Judi Dench Says She ‘Can’t Recognize Anybody’ Due to Eye Condition: ‘I Can’t See Anymore’
Judi Dench recently shared that she “can’t recognize anybody” due to her eye condition.
When asked by ITV why she’s stepped away from acting, Dench told the outlet, “I can’t see anymore. I’ve got, you know, that thing.” Ian McKellen, who appeared alongside her in the interview, joked that her vision hasn’t stopped the audience from seeing her. Dench then responded, “Yes, and I can see your outline, and I know you so well. But I can’t recognize anybody now. … I can’t see the television, I can’t see to read.”
McKellen then quipped, “But do you go up to total strangers and say, ‘Lovely to see you again?'” Dench joked back, “Sometimes.”
This isn’t the first time Dench opened up about her sight. She shared in a 2023 interview with “The Graham Norton Show” that it has become “impossible” to learn her lines due to her eye problems.
“It has become impossible and because I have a photographic memory, I need to find a machine that not only teaches me my lines but also tells me where they appear on the page,” Dench said. “I used to find it very easy to learn lines and remember them. I could do the whole of ‘Twelfth Night’ right now.”
Despite the struggles, Dench remains in good humor about her situation and the sometimes awkward moments that occur as a result. She recalled, “I was doing the ‘Winter’s Tale’ with Kenneth Branagh a couple of years ago, playing Paulina, and after we had been running for three weeks or so at the Garrick he said to me — I have a long speech at the end — he said: ‘Judi, if you were to say that speech about eight feet to your right, you’d be saying it to me and not to the pros.’ I rely on people to tell me!”
When asked by ITV why she’s stepped away from acting, Dench told the outlet, “I can’t see anymore. I’ve got, you know, that thing.” Ian McKellen, who appeared alongside her in the interview, joked that her vision hasn’t stopped the audience from seeing her. Dench then responded, “Yes, and I can see your outline, and I know you so well. But I can’t recognize anybody now. … I can’t see the television, I can’t see to read.”
McKellen then quipped, “But do you go up to total strangers and say, ‘Lovely to see you again?'” Dench joked back, “Sometimes.”
This isn’t the first time Dench opened up about her sight. She shared in a 2023 interview with “The Graham Norton Show” that it has become “impossible” to learn her lines due to her eye problems.
“It has become impossible and because I have a photographic memory, I need to find a machine that not only teaches me my lines but also tells me where they appear on the page,” Dench said. “I used to find it very easy to learn lines and remember them. I could do the whole of ‘Twelfth Night’ right now.”
Despite the struggles, Dench remains in good humor about her situation and the sometimes awkward moments that occur as a result. She recalled, “I was doing the ‘Winter’s Tale’ with Kenneth Branagh a couple of years ago, playing Paulina, and after we had been running for three weeks or so at the Garrick he said to me — I have a long speech at the end — he said: ‘Judi, if you were to say that speech about eight feet to your right, you’d be saying it to me and not to the pros.’ I rely on people to tell me!”