Dame Judi Dench revealed she can no longer recognise loved ones due to macular degeneration. Photo / Getty Images
Dame Judi Dench revealed she can no longer recognise loved ones due to macular degeneration. Photo / Getty Images
Dame Judi Dench has shared a heartbreaking health update, revealing she has lost the ability to recognise loved ones.
The celebrated film veteran, best known for her role in the James Bond franchise, was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration back in 2012 and has now revealed the devastating extent ofthe degenerative eye condition.
In a candid chat with ITV News, where she appeared with colleague Sir Ian McKellen, the 90-year-old Oscar winner was asked a very simple question about why she has stepped away slightly from appearing in any new films.
“It’s because I can’t see any more”, she answered, following on with details about how she can no longer see people or perform tasks she was once able to master such as reading scripts.
“But we can see you,” McKellen can be heard saying to his close industry pal off camera.
Dame Judi Dench with Daniel Craig (right) of the James Bond franchise. Photo / Getty Images
“She is 90 years of age and still looks great,” someone insisted on Instagram.
“Such a shame, but if anyone can deal with something like this it’s her. She’s an absolute powerhouse and the best of us,” another commented.
Despite appearances in 2022 film Spirited and comedy drama Allelujah, Dench confirmed she would be taking a step back from the cameras back in May 2024 because of 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 at the annual Chelsea Flower show.
“That’s what makes it really impossible so far. But I’ll find a way,” she added.
But finding a way has been a difficult task for the star.
Just over six months later, she revealed that she is no longer able to leave her house on her own thanks to needing assistance because of her worsening eyesight.
“Somebody will always be with me; I have to now because I can’t see and I will walk into something or fall over,” she shared with Trinny Woodall on her Fearless podcast.
“I’m always nervous before going to something. I have no idea why... I’m not good at being on my own at all, nor would I be now.”
Age-related Macular Degeneration, or AMD, is an eye disease that causes central vision loss and is the leading cause of legal blindness in people over the age of 50.
Symptoms include blurred or distorted vision, difficulty seeing faces and reading. While treatment includes management of the condition, there is currently no cure.
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