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Judi Dench. Photo by The National Churches Trust.

Top 10 Outstanding Facts about Judi Dench

Dame Judith Olivia Dench is a prolific and well-liked British actress. Dench made her professional debut with the Old Vic Company in 1957. Over the next few years, she appeared in several of Shakespeare’s plays, including Hamlet’s Ophelia, Romeo and Juliet’s Juliet, and Macbeth’s Lady Macbeth.

Dench’s work during this time period was mostly in theatre, but she also dabbled in film, winning a BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer. She received rave reviews for her performance as Sally Bowles in the musical Cabaret in 1968.

Dench established herself as one of the most important British theatre performers over the next two decades, working for the National Theatre Company and the Royal Shakespeare Company. She received critical acclaim for her work on television during this time period, including starring roles in the series A Fine Romance and As Time Goes By .

Her film appearances were few and included supporting roles in major films such as James Ivory’s A Room with a View, before she rose to international fame as M in GoldenEye, a role she continued to play in eight James Bond films until her final cameo in Spectre.

1. She had a Harvey Weinstein tattoo

Harvey Weinstein. Photo by David Shankbone.

Dench decided to tattoo Harvey Weinstein’s name on a specific part of her body in 2014 to express her gratitude for helping launch her Hollywood career. She showed her feelings by dropping her pants to reveal the inscription “JD loves HW” tattooed across her backside when she arrived for a lunch meeting with the producer.

Fortunately, the tattoo was temporary; no matter how much she loved him at the time, no actress would want the beleaguered producer anywhere near her body these days, in name or otherwise.

2. She got a tattoo for her 81st birthday

Happy birthday balloons with happy birthday text. Photo by Morgan Lane.

There aren’t many grandmothers who mark the passage of time with a tattoo, but then again, there aren’t many grandmothers like Judi Dench. Dench celebrated her 81st birthday by defying the trend of graceful aging by getting a permanent reminder of her life motto tattooed across her wrist.

Unlike her previous tattoo honoring Harvey Weinstein, this one is permanent—fortunately, “Carpe Diem” is probably a lot easier to live with than a declaration of love to a serial sex attacker.

3. She made her debut as a snail

Dench’s 60-year career as a film, television, and stage actress began when she was five years old. Dench’s debut was as a snail, complete with a full-on snail costume made by her proud father, proving that even the best careers can have the most inauspicious of starts.

As one might expect, the part didn’t call for much acting, with Dench recalling, “All I had to do was crawl across the stage under this shell.

4. Vanessa Redgrave was one of her classmates

Students raeding together. Photo by Alexis Brown.

After initially pursuing a career as a set designer, Dench changed her mind and decided to pursue acting instead. She enrolled in the Central School of Speech and Drama to accomplish this. Dench studied at the same school as Vanessa Redgrave, who went on to become a major actress.

They became fast friends and even starred together in the 1985 film “Wetherby” years later. Dench received a first-class degree in drama as well as four prestigious acting awards, including the coveted Gold Medal for Outstanding Student.

5. Dench suffers from an eye condition

Age is not always a laughing matter. Dench has been open about her struggle with macular degeneration, a progressive condition that can cause vision loss and eventually blindness.

As an actress, the condition is especially painful; while scripts continue to arrive, Dench is unable to read them. Rather than giving up, Dench is fighting on, enlisting the help of her extensive network of friends and family to read her scripts, describe scenes, and guide her to her goals.

6. Judi Dench’s given name is Dame

Judi Dench. Photo by Tony Hisgett.

Don’t call Judi “Mrs. Dench”. Her proper prefix has been Dame for the past 30 years. Dench received the honor in the 1988 New Year’s Honours. Prior to that, she had been appointed to the rank of OBE in the 1970 Birthday Honours. Dench was named a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honor (CH) in the 2005 Birthday Honours after claiming damehood.

7. Judi Dench has won numerous awards

Judi Dench. Photo by Luke Rauscher.

Dench received her first award at the 1966 BAFTAs, where she was named “Most Promising Newcomer.” Since then, she’s been sweeping the board at nearly every ceremony she’s performed at (so much so that her long list of honors has its own Wikipedia page.

Her Oscar from 1998 is perhaps her most notable win to date; her 8 minutes of screen time in Shakespeare in Love not only earned her the Academy Award, but it also marked her transition from a small screen star in the UK to a truly global superstar.

8. She’s a rap prodigy

A rapper. Photo by David Huck.

Dench proved that age is just a number in 2017 when she collaborated with grime MC Lethal Bizzle. Dench mentioned how pleased she was that Bizzle had chosen “Dench” as his slang world of choice for anything “nice” or “brilliant.”

Judi got down to business with a specially adapted version of Bizzle’s “Pow” during the televised meeting. “Pow, yeah, I’m Ju-to-the-di/Pow, if you don’t know about me/Better ask someone soon,” she rapped. It’s not Shakespeare, but coming from Dench’s mouth, it might as well be.

9. Judi Dench had a lovely romance

The story of Dench’s 30-year marriage to Michael Williams is legendary. They met in the early 1960s while Dench was touring Australia with Shakespeare’s “A Winter’s Tale.” After meeting, the couple fell head over heels in love and married a short time later.

Dench had the Shakespearean quote “an ’twere a man born in April” carved into her wedding band to commemorate the nature of their meeting. The couple remained deeply in love throughout their marriage, with Williams expressing his feelings for Dench by sending her a single red rose every Friday from the day of their marriage until his untimely death in 2001.

10. Dench was in a relationship with David Mills during the autumn years

Dench took a break from the dating scene for several years after her husband died in 2001. In 2010, she decided it was time to clear the cobwebs from her heart and make room for a new man. David Mills, a conservationist, was the lucky man in question.

Dench first met her new beau when he asked her to help him open a new badger and red squirrel enclosure at his Surrey Zoo. The two have been together ever since, but Dench has been quick to dispel any marriage rumors.