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{{trope}}
[[File:mi6_7097mi6 7097.png|frame|[[James Bond|Well, they don't have the license to break traffic laws...]]]]
 
{{quote|"''Semper Occultus'' - Always Secret"|SIS motto.}}▼
|SIS motto.}}
 
The '''Secret Intelligence Service''', almost always referred to in media by the term "MI6" ('''''M'''ilitary '''I'''ntelligence '''6''''), is the external intelligence agency for the United Kingdom, roughly equivalent to the United States' [[CIA]].▼
▲{{quote|"''Semper Occultus'' - Always Secret"|SIS motto.}}
 
Formed as the Secret Service Bureau in 1909 under the leadership of Captain Sir George Mansfield Smith-Cumming,<ref>an ex-sailor who was eccentric to say the least, writing in green ink and stabbing his false leg with a penknife to shock people</ref>, its existence was not officially acknowledged until 1994, although it now has a [https://web.archive.org/web/20101008002027/http://www.sis.gov.uk/output/sis-home-welcome.html website].▼
▲The Secret Intelligence Service, almost always referred to in media by the term "MI6" ('''''M'''ilitary '''I'''ntelligence '''6''''), is the external intelligence agency for the United Kingdom, roughly equivalent to the United States' [[CIA]].
 
▲Formed as the Secret Service Bureau in 1909 under the leadership of Captain Sir George Mansfield Smith-Cumming<ref>an ex-sailor who was eccentric to say the least, writing in green ink and stabbing his false leg with a penknife to shock people</ref>, its existence was not officially acknowledged until 1994, although it now has a [http://www.sis.gov.uk/output/sis-home-welcome.html website].
 
Its reputation in media is inextricably linked to the [[James Bond]] mythos, and the agency's appearances in media tend to either play to, or directly contradict such notions.
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It has a rather [[Home Base|cool base]], namely its headquarters at Vauxhall Cross.
 
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=== {{examples|Works Involving The Secret Intelligence Service include: ===}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* Several characters in ''[[Darker Thanthan Black]]'' work for the SIS. One of the agents, April, gets annoyed when it's called [[MI 6]]MI6.
* Been known to employ ''[[Golgo 13]]''.
 
== [[Comic Books]] ==
* ''[[Queen and Country (Comic Book)|Queen and Country]]''
* Alfred Pennyworth, butler to [[Batman]] is usually depicted as having been an [[MI 6]]MI6 agent in his backstory.
** Except in ''[[The Dark Knight Trilogy]]'', where it appears that he was a member of the [[Brits With Battleships|Special Air Service]]...which abbreviates to S''A''S.
*** Though it would not be too unlikely for someone to have joined the SIS after leaving the military.
* [[The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen]] were originally [[MI 6]]MI6 operatives, the "Black Dossier" also details the founding and history of the agency in that world.
* Shang Chi and various characters from his comic book work for [[MI 6]]MI6.
 
== [[Fan FictionWorks]] ==
* Plays a role in ''[[Kira Is Justice (Fanfic)|Kira Is Justice]]'' by sending sixteen agents to Chicago to try to find the new Kira. Unlike most media, [[Did Not Do the Research|who are too lazy to look up the proper name]], it is referred to by the SIS instead of the [[MI 6]]MI6. [[Take That]]!
 
== [[Film]] ==
* ''[[James Bond]]'' in all his various incarnations.
* The film version of ''[[Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Filmfilm)|Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy]]''.
 
== [[Literature]] ==
* ''[[Alex Rider (Literature)|Alex Rider]]''
* The works of [[John Le Carre]]. As matters were still classified when he wrote, he changed some things, such as using "Control" rather than "C" and having [[MI 6]]MI6 nicknamed "the Circus" because its headquarters were said to be on Cambridge Circus (in reality it wasn't).
** A real-life ex-SIS officer too.
* The ''[[Bernard Samson seriesSeries]]''.
* ''[[The Laundry Series]]'' by [[Charles Stross]], although only in passing. The Laundry itself is the sole surviving section of the [[WW 2]] [[SOE|Special Operations Executive]]. [[MI 6]]MI6 do not have a very high opinion of them, and the feeling is mutual.
* In the novel (but not [[The Movie]]) ''[[The Hunt for Red October]]'', British and US cooperation in tracking down the titular submarine includes interaction between [[MI 6]]MI6 and the [[CIA]].
** As do many other [[Tom Clancy]] novels.
* Some works during the 1960s and '70s referred to the name being changed to [[DI 6]]DI6 ([[MIMI5, they 5]]indicated, was also renamed [[DI 5]]DI5). HowWhether accurate thisthere was isany uncertaintruth --to thethis is uncertain—the SIS website doesn't seem to mention it at all -- butall—but more than one author used the new names (examples include Michael Gilbert's "Mr. Calder and Mr. Behrens" stories and Martin Woodhouse's "Giles Yeoman" series).
* In one episode of ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'', Bashir plays James Bond in the holodeck.
 
== [[Live-Action TV]] ==
* ''[[The Sandbaggers]]''
* It is not certain, but it is usually assumed that Number 6 from ''[[The Prisoner (TV)|The Prisoner]]'' is a former [[MI 6]]MI6 agent.
* ''[[Lie to Me (TV series)|Lie to Me]]'': Cal Lightman is former [[MI 6]]MI6, as we find out in "Secret Santa", and was in the Yugoslavia Wars.
* ''[[Spooks]]'' is about [[MI 5]]MI5, but many episodes also include [[MI 6]]MI6.
** In fact, Adam, Fiona, Zaf and Ros all came over from [[MI 6]]MI6.
* ''[[Danger Man (TV)|Danger Man]]''
* ''[[The Piglet Files]]'' is a comedy about [[MI 5]]MI5.
 
== [[Video Games]] ==
* ''Blake Stone'', a futuristic FPS series of games by Apogee.
* An expository loading screen in ''[[Modern Warfare]] 3'' has MI6, MI5, and the SAS working in tandem to stop a suspected terrorist plot in London.
* [[The Federation|The Republic's]] [[Fun Withwith Acronyms|Strategic Information Service]] in ''[[Star WarstheWars: The Old Republic]]'' is almost certainly a reference to [[MI 6]]MI6.
 
{{reflist}}
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