Sydney, March 4 : Dame Judi Dench was devastated when she was told Skyfall would be her last James Bond film.

But the 78-year-old admits that she "put on a brave face" to keep the plot twist secret.

The veteran actress, who played spy chief M in six 007 blockbusters before her character was killed off in her seventh film, Skyfall, reveals she was completely blindsided when producers bombarded her with the news, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

She was informed of M''s demise in a meeting with Bond producer Barbara Broccoli and co-star Daniel Craig.

Dench says the news wasn''t broken to her gently but she pulled herself together and didn''t tell anyone at all.

"It was quite hard, but it was worth keeping the secret," she said. (ANI)