Dame Judi Dench has revealed she “can no longer see” and admitted she can’t recognise friends as her eyesight worsens.
The 90-year-old Oscar-winning actress was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration in 2012.
In an interview with Britain’s ITV News alongside friend Sir Ian McKellen, Dame Judi was asked why she had stepped away from the big screen.
“It’s because I can’t see anymore.”
McKellen said, “but we can see you”, to which Dench replied: “Yes, and I can see your outline, and I know you so well, but I can’t recognise anybody now.
“People think, ‘Oh, get her, she’s got very grand,’ but it’s because I can’t see. I can’t see the television, I can’t see to read.”
McKellen said, “But don’t you go up to strangers and say to them, ‘Lovely to see you again'”, to which Dench laughed, “Yes, sometimes”.
Dame Judi’s last appearance on screen was 2022’s Allelujah.
She had confirmed she would be taking a step back in May 2024 due to her deteriorating health.
“I have so many friends who will teach me the script. But I have a photographic memory, so I have to know where it is on the page, and that’s quite a difficult thing,” she told reporters.
“That’s what makes it really impossible so far. But I’ll find a way,” she added.
