JUDI DENCH - DENCH TO MISS OSCARS?

Best Actress nominee DAME JUDI DENCH could miss the Oscars later this month (FEB07) to have an important knee operation. The 72-year-old, who's nominated for her role as a manipulative schoolteacher in NOTES ON A SCANDAL, might not be able to attend the ceremony at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre on 25 February (07) because her persistent knee problem has become so painful she needs surgery. A friend tells British newspaper The Mail on Sunday, "Judi has had this knee injury for a while and finally decided to do something about it. It has to be carried out by a specialist at a certain time. Even if they bring the operation forward she's going to need some recovery time. "She feels she would be jeopardising her health if she were to miss the operation for the sake of going to the Oscars. She wants to go but Judi has been the Oscars before and doesn't care about the glitz and the glam of it all."