card
There, I said it. And yes, it is better than Pierce Brosnan’s first outing as 007 in GoldenEye (1995). * GASP *
Hear me out:
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After Bond saves the Skyfleet S570 airliner from destruction in Casino Royale (2006), revenge is paid to the person that tipped him off to the terrorist plot.
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This training scene from Die Another Day (2002) was pretty sweet. Not often do we get insight into 007’s training regimen, but here the audience is immersed in it perfectly. I remember thinking this was a dream sequence when I saw it in the theater, and aside from the jarring image of a dead Moneypenny at her desk with a gunshot wound to the head, I knew it was a farce when Bond’s bullet hit M’s hostage-taker’s arm and did no damage.
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Judi Dench as M in The World Is Not Enough (1999)
So is M more concerned about seeking justice for Robert King’s murder or the desktop taxidermy at MI6’s Scotland headquarters? 🙂
