Oscar-winner Halle Berry has dismissed critics who accused her of "not really" being the first black woman to win a best actress award because her mother is a white Liverpudlian.

"I've dealt with that 'not being quite black enough' thing my whole life," she said yesterday, as she promoted her role in the latest James Bond movie, Die Another Day, which premieres tonight in London. "But I'm in my 30s now and I know who I am and who and what I identify with."

She has said she was "mostly seen as black" while growing up and that people refused to believe she was her mother's child.

Other critics have suggested that it is a step down for an Oscar winner to play a Bond girl. But Ms Berry said her character, Jinx, was more independent and assertive than her predecessors. "I'm proud that this shows the evolution of the Bond girl."

Her co-star Pierce Brosnan revealed that he has already signed up to make the next movie, 21st in the series and his fifth as 007.