Dame Judi Dench became emotional during an interview with Louis Theroux for BBC Two when discussing the death of her husband, Michael Williams. The Oscar-winning actress, 88, struggled to speak about the loss of her husband of 30 years, who died in 2001 from lung cancer.
When Theroux asked if she was comfortable discussing how her husband's life ended, Dench initially hesitated, saying, 'I'm not good at it actually.' She fought back tears, clutching a tissue as she composed herself before sharing details of his final days.
Dench recalled that she was in New York when she learned Williams was unwell. Her agent flew out to accompany her back to the UK, but their flight on the Concorde aborted take-off. They eventually returned the next day, and Dench said, 'We did get back and we were all in the house together and that was very good indeed.'
Reflecting on her husband's illness, Dench attributed it to smoking, saying, 'Smoking you see, all that smoking when we were young.' She and Williams had worked together on screen, most notably in the sitcom A Fine Romance.
When asked if she immersed herself in work after his death, Dench explained that it helped her cope: 'At least you are getting on and thinking of something else.' The interview aired as part of Louis Theroux Interviews on BBC Two.
