Judi Dench says macular degeneration has ended her acting and reading

Diagnosis and daily life

Judi Dench, 91, was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration in 2012, and the condition has left her unable to work as an actress. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, interviewed by Emma Barnett, she said she can no longer be on stage, do a play or a film, or read. The illness also makes faces hard to recognise. She said she sometimes goes up to the wrong people and gives them a hug before realising her mistake. During the interview she added that she could not see Barnett's face at all.

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.

The actress has described the loss as something she has had to adjust to over time, and she has said she tries not to dwell on it. Her eyesight has affected everyday tasks as well as her work, and she has spoken about it in several interviews.

Ageing, driving and lost bluebells

When asked how she felt about growing older, Dench answered with a blunt remark that offered no comfort.

Ageing? Rubbish. There's nothing to say for it at all.

She said she could not see the bluebells this summer, although she still knows what her trees look like from memory and from what she can make out. Dench has also said she gave up driving because of her eyesight, a move she called one of the most traumatic moments of her life. She said she knew she would hurt someone if she got behind the wheel now. According to the NHS, age-related macular degeneration does not cause total blindness, but it can make reading and recognising faces difficult.

Memoir and career

Dench is releasing a memoir, Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It?, written with theatre director Brendan O'Hea, at the end of October in the UK. Her career spans more than seven decades across theatre, television and film. She won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 1999 for playing Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love. In 1995 she became the first woman to play M, the head of the British secret service in the James Bond films, in GoldenEye.

In June the Shaftesbury Theatre in London's West End was announced as being renamed in her honour. According to RTE, it will become the Judi Dench Theatre in February 2027. At the time of the announcement she said:

The Shaftesbury Theatre has always held a special place in my heart.

Public life continues

Despite her sight loss, Dench has continued to make public appearances and speak openly about adapting to life with deteriorating vision. She has said radio has always been important to her. Earlier she had described struggling to see on film sets and finding it hard to learn scripts, and she has said she relies on friends who read the lines to her.