Judi Dench: I Can't Be On Stage, I Can't Do A Play, I Can't Read

(MENAFN- Nam News Network)

LONDON, Oct 22 (NNN-PA Media/dpa) -- Dame Judi Dench, the Oscar-winning British actress best known internationally for playing M in the James Bond films, has said she can no longer work as an actor because of an eye condition that has severely affected her sight, reported PA Media/dpa.

The 91-year-old actress was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in 2012, which has made it difficult for her to recognise people's faces.

Dench told BBC Radio 4's Today programme:“I can't be on stage. I can't do a play anymore. I can't do a film anymore. I can't read anymore.”

She added:“I go up to lots of the wrong people and give them a hug and say, 'Oh, sorry, didn't realise'.”

Addressing interviewer Emma Barnett, Dench said:“I can't see your face at all.”

The James Bond star also expressed sadness at being unable to see bluebells, the blue-purple flowers that carpet British woodlands in spring, saying:“They said this summer was absolutely sensational with bluebells; I couldn't see one.

“But I know what my trees look like, and part of it is in my memory and part of it is about hopefully what I can make out.”

Asked how she felt about ageing in general, Dench replied:“Ageing? Rubbish. There's nothing to say for it at all.

“Don't think about it too much and just keep on trying to do the roller skates and whatever.

“If you can't see as well, which I can't, it's a whole other ball game. I have to put up with it. My ma had it too.”

Dench previously said she had stopped driving a few years ago because of her deteriorating eyesight.

She told Radio Times:“A couple of years ago I stopped driving, which was one of the most traumatic moments of my life. It was absolutely appalling.

“But I just know I'll kill somebody if I get behind the wheel of a car now.”

AMD is a common condition that does not cause total blindness but can make reading and recognising faces difficult, according to the NHS.

Dench's career spans seven decades, and she has won numerous awards, including an Oscar, two Golden Globes and six BAFTAs.

The Shaftesbury Theatre in London's West End is to be renamed the Judi Dench Theatre in February 2027 in honour of the actress. The announcement was made in June.

At the time, Dench said:“The Shaftesbury Theatre has always held a special place in my heart. My relationship to the Theatre of Comedy and to the Taffner family goes back many years, and to have this beautiful theatre renamed after me is truly overwhelming.

“Live theatre continues to be so important as a way of telling stories and entertaining audiences, something I have aimed to do all my working life.”

--NNN-PA MEDIA/dpa

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