Dame Judi Dench has spoken with remarkable candour about her fears of 'losing the plot' as she contends with severe eyesight deterioration and short-term memory loss. The legendary actress, who turns 91 on Tuesday, gave a wide-ranging interview to the Radio Times, discussing her health challenges and reflecting on her former Hollywood associations.
Living with vision loss and memory challenges
Dame Judi was diagnosed with Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) in 2012, a condition that causes permanent central vision loss and is the leading cause of sight loss in people over 50. She revealed both her eyes are now in the progressed 'wet' stage of AMD and are beyond treatment, a situation she described as 'a crusher'.
The Oscar-winning actress can no longer see the television and relies on a team of assistants for day-to-day tasks. She has been forced to give up driving, her beloved embroidery, and even going out alone. 'I miss seeing Clive Myrie doing Mastermind, but I can hear the questions,' she noted wistfully.
Perhaps more concerning to the star is her failing short-term memory. She confessed that while she can still reel off reams of Shakespearean soliloquys thanks to her photographic memory, she 'can’t remember what I’m doing tomorrow, I swear to you'. When directly asked if she fears she will 'lose the plot', her answer was a simple and sobering: 'Oh yes.'
Adapting to continue her illustrious career
Despite these profound challenges, Dame Judi's professional resolve remains unbroken. She continues to work by having friends and colleagues read her scripts aloud to her, which she then memorises. This method has allowed her to maintain a prolific career on stage and screen well into her tenth decade.
Her upcoming project is a deeply personal Channel 4 documentary, Judi Dench: Shakespeare, My Family and Me. In it, she delves into Danish archives to investigate whether her eight times great-grandfather might have met William Shakespeare in 1606. 'It has been such an adventure... to be on a journey where you might be stepping closer to him, it's beyond my wildest dreams,' she told the channel.
Reflections on Hollywood friendships and forgiveness
The interview also saw Dame Judi address her past working relationships with two controversial Hollywood figures: producer Harvey Weinstein and actor Kevin Spacey.
She remains in contact with Spacey, 66, who was cleared of sexual assault allegations against four men in a UK trial in 2023. 'Kevin has been exonerated and I hear from Kevin, we text,' she said. She recalled his invaluable support following the death of her husband, Michael Williams, in 2001, while they filmed The Shipping News together, calling him an 'inestimable comfort'.
On the subject of Weinstein, convicted of sex crimes in New York and California and facing a retrial, Dame Judi struck a more controversial note, suggesting he may be deserving of forgiveness. Weinstein produced her first major Hollywood film, Shakespeare In Love, for which she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 1998. She stated she had 'none of that experience' of misconduct with him and added, 'I imagine he's done his time… I don't know, to me it's personal – forgiveness.'
She was quick to clarify, however, that when allegations against Weinstein first surfaced in 2017, she was 'horrified' and offered her 'wholehearted support to those who have spoken out'.
Dame Judi Dench's interview is a powerful portrait of an icon facing age-related difficulties with humour, honesty, and undimmed passion for her craft, while also navigating the complex personal legacies of a long career in the spotlight.
