Judi Dench Fun Facts, Quotes and Tweets
8th January 2016
Quote: "We're friends, but when I replaced her she jokingly called me Valerie instead of my character's name Malory. Every time I meet her she says, 'Hello Valerie.'" Ralph Fiennes recalls how Dame Judi Dench verbally sparred with him after he took over her role as M in the Bond movies.
8th May 2015
Fact: Jude Law made a surprise cameo appearance in DAME Judi Dench's election play THE VOTE as it was broadcast live on U.K. TV in the closing hours of Britain's real life polling day on Thursday (07May15).
11th December 2014
Quote: "He came to most of my performances. When I played Juliet, I had a line, 'Where are my father and mother, nurse?' and he shouted out, 'Here we are darling, in row H." Dame Judi Dench recalls an embarrassing experience with her late father, Reginald, at the start of her career.
9th December 2014
Quote: "They told me gently and I laughed through my tears. Seven (Bond) films is a long time. But Mi6 would have given her the push by now, don't you think?" Dame Judi Dench reveals she cried upon being told her character M would be killed off in the James Bond franchise. M met her end in Skyfall in 2012.
24th November 2014
Quote: "I didn't get to any exotic locations, not in seven Bond films. All I got was Stowe School (in England), very nice, but not abroad, and a trailer labeled Innsbruck." Dame Judi Dench wishes she could have travelled more in her role as M, head of Britain's Mi6 Secret Intelligence Service, in the James Bond movie franchise.
24th November 2014
Quote: "I never thought what a huge responsibility I had in playing M. I think I was just really excited about it, and (husband) Michael (Williams) and (daughter) Finty were absolutely mad about it - 'a Bond woman.'" Dame Judi Dench's family was more excited about her role as the head of Mi6, Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, in the James Bond movies than she was.
9th April 2014
Fact: Dame Judi Dench and Daniel Day-Lewis have attended a state dinner hosted by Queen Elizabeth Ii at Windsor Castle in England. The banquet on Tuesday (08Apr14) was to mark the first ever state visit to the U.K. by an Irish president, Michael D. Higgins.
24th February 2014
Quote: "I never want to make much of it, but it is difficult. I can't read anymore. I can't paint like I used to. I try to watch movies, but it's quite difficult. But these are all the negatives. What I can do, I do." MACular degeneration continues to rob Dame Judi Dench of her eyesight.
23rd February 2014
Quote: "He owns the British Wildlife Centre, and he asked me in 2003 to open a new kind of den for the badgers, but I couldn't do it then. Then he asked me in 2010 to open the red squirrel enclosure, and I did, and we became very good friends." Actress Dame Judi Dench on her rumoured boyfriend David Mills.
16th January 2014
Quote: "This is just the loveliest news. I'm so happy for everybody involved, and so proud to have been part of the wonderful experience that Philomena has been." Dame Judi Dench on her latest Best Actress Oscar nomination for Philomena.
10th January 2014
Fact: Hollywood veteran Richard Gere has officially signed on to star alongside Dame Judi Dench, Bill Nighy and Dame Maggie Smith in the upcoming sequel to surprise 2011 hit The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. The Pretty Woman star was said to be in talks to join the old-timers back in October (13), and now his involvement has been confirmed. Production on the movie, directed by John Madden, is currently underway in India.
3rd January 2014
Quote: "It just prevents me from seeing when other actors are laughing or something, which is something I hate - to miss a good joke. But apart from that it’s Ok. I get by." Dame Judi Dench on the macular degeneration that has left her with sight issues.
3rd January 2014
Quote: "I was, I think, five, and I played a snail in Four-and-Twenty Tailors Went to Kill a Snail... I remember I had a brown romper suit on and brown tights and my father made me an enormous shell... All I had to do was crawl across the stage under this shell. When our parents came to it, I can remember standing up - and I can also remember somebody at the side of the stage saying, 'Get down! Get down!' Being very cross - my first critic, you know?" Dame Judi Dench recalls her acting debut in a school play.
3rd January 2014
Quote: "Very early on, I was told that I didn’t have a face to be a screen actress. Well, that was it. That was a time when you had to be quite a looker." Dame Judi Dench admits the start of her acting career was marred by critics who didn't think she was beautiful enough to become a star.
12th December 2013
Quote: "What great news! I'm delighted, and hugely honoured to be in such magnificent company. And without the inspiration of Philomena herself I wouldn't of course be receiving this recognition." Dame Judi Dench insists Philomena Lee, the Irish woman she portrays in new film Philomena, should also celebrate her Golden Globe Best Actress nomination.
8th November 2013
Quote: "It's like somebody saying, 'I don't think you should have that drink. I think you should go home now'. How dare they when I'm just enjoying the party?" Actress Dame Judi Dench hates being asked about her retirement plans.
8th November 2013
Quote: "Jack Nicholson walked by me once, and I became very, very wobbly." Dame Judi Dench on her encounter with the Hollywood movie veteran at the Oscars.
3rd September 2013
Fact: Dame Judi Dench is set to join a list of Hollywood stars including Maggie Smith and Michael Gambon in upcoming stage performances to celebrate the 50th birthday of London's National Theatre. The stars will revive individual key scenes from landmark shows since the venue opened in 1963. The invitation only event will be hosted on 02 November (13).
13th February 2013
Fact: Denzel Washington, Dame Judi Dench and Dustin Hoffman are among the stars who were feted for making movies for an older audience by the 2013 Movies for Grownups Awards in Los Angeles. The American Association of Retired Persons (Aarp) award winners were announced last month (Jan13) and celebrated at a lunch in California on Tuesday (12Feb13).
6th November 2012
Fact: James Bond star Dame Judi Dench's mobile phone ring tone is the 007 theme song.
2nd November 2012
Quote: "After the Oscars, where I won an Oscar, you go back and you present one. I was presenting one and I came back from doing it, I was very, very nervous about it, and I came back from doing it and somebody walked past me and said, 'Great job, Jude!' and it was Jack Nicholson. I almost passed out!" Dame Judi Dench was starstruck after receiving a compliment from The Shining icon at the 2000 Academy Awards.
2nd November 2012
Quote: "We don't use that word in our house! Not if it's possible, not as long as one's offered parts and you can keep going. Until I fall down, I suppose, I hope that I will go on." DAME Judi Dench, 77, has no plans to retire from acting.
24th October 2012
Fact: Dame Judi Dench is the first M to swear in the new James Bond film, Skyfall.
15th October 2012
Quote: "I looked at them both and forgot the lines. There was a silence and Sam (Mendes) said, 'Cut, what's wrong?' And I said, 'I'm sorry, man, I just realised I'm in a James Bond movie and M and James Bond are looking at me.'" JAVIER BARDEM struggled with nerves on the set of Skyfall as he was starstruck by Daniel Craig and Dame Judi Dench.
3rd October 2012
Quote: "(He's) the James Bond for today... He really has a great sense of humour... (and) I also think he feels like a Bond who could kill a man... You'd be afraid of him, wouldn't you?" Dame Judi Dench is a big fan of her new 007, Daniel Craig.
14th June 2012
Quote: "When I got the script it was late summer last year. I was at home, and we had friends in, all having drinks in the garden. Suddenly, this man dressed entirely in black, with a script under his arm - he wouldn't look at us - ran through a gap, threw it in my front door, and ran out again. I said to them, 'That was the Bond script." Dame Judi Dench recalls her unusual introduction to working on new 007 film Skyfall.
20th February 2012
Quote: "I get incandescent with rage. You phone people to complain about something and you keep getting 'press 1 if you want...', 'press 2 if...', press 3...' and it goes on and on and on. No wonder my phone doesn't work. It's always being slammed down." Dame Judi Dench gets exasperated with automated call centres.
9th February 2012
Quote: "I once gave the breath of life to a fish that was dying. I blew in his mouth which I knew I shouldn't because he had gills but nevertheless he's now called Lazarus and is double the size!" Actress Dame Judi Dench had an odd encounter with a dying pet and managed to save its life.
9th February 2012
Quote: "I haven't seen two of them. I haven't seen My Week with Marilyn or J Edgar... I will when I am a bit removed from it. I am still quite close to them and can't take in the story." Dame Judi Dench has not yet seen her two latest blockbuster movies.
9th February 2012
Quote: "I can't tell you a single word about it. I would be shot when I get back on set tomorrow." Dame Judi Dench is keeping mum about the plot of the next James Bond movie, Skyfall.
15th September 2011
Fact: Dame Judi Dench has added her signature to a hard hat to raise money for the British Lung Foundation's campaign to educate homeowners about the risks of inhaling asbestos during domestic repair work. The hat will go up for auction later this year (11).
2nd September 2011
Quote: "I hate being called a national treasure because it sounds so dusty. A national treasure is something that never changes and is sitting there behind glass." Veteran actress Dame Judi Dench dislikes her revered status in her native U.K.
11th April 2011
Quote: "I look at people like Judi Dench, who's in her 70s, and I think, 'What the hell am I frightened of?'" Kim Cattrall is inspired by Dame Judi Dench, who is still enjoying a thriving Hollywood career at the age of 76.
29th March 2011
Quote: "I am going to do the next Bond in November. I don't know the location yet but hopefully it will be somewhere nice. I can't tell you much more but I do enjoy playing M as she is such a strong character. I like being bossy and my grandson thinks it's cool that I'm in Bond." Dame Judi Dench is looking forward to reprising her role in the next installment of the James Bond franchise.
17th February 2011
Quote: "I don't mind a good snake. But a worm. When I was very, very small I jumped at one point and a worm leapt up into my sandal. I would rather have a boa constrictor around." DAME Judi Dench on her fear of worms.
17th February 2011
Quote: "I don't think anyone redeems themselves in that play. I've never liked it. I was honoured to be in it, but I don't like the play." DAME Judi Dench isn't a fan of SHAKESPEARE's The Merchant Of Venice.
17th February 2011
Quote: "Sinatra presents you the entire arc. He never lingers too long on one thing. You appreciate the essence of the whole. You're led through a song with Sinatra. There's a beginning, a middle and end." DAME Judi Dench suggests young actors should study crooner Frank Sinatra.
16th February 2011
Quote: "I can't say he's my favourite. I've moved on to another Bond now, the divine Daniel (Craig)." DAME Judi Dench admits Pierce Brosnan is no longer her favourite 007.
31st January 2011
Quote: "It's a long night - very, very long. I've got the constitution of an ox though. I stay there the whole time in my seat without moving. You just have to sit it out." DAME Judi Dench is not a fan of the lengthy Academy Awards ceremony.
29th December 2010
Fact: DAME Judi Dench and late Hollywood legend Steve McQueen's wife Barbara are backing a British campaign to ban smoking in cars. Officials at the British Lung Foundation are calling for new regulations in Wales to outlaw tobacco smoking in private vehicles when children are present.
9th November 2010
Quote: "Rob is loved by his stars and the combination of that and Johnny Depp... Judi thought it would be an intriguing thing to do." Movie mogul Jerry Bruckheimer confirms reports DAME Judi Dench has a cameo in director Rob Marshall's latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie.
13th September 2010
Quote: "I hate it. I can't talk about things like that. It's part of me that's locked away, I think, and I can't say why. I think you ought to leave some... privacy." DAME Judi Dench loathes discussing her acting skills on DVD extras.
1st September 2010
Fact: DAME Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh and Michelle Williams are to team up to bring Colin Clark's memoirs to the big screen in My Week With Marilyn. Clark was responsible for looking after Marilyn Monroe while she was in London visiting acting legend Laurence Olivier in 1957.
3rd May 2010
Quote: "I can't bear not to be in touch so I have the Tannoy (speaker system) turned right up in my dressing room. You can hear the audience's reactions. I listen to the audience and then you know if you need to hit the accelerator or to push on the brake!" DAME Judi Dench spies on the crowd at her theatre shows before stepping onstage.
21st April 2010
Quote: "When we worked together on NOTES ON A SCANDAL, I used to love sitting next to her and chatting while she knitted. She has a wicked sense of humour and one of the biggest hearts." Cate Blanchett is full of praise for DAME Judi Dench.
9th January 2010
Fact: DAME Judi Dench voiced a parrot in the sequel of period TV drama CRANFORD when the bird wouldn't squawk on demand. Dench plays Matty Jenkyns in Return to Cranford.
11th December 2009
Quote: "I am riveted by THE WEAKEST LINK but I'd be too terrified to appear on it." DAME Judi Dench loves quiz shows.
11th December 2009
Quote: "Suddenly I get up out of a chair and can't rush across the room. My energy levels are OK, but I can't see very well. If a restaurant is too dark, I can end up talking to the backs of chairs." DAME Judi Dench, 75, insists she "loathes" getting older.
4th December 2009
Quote: "What a good idea. (Would I) give her a hard time? I expect so... It would be very nice - good idea." James Bond star DAME Judi Dench sees Emma Thompson as a perfect 007 baddie.
10th March 2009
Quote: "If there's a lull on set she'll say, 'Right let's have a bet.' The thing is she always seems to win. We have to keep a close eye on her. I on the other hand have never won a penny." Imelda Staunton on how her CRANFORD co-star DAME Judi Dench combats boredom by gambling.
1st March 2009
Quote: "I like to have the Tannoy on backstage before a performance. It's good to hear the audience come in. I couldn't get ready in a quiet room." DAME Judi Dench likes likes to listen into the crowd's chatter before theatre shows.
6th February 2009
Quote: "I have never seen a tantrum on a film set. Not ever. Ever. Certainly not while I have been around. I don't think it happens very often." DAME Judi Dench maintains Christian Bale's taped tirade on the set of TERMINATOR SALVATION was unprofessional.
28th October 2008
Quote: "I tend to giggle a lot, probably way too much, and I tend to get in trouble for it. I guess that's not very Bond like. DAME Judi Dench likes to tell jokes - but I wouldn't like to embarrass her by repeating them!" James Bond star Daniel Craig enjoys a laugh with his Casino Royale and QUANTUM OF SOLACE co-star Dench.
22nd October 2008
Quote: "Imagine being a pin-up at 73 to the teenage boy crowd." DAME Judi Dench on her role as MI6 boss M in the James Bond franchise.
30th May 2008
Fact: DAME Judi Dench and British actress Honor Blackman make up the perfect female voice, according to a new study. The research, conducted by linguistics at Sheffield University, England, claims the most appealing male voice is made from a combination of actors Alan Rickman, Jeremy Irons and Michael Gambon's tones.
27th May 2008
Quote: "When we arrived we were given an information pack and told which parts of town to be aware of. It said there was one street whose names translates as 'street of get out of here as fast as you can.' So we all went there immediately and it was fascinating." DAME Judi Dench on her time in Panama City filming new James Bond movie QUANTUM OF SOLACE.
15th May 2008
Quote: "Someone handed me a copy of CRANFORD with Judi Dench. Oh God, it's just such a great show. I think she is amazing. She just never, never stops getting up there and taking such big chances." SEX + The City star Kim Cattrall on her love of DAME JUDI DENCH's turn in BBC TV drama CRANFORD.
21st April 2008
Quote: "My money was always on EILEEN." DAME Judi Dench never expected to win the BAFTA TV award for Best Actress - which went to her CRANFORD co-star DAME Eileen Atkins at the London ceremony on Sunday (20Apr08).
24th January 2008
Quote: "She's incredible. I'm convinced she's just Judi Dench in good make-up." Ryan Reynolds is impressed with 11-year-old Abigail Breslin's acting skills. Reynolds plays the Little Miss Sunshine star's father in new film DEFINITELY, MAYBE.
29th December 2007
Quote: "It didn't do Helen Mirren and Judi Dench any harm." Oscar winner Glenn Close snubbed advice by movie moguls that TV would kill her film career when accepting a role in hit show DAMAGES.
18th December 2007
Fact: Charitable DAME Judi Dench joined fellow British actors Edward Fox and Anna Chancellor for a spot of carol singing on Monday night (17Dec07). The stars were using their vocal talents to raise money for the Rehabilitation for Addicted Prisoners Trust at St Peter's Church in Kensington, west London.
23rd January 2007
Quote: "I'm in frighteningly good company. It was very nice of THE QUEEN (DAME Helen Mirren) to allow me in for a minute." DAME Judi Dench pokes fun at her Oscar chances after being nominated for a Best Actress prize opposite fellow Brit Mirren.
19th July 2006
Quote: "Of course, I hope the Bond bosses take notice. I'm hoping to make Judi Dench very, very nervous." Love Actually actor Bill Nighy would love to star as M in the next James Bond movie.
6th March 2006
Fact: At 71, DAME Judi Dench became the oldest Best Actress nominee since Jessica Tandy won for Driving Miss Daisy in 1990, aged 80. Dench was nominated for her role in MRS HENDERSON PRESENTS.
6th March 2006
Fact: At 71, DAME Judi Dench became the oldest Best Actress nominee since Jessica Tandy won for Driving Miss Daisy in 1990, aged 80. Dench was nominated for her role in MRS HENDERSON PRESENTS.
7th December 2005
Quote: <p>"It's very frightening having to get up in front of a lot of people on stage. It's always frightening, in fact, to get up in front of two people... I forget my lines all the time." DAME Judi Dench insists she isn't the flawless thespian fans think she is. </p>
3rd December 2005
Quote: <p>"They keep me in a shed." DAME Judi Dench on missing out on the exotic locations in James Bond movies. The actress plays 007's boss M in the films but rarely leaves her character's London office. </p>
Judi Dench
