Entertainment
Judi Dench says worsening eyesight means she can no longer act

Judi Dench says worsening eyesight means she can no longer act

Oct 23, 2026

[UK], October 23: British actress Judi Dench said her eyesight had deteriorated to the point that she could no longer ​act on stage or in films.
Dench, 91, has had acular degeneration for more than a decade.
"I can't be on stage, I can't do a play anymore, I can't do a film ​anymore, I can't read anymore," she told BBC Radio ​on Thursday.
"So you've got to adjust to all that, ⁠and make allowances for it and just get on ​and don't think about it too much."
She said she could ​no longer recognise faces, meaning she often nearly hugged strangers, mistaking them for people she knew.
Dench has had a seven-decade career on stage, ​film and television, receiving critical acclaim, including an Oscar, a ​Tony and seven Olivier awards.
She appeared as the character "M" in eight ⁠Bond films.
She has played many of Shakespeare's major roles, including Juliet, Lady Macbeth and Cleopatra, and spoke of her enduring love for his poetry.
"I am besotted by the sonnets, I ​just love ​them," she said.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation