View source for Judi Dench

{{short description|English actress (born 1934)}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix = [[Dame]]
| name             = Judi Dench
| honorific_suffix = {{postnominals|country=GBR|sep=|CH|DBE|FRSA|size=100%}}
| image            = File:Judi Dench at the BAFTAs 2007 (cropped) b.jpg
| caption          = Judi Dench at the BAFTAs at the Royal Opera House in London (2007) 
| birth_name       = Judith Olivia Dench
| birth_date       = {{birth date and age|1934|12|9}}
| birth_place      = [[Heworth, York|Heworth]], [[Yorkshire]], England
| occupation       = {{hlist|Actress|voice actress}}
| years_active     = 1957–2024
| education        = [[Royal Central School of Speech and Drama]]
| spouse           = {{marriage|[[Michael Williams (actor)|Michael Williams]]|1971|2001|end=died}}
| partner          = David Mills (2010–present)
| children         = [[Finty Williams]]
| relatives        = {{plainlist|
*[[Jeffery Dench]] (brother)
*[[Emma Dench]] (niece)
*[[Rebekah Elmaloglou]] (cousin)
*[[Sebastian Elmaloglou]] (cousin)
*[[Oliver Dench]] (great-nephew)
}}
| works            = [[List of Judi Dench performances|Full list]]
| awards           = [[List of awards and nominations received by Judi Dench|Full list]]
| signature        =
}}

'''Dame Judith Olivia Dench''' (born 9 December 1934) is a retired English actress. Widely considered one of Britain's greatest actresses,<ref>{{cite news |last=Dowd |first=Maureen |title=Queen! Bow Down to Tattoo-Flashing Octogenarian Dame Dench |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/style/dame-judi-dench.html |url-status=dead |date=21 September 2017 |access-date=30 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210730152647/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/style/dame-judi-dench.html |archive-date=30 July 2021 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name=gfame>{{cite news |author=Staff and agencies |title=Hopkins and Dench named best British actors |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/aug/18/news |url-status=live |work=The Guardian |location=London |date=18 August 2005 |access-date=29 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061107065140/http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,12589,1551503,00.html |archive-date=7 November 2006}}</ref><ref name=tfame>{{cite news |title=Connery and Dench Top Legend Poll |url=https://www.timeout.com/film/news/303/connery-and-dench-top-legend-poll.html |url-status=dead |publisher=Time Out Group |date=25 February 2005 |access-date=29 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071106003837/http://www.timeout.com/film/news/303/connery-and-dench-top-legend-poll.html |archive-date=6 November 2007 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> she is noted for her versatile [[List of Judi Dench performances|roles on stage and screen]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Brooks |first=Xan |title=Judi Dench: 'In my mind's eye I'm six foot and willowy and about 39' |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/film/judi-dench-in-my-mind-s-eye-i-m-six-foot-and-willowy-and-about-39-1.4467170 |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=26 January 2021 |access-date=30 July 2021}}</ref> Dench has garnered [[List of awards and nominations received by Judi Dench|various accolades]] throughout a career that spans seven decades, including an [[Academy Award]], a [[Tony Award]], two [[Golden Globe Awards]], four [[British Academy Television Awards]], six [[British Academy Film Awards]], and seven [[Olivier Awards]].

Dench made her professional debut in 1957 with the [[Old Vic]] Company. Over the following few years she performed in several of [[Shakespeare's plays]], in roles such as [[Ophelia]] in ''[[Hamlet]]'', [[Juliet]] in ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]'' and [[Lady Macbeth]] in ''[[Macbeth]]''. Although most of Dench's work during this period was in theatre, she also branched out into film work and won a [[BAFTA Film Award for Newcomer to Leading Film Roles|BAFTA Award as Most Promising Newcomer]]. In 1968, she drew excellent reviews for her leading role of [[Sally Bowles]] in the musical ''[[Cabaret (musical)|Cabaret]]''. Over the next two decades Dench established herself as one of the most significant British theatre performers, working for the [[National Theatre Company]] and the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]].

Dench received critical acclaim for her work on television during this period, including her starring roles in the two romantic comedy series ''[[A Fine Romance (1981 TV series)|A Fine Romance]]'' (1981–1984, [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]) and ''[[As Time Goes By (TV series)|As Time Goes By]]'' (1992–2005, [[BBC1]]). Her film appearances were infrequent – though included supporting roles in major films, such as [[James Ivory]]'s ''[[A Room with a View (1985 film)|A Room with a View]]'' (1985) – before she rose to international fame as [[M (James Bond)|M]] in ''[[GoldenEye]]'' (1995), a role she went on to play in eight ''James Bond'' films until her final cameo appearance in ''[[Spectre (2015 film)|Spectre]]'' (2015).

An eight-time [[Academy Award]] nominee, Dench won the [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress]] for her performance as Queen [[Elizabeth I]] in ''[[Shakespeare in Love]]'' (1998). Her other Oscar-nominated roles are for ''[[Mrs Brown]]'' (1997), ''[[Chocolat (2000 film)|Chocolat]]'' (2000), ''[[Iris (2001 film)|Iris]]'' (2001), ''[[Mrs Henderson Presents]]'' (2005), ''[[Notes on a Scandal (film)|Notes on a Scandal]]'' (2006), ''[[Philomena (film)|Philomena]]'' (2013), and ''[[Belfast (film)|Belfast]]'' (2021). She is also the recipient of several honorary awards, including the [[BAFTA Fellowship]] Award, the [[Society of London Theatre Special Award]], and the [[British Film Institute Fellowship]] Award.

==Early life, ancestry and education==
Dench was born in the [[Heworth, York|Heworth]] area of [[York]] on 9 December 1934,<ref>{{cite news |title=Entertainment: Hollywood's premier Dame |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1839300.stm |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=24 February 2002 |access-date=13 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Why Judi is such an inspiration |url=https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/4314076.why-judi-is-such-an-inspiration/ |newspaper=[[The Press (York)|The Press]] |date=23 April 2009 |access-date=20 November 2023}}</ref> the daughter of an English father and an Irish mother. Her father, Reginald Arthur Dench [[Military Cross|MC]] & [[Medal bar|Bar]] (1897–1964), was a doctor from [[Dorset]] who grew up primarily in [[Dublin]] and who fought on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] in the First World War.<ref name="WDYTYA">{{cite web |title=Who Do You Think You Are? – Series 18: 2. Dame Judi Dench |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0010st7/who-do-you-think-you-are-series-18-2-dame-judi-dench |publisher=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Dench |first=Dame Judi |title=Dame Judi Dench on Playing the Inspiring Philomena |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/11/22/dame-judi-dench-on-playing-the-inspiring-philomena.html |work=The Daily Beast |date=22 November 2013 |access-date=11 February 2014}}</ref> Her mother, Eleanora Olave (known as Olave) (née Jones; 1897–1983), was born in Dublin, and her parents met while studying at [[Trinity College Dublin]].<ref>{{cite news |title=The Importance of Dame Judi |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/uk/2000/newsmakers/2241129.stm |publisher=BBC News |date=6 September 2002 |access-date=16 February 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=The Extraordinary Story of an Extraordinary Woman &#124; Judi Dench |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/judi-dench/philomena-lee-film_b_4222611.html |work=The Huffington Post |date=6 November 2013 |access-date=11 February 2014}}</ref>

In October 2021, Dench was the subject of BBC One's ''[[Who Do You Think You Are? (British TV series)|Who Do You Think You Are?]]'', where it was revealed that she is descended from the [[Bille (noble family)|Bille family]] of [[Danish nobility|Danish aristocrats]], and [[Steen Andersen Bille]] (1624–1698), the illegitimate son of {{ill|Anders Steensen Bille|da}} (1578–1633),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/documentaries/who-was-judi-dench-astronomer-relative-tycho-brahe/|title = Who was Judi Dench's astronomer relative Tycho Brahe?}}</ref> as well as [[Claus Bille]] (1490–1558), a grandfather of Danish astronomer [[Tycho Brahe]] (1546–1601), member of the Danish noble [[Brahe family]]. She is a cousin of Greek-Australian actors [[Rebekah Elmaloglou]] and [[Sebastian Elmaloglou]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://newsstore.fairfax.com.au/apps/viewDocument.ac?page=1&sy=age&kw=Rebekah+Elmaloglou&pb=all_ffx&dt=selectRange&dr=entire&so=relevance&sf=text&sf=headline&rc=10&rm=200&sp=nrm&clsPage=1&docID=news940507_0272_5284|title=Rebekah Plays The Waiting|work=[[The Sun-Herald]]|publisher=[[Fairfax Media]]|first=Heath|last=Gilmore|date=7 May 1994|page=143|access-date=7 June 2011|archive-date=5 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120605170914/http://newsstore.fairfax.com.au/apps/viewDocument.ac?page=1&sy=age&kw=Rebekah+Elmaloglou&pb=all_ffx&dt=selectRange&dr=entire&so=relevance&sf=text&sf=headline&rc=10&rm=200&sp=nrm&clsPage=1&docID=news940507_0272_5284|url-status=dead}}</ref> Her niece, [[Emma Dench]], is a historian of [[ancient Rome]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Emma Dench|url=http://harvardmagazine.com/2010/03/emma-dench|access-date=11 September 2010|newspaper=[[Harvard Magazine]]|date=March–April 2010}}</ref>

Dench attended [[The Mount School, York|the Mount School]], a [[Quaker]] independent secondary school in York, and became a [[Quaker]].<ref name="retirement">{{cite news |last=Billington |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Billington (critic) |title=Please God, not retirement |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/sep/12/awardsandprizes.oscars2006 |work=The Guardian |location=London |date=12 September 2005 |access-date=16 February 2009}}</ref><ref name="dame">{{cite news |last=Billington |first=Michael |title=Judi Dench: Nothing like the Dame |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/1998/mar/23/features |work=The Guardian |location=London |date=23 March 1998 |access-date=16 February 2009}}</ref> She had two elder brothers named Peter Dench (Doctor) (1925–2017) and [[Jeffery Dench|Jeffery]] (1928–2014), the latter of whom also became an actor.<ref name="retirement" /><ref name="dame" />

Through her parents, Dench had regular contact with the theatre: her father was the [[General practitioner|GP]] for [[York Theatre Royal]], and her mother was its wardrobe mistress.<ref name="Talk">{{cite web |url=http://www.talktalk.co.uk/entertainment/film/biography/artist/judi-dench/biography/61?page=1 |title=Judi Dench – biography |publisher=TalkTalk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924113330/http://www.talktalk.co.uk/entertainment/film/biography/artist/judi-dench/biography/61?page=1 |archive-date=24 September 2015}}</ref> Actors often stayed in the Dench household. During these years, Judi Dench was involved on a non-professional basis in the first three productions of the modern revival of the [[York Mystery Plays]] in 1951, 1954 and 1957.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mystery Plays Archive |url=http://www.yorkmysteryplays.org |publisher=National Centre for Early Music |access-date=11 March 2018}}</ref> In the third production she played the role of the [[Virgin Mary]], performed on a fixed stage in the [[Museum Gardens]].<ref name=mysteries>{{cite news |title=Dame Judi speaks up for Mystery Plays |date=18 September 2003 |url=http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/CAMPAIGNS/2003/09sep/030918judi.shtml |url-status=dead |work=HoldTheFrontPage.co.uk |access-date=29 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061209124215/http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/campaigns/2003/09sep/030918judi.shtml |archive-date=9 December 2006 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Though she initially trained as a set designer, Dench became interested in drama school as her brother Jeff attended the [[Central School of Speech and Drama]].<ref name="Talk" /> She was also inspired by seeing [[Peggy Ashcroft]] play [[Antony and Cleopatra|Cleopatra]] on stage, which she later said "changed my life".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/theatre/judi-dench-peggy-ashcroft-fairfield-halls-a4239861.html |title=Judi Dench: 'Seeing Peggy Ashcroft play Cleopatra on stage changed my life' |work=Evening Standard |first=Mariaelena |last=Agostini |date=18 September 2019 |access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref> She applied and was accepted by the Central School,<ref name="cssd">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cssd.ac.uk/alumni/our-alumni/high-profile-alumni|title=Central School of Speech and Drama High Profile Alumni|work=cssd.ac.uk|access-date=3 March 2025|archive-date=6 May 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220506015319/https://www.cssd.ac.uk/alumni/our-alumni/high-profile-alumni|url-status=live}}</ref>  then based at the [[Royal Albert Hall]], London, where she was a classmate of [[Vanessa Redgrave]], graduating and being awarded four acting prizes, including the Gold Medal as Outstanding Student.<ref name="Talk" />

== Career ==
{{BLP sources section|date=March 2023}}

=== 1957{{ndash}}1969: National Theatre ===
[[File:Judi Dench 1959.jpg|thumb|160px|upright|Dench during an [[Old Vic]] tour at [[Belgrade]], Serbia, in 1959]]

Dench made her first professional stage appearance in September 1957 with the [[Old Vic]] Company at the [[Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool|Royal Court Theatre]] in [[Liverpool]], as [[Ophelia]] in ''[[Hamlet]]''. According to the reviewer for ''[[London Evening Standard]]'', Dench had "talent which will be shown to better advantage when she acquires some technique to go with it."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Judi Dench: With A Crack In Her Voice|last=Miller|first=John|publisher=[[Hachette UK]]|year=2013|isbn=978-1-78022-644-6|page=30}}</ref> Dench then made her London debut in the same production at the Old Vic. She remained a member of the company for four seasons, 1957–1961, her roles including Katherine in ''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]'' in 1958 (which was also her New York City debut) and Juliet in ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]'' in 1960, both directed and designed by [[Franco Zeffirelli]]. During this period, Dench toured the United States and Canada and appeared in [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]] and at the [[Edinburgh Festival]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://theatricalia.com/play/2/hamlet/production/9a5|title=Production of Hamlet &#124; Theatricalia|website=Theatricalia.com|access-date=21 August 2020}}</ref> She joined the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]] in December 1961, playing Anya in ''[[The Cherry Orchard]]'' at the [[Aldwych Theatre]] in London and made her [[Stratford-upon-Avon]] debut in April 1962 as Isabella in ''[[Measure for Measure]]''. She subsequently spent seasons in [[repertory]] both with the [[Nottingham Playhouse|Playhouse]] in [[Nottingham]] from January 1963 (including a West African tour as [[Lady Macbeth]] for the [[British Council]]), and with the [[Oxford Playhouse|Playhouse Company]] in [[Oxford]] from April 1964.

In 1960, Dench appeared on television as Anna in the very last episode ("Traviso Dam") of the TV series ''[[The Four Just Men (TV series)|The Four Just Men]]'', in 1964 as Valentine Wannop in [[Theatre 625]]'s adaptation of ''[[Parade's End]]'' (shown in three episodes), and also played a juvenile trouble maker in an episode of the police series ''[[Z-Cars]]''. That same year, she made her film debut in ''[[The Third Secret (film)|The Third Secret]]'', before featuring in a small role in the [[Sherlock Holmes]] thriller ''[[A Study in Terror]]'' (1965) with her Nottingham Playhouse colleague [[John Neville (actor)|John Neville]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Dench |first=Judi |title=And Furthermore |publisher=[[Weidenfeld & Nicolson]] |year=2012 |page=157 |isbn=978-1-78022-440-4}}</ref> She performed again in ''Theatre 625'' in 1966, as Terry in the four-part series ''[[Talking to a Stranger]]'', for which she won a BAFTA for Best Actress.<ref name=debrett>{{cite web |url=http://www.debretts.com/people-of-today-profile?person=12682 |title=Judith Olivia (Judi) Dench |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221085438/http://www.debretts.com/people-of-today-profile?person=12682 |archive-date=21 February 2014 |access-date=29 January 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://awards.bafta.org/keyword-search?keywords=judi+dench |title=BAFTA Awards Search: Judi Dench |publisher=British Academy of Film and Television Arts |access-date=9 September 2018 }}</ref> The 1966 [[BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles]] was made to Dench for her performance in ''[[Four in the Morning (1965 film)|Four in the Morning]]'' and this was followed in 1968 by a BAFTA [[British Academy Television Award for Best Actress|Best Actress Award]] for her role in [[John Hopkins (screenwriter)|John Hopkins]]' 1966 BBC drama ''[[Talking to a Stranger]]''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Judith Olivia (Judi) Dench |url=http://www.debretts.com/people-of-today-profile?person=12682 |work=People of Today |publisher=Debrett's |access-date=29 January 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221085438/http://www.debretts.com/people-of-today-profile?person=12682 |archive-date=21 February 2014}}</ref>

In 1968, she was offered the role of Sally Bowles in the musical ''[[Cabaret (musical)|Cabaret]]''. As [[Sheridan Morley]] later reported: "At first she thought they were joking. She had never done a musical and she has an unusual croaky voice which sounds as if she has a permanent cold. So frightened was she of singing in public that she auditioned from the wings, leaving the pianists alone on stage".<ref>{{cite book |last=Morley |first=Sheridan |author-link=Sheridan Morley |title=The great stage stars: distinguished theatrical careers of the past and present |publisher=Angus & Robertson |location=London |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-207-14970-2}}</ref> But when it opened at the [[Palace Theatre, London|Palace Theatre]] in February 1968, [[Frank Marcus]], reviewing for ''Plays and Players'', commented that: "She sings well. The title song, in particular, is projected with great feeling."

=== 1970{{ndash}}1989: Rise to prominence ===
After a long run in ''Cabaret'', Dench rejoined the [[Royal Shakespeare Company|RSC]], making numerous appearances with the company in Stratford and London for nearly twenty years, winning several "best actress" awards. Among her roles with the RSC, she was the Duchess in [[John Webster]]'s ''[[The Duchess of Malfi]]'' in 1971. In the Stratford 1976 season, and then at the Aldwych in 1977, she gave two comedy performances, first in [[Trevor Nunn]]'s musical staging of ''[[The Comedy of Errors]]'' as Adriana, then partnered with [[Donald Sinden]] as Beatrice and Benedick in [[John Barton (director)|John Barton]]'s "British Raj" revival of ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]''. As [[Bernard Levin]] wrote in ''[[The Sunday Times]]'': "...demonstrating once more that she is a comic actress of consummate skill, perhaps the very best we have."<ref>{{cite book |last=Tanitch |first=Robert |title=London stage in the 20th century |publisher=Haus Publishing |location=London |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-904950-74-5}}</ref> One of her most notable achievements with the RSC was her performance as Lady Macbeth in 1976. Nunn's acclaimed production of ''[[Macbeth]]'' was first staged with a [[minimalist]] design at [[The Other Place (theatre)|The Other Place]] theatre in Stratford. Its small round stage focused attention on the [[psychological]] dynamics of the characters, and both [[Ian McKellen]] in the title role, and Dench, received exceptionally favourable notices. "If this is not great acting I don't know what is", wrote [[Michael Billington (critic)|Michael Billington]] in ''[[The Guardian]]''. "It will astonish me if the performance is matched by any in this actress's generation", commented [[J. C. Trewin]] in ''[[The Lady (magazine)|The Lady]]''. The production transferred to London, opening at the [[Donmar Warehouse]] in September 1977, and was adapted for television, later released on VHS and DVD. Dench won the [[The Society of West End Theatre|SWET]] Best Actress Award in 1977.

Dench was nominated for a [[British Academy Television Awards|BAFTA]] for her role as Hazel Wiles in the 1979 [[BBC]] drama ''[[On Giant's Shoulders]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dench's nomination for ''On Giant's Shoulders'' |url=http://www.bafta.org/search.html?pageNo=38&q=actress&w=true |publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] |access-date=23 April 2012}}</ref> She had a romantic role in the BBC television film ''[[Langrishe, Go Down]]'' (1978), with [[Jeremy Irons]] and a screenplay by [[Harold Pinter]] from the [[Aidan Higgins]] novel, directed by [[David Jones (director)|David Jones]], in which she played one of three spinster sisters living in a fading Irish mansion in the [[County Waterford]] countryside. Dench made her debut as a director in 1988 with the [[Renaissance Theatre Company]]'s touring season, ''Renaissance Shakespeare on the Road'', co-produced with the [[Birmingham Rep]], and ending with a three-month repertory programme at the [[Phoenix Theatre (London)|Phoenix Theatre]] in London. Dench's contribution was a staging of ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'', set in the [[Napoleonic era]], which starred [[Kenneth Branagh]] and [[Emma Thompson]] as Benedick and Beatrice. She has made numerous appearances in the West End including the role of Miss Trant in the 1974 musical ''[[The Good Companions (musical)|The Good Companions]]'' at [[Her Majesty's Theatre]]. In 1981, Dench was due to play [[Grizabella]] in the original production of ''[[Cats (musical)|Cats]]'', but was forced to pull out due to a torn Achilles tendon, leaving [[Elaine Paige]] to play the role.<ref name="cats">{{cite news |title=Record-breaking Cats bows out |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/showbiz/1761508.stm |publisher=BBC News |date=15 January 2002 |access-date=16 February 2009}}</ref>

From 1981 to 1984, Dench starred in Britain's BAFTA award-winning ''[[A Fine Romance (1981 TV series)|A Fine Romance]]'' with her husband [[Michael Williams (actor)|Michael Williams]]. In 1987, Dench played a supporting role in Columbia Pictures film ''[[84 Charing Cross Road (film)|84 Charing Cross Road]]'', with Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins. The film dramatizes a delightful and tender correspondence, of the same title, between American writer, Helene Hanff and British bookshop manager, Frank Doel, which began after WWII, in 1949, and ended in 1969. She also acted with the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] in London where she played Cleopatra in ''Antony and Cleopatra'' (1987). In 1989, she appeared in David Tucker's ''[[Behaving Badly (TV serial)|Behaving Badly]]'' for Channel 4, based on Catherine Heath's novel of the same name. That same year, she was cast as Pru Forrest, the long-time silent wife of Tom Forrest, in the [[BBC]] soap opera ''[[The Archers]]'' on its 10,000th edition.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/archers/backstage/14000.shtml|title=The Archers Backstage|publisher=[[BBC]]|access-date=6 August 2010|archive-date=26 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200126140858/https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/archers/backstage/14000.shtml|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== 1990s: Established actress ===
[[File:Queen Victoria - Winterhalter 1859.jpg|thumb|left|160px|Dench portrayed [[Queen Victoria]] in ''[[Mrs. Brown]]'' (1997) and ''[[Victoria & Abdul]]'' (2017).]]
After a long gap in the series of [[James Bond films]] following ''[[Licence to Kill]]'' (1989), in ''[[GoldenEye]]'' (1995) the producers brought in Dench to take over as the role of [[M (James Bond)|M]], [[James Bond (literary character)|James Bond]]'s boss. The character was reportedly modeled on Dame [[Stella Rimington]], the real-life head of MI5 between 1992 and 1996;<ref>{{cite book |last=West |first=Nigel |author-link=Nigel West |title=Historical dictionary of Ian Fleming's world of intelligence: fact and fiction |year=2010 |publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield|Scarecrow Press]] |location=Lanham, Maryland |isbn=978-0-7524-2896-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/mmi5sfirstspymas00cook/page/45 45] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/mmi5sfirstspymas00cook/page/45}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Rimington |author-link=Stella Rimington |first=Stella |title=Open secret: the autobiography of the former Director-General of MI5 |year=2008 |publisher=[[Arrow Books]] |location=London |isbn=978-0-09-943672-0 |page=244}}</ref> Dench became the first woman to portray M, succeeding [[Robert Brown (British actor)|Robert Brown]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bookpage.com/0502bp/stella_rimington.html |publisher=BookPage |title=Her majesty's not-so-secret service |access-date=14 November 2006 |first=Jay |last=MacDonald |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060826194750/http://www.bookpage.com/0502bp/stella_rimington.html |archive-date=26 August 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20020430/ai_n12622913 |title=Woman tipped to head MI5 in footsteps of Stella Rimington |work=The Independent (London) |access-date=14 November 2006 |first=Nigel |last=Morris |date=30 April 2002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013210329/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20020430/ai_n12622913 |archive-date=13 October 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The seventeenth [[spy film]] in the [[James Bond in film|series]] and the first to star [[Pierce Brosnan]] as the fictional [[MI6]] officer, ''GoldenEye'' marked the first Bond film made after the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] and the end of the [[Cold War]], which provided the plot's back story. The film earned a worldwide gross of US$350.7 million,<ref name="nos">{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/series/JamesBond.php|title=Box Office History for James Bond Movies|access-date=18 October 2007|work=The Numbers|publisher=Nash Information Service}}</ref> with critics viewing the film as a modernisation of the series.<ref name="QNetwork">{{cite web|title=GoldenEye|publisher=Qnetwork|url=http://www.qnetwork.com/?page=review&id=348|access-date=27 April 2007|first=James|last=Kendrick|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218211646/http://www.qnetwork.com/index.php?page=review&id=348|archive-date=18 February 2012}}</ref><ref name="variety">{{cite news|title=GoldenEye|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|first=Todd|last=McCarthy|url=https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117904690.html?categoryid=31&cs=1|date=15 November 1995|access-date=18 November 2006|archive-date=13 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013145128/http://variety.com/review/VE1117904690.html?categoryid=31&cs=1|url-status=dead}}</ref> She also starred in BBC1's ''[[As Time Goes By (TV series)|As Time Goes By]]'', a romantic comedy. Several series of the show were made between 1992 and 2005. In 1995, she played Desiree Armfeldt in a major revival of [[Stephen Sondheim]]'s ''[[A Little Night Music]]'', for which she won an Olivier Award.

In 1997, Dench appeared in her first starring film role as [[Queen Victoria]] in [[John Madden (director)|John Madden]]'s teleplay ''[[Mrs Brown]]'', which depicts Victoria's relationship with her personal servant and [[favourite]] [[John Brown (servant)|John Brown]], played by [[Billy Connolly]]. Filmed with the intention of being shown on [[BBC One]] and on [[WGBH-TV|WGBH]]'s ''[[Masterpiece Theatre]]'', it was eventually acquired by [[Miramax]] mogul [[Harvey Weinstein]]. Released to generally positive reviews and unexpected commercial success, going on to earn more than $13 million worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|title=Mrs Brown (1997)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mrs_brown|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=17 December 2012}}</ref> the film was screened in the ''[[Un Certain Regard]]'' section at the [[1997 Cannes Film Festival]].<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/4836/year/1997.html|title=Festival de Cannes: Mrs Brown |access-date=27 September 2009|work=festival-cannes.com}}</ref> For her performance, Dench garnered universal acclaim by critics and was awarded her fourth [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role|BAFTA]] and first [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] nomination at the [[70th Academy Awards]].<ref name="awards">{{cite web |title=Awards for Judi Dench|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001132/awards|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database]]|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> In 2011, while accepting a [[British Film Institute]] Award in London, Dench commented that the project launched her Hollywood career and joked that "it was thanks to Harvey, whose name I have had tattooed on my bum".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/judi-dench-got-fake-tattoo-of-harvey-weinsteins-name-on-her-bum-2017-10|title=Here's the actual story about Judi Dench getting a fake 'tattoo' of Harvey Weinstein's name on her 'bum'|work=Business Insider UK|date=9 October 2017|access-date=22 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-36673739|title=Judi Dench gets first tattoo for her 81st birthday|publisher=BBC News|date=30 June 2016|access-date=22 December 2017}}</ref>

Dench's other film of 1997 was [[Roger Spottiswoode]]'s ''[[Tomorrow Never Dies]]'', her second film in the [[James Bond series]].<ref>{{cite news|title=China Resists Western Efforts to Bond|url=http://www.klast.net/bond/tndnews1.html#yeoh|last=Cohen|first=David|work=[[New York Daily News]]|date=10 March 1997|access-date=6 January 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004225636/http://www.klast.net/bond/tndnews1.html#yeoh|archive-date=4 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=main&id=goldeneye.htm|title=GoldenEye|access-date=14 January 2007|website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> The same year, Dench reteamed with director John Madden to film ''[[Shakespeare in Love]]'' (1998), a romantic comedy drama that depicts a love affair involving playwright [[William Shakespeare]], played by [[Joseph Fiennes]], while he was writing the play ''Romeo and Juliet''. On her performance as [[Queen Elizabeth I]], ''[[The New York Times]]'' commented that "Dench's shrewd, daunting Elizabeth is one of the film's utmost treats".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9B05E4D9103AF932A25751C1A96E958260|title=FILM REVIEW: Shakespeare Saw a Therapist|date=11 December 1998|access-date=7 October 2013|newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> The following year, she was nominated for most of the high-profile awards, winning both the [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Academy Award]] and the [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role]].<ref name="awards" /> On her Oscar win, Dench joked on-stage, "I feel for eight minutes on the screen, I should only get a little bit of him."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aaspeechesdb.oscars.org/link/071-4|title=1998 (71st) Academy Awards|access-date= 14 October 2013|publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]]}}</ref>

Also in 1999, Dench won the [[Tony Award]] for her 1999 Broadway performance in the role of Esme Allen in Sir [[David Hare (dramatist)|David Hare]]'s ''[[Amy's View]]''.<ref name="awards" /> The same year, she co-starred along with [[Cher]], [[Joan Plowright]], [[Maggie Smith]], and [[Lily Tomlin]] in [[Franco Zeffirelli]]'s semi-autobiographical period drama ''[[Tea with Mussolini]]'' which tells the story of young Italian boy Luca's upbringing by a circle of British and American women, before and during [[World War II]]. 1999 also saw the release of Pierce Brosnan's third Bond film, ''[[The World Is Not Enough]]''. This film portrayed M in a larger role with the villain, Renard, coming back to haunt her when he engineers the murder of her old friend Sir Robert King and seemingly attempts to kill his daughter Elektra.

=== 2000s: Continued acclaim ===
[[File:Judi Dench figure at Madame Tussauds London (10109347476).jpg|thumb|upright|Wax statue of Dench as [[M (James Bond)|M]] at [[Madame Tussauds]], London]]
In January 2001, Dench's husband [[Michael Williams (actor)|Michael Williams]] died of lung cancer. Dench went to [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] in Canada almost immediately after his funeral to begin production on [[Lasse Hallström]]'s drama film ''[[The Shipping News (film)|The Shipping News]]'', a therapy she later credited as her rescue: "People, friends, kept saying, 'You are not facing up to it; you need to face up to it', and maybe they were right, but I felt I was – in the acting. Grief supplies you with an enormous amount of energy. I needed to use that up."<ref name="ireex">{{cite web|title=Dench: Acting 'rescued' me following husband's death |date=15 October 2012 |url=http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/entertainment/dench-acting-resuced-me-following-husbands-death-570574.html|work=[[Irish Examiner]]|access-date=15 November 2012}}</ref> In between, Dench finished work on [[Richard Eyre]]'s film ''[[Iris (2001 film)|Iris]]'' (2001), in which she portrayed novelist [[Iris Murdoch]]. Dench shared her role with [[Kate Winslet]], both actresses portraying Murdoch at different phases of her life.<ref>{{cite news |last=Howe |first=Desson |title=Iris: Heroic on a Human Scale |date=15 February 2002 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?contentId=A9577-2002Feb14 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Each of them was nominated for an [[Academy Award|Oscar]] the following year, earning Dench her fourth nomination in five years.<ref name="awards" /> In addition, she was awarded both an [[ALFS Award]] and the [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role|Best Leading Actress Award]] at the [[55th British Academy Film Awards]].<ref name="awards" /> After ''Iris'', Dench immediately returned to Canada to finish ''The Shipping News'' alongside [[Kevin Spacey]] and [[Julianne Moore]].<ref name="ireex" /> Based on the [[Pulitzer Prize for Fiction|Pulitzer Prize]]-winning [[The Shipping News|novel]] by [[E. Annie Proulx]], the drama revolves around a quiet and introspective typesetter (Spacey) who, after the death of his daughter's mother, moves to [[Newfoundland]] along with his daughter and his aunt, played by Dench, in hopes of starting his life anew in the small town where she grew up. The film earned mixed reviews from critics,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shipping_news|title=The Shipping News (2001)|work=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> and was financially unsuccessful, taking in just US$24 million worldwide with a budget of US$35 million.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Shipping News|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2001/SNEWS.php|publisher=The Numbers |access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Dench received BAFTA and SAG Award nominations for her performance.<ref name="awards" />

In 2002, Dench was cast opposite [[Rupert Everett]], [[Colin Firth]], and [[Reese Witherspoon]] in [[Oliver Parker]]'s ''[[The Importance of Being Earnest (2002 film)|The Importance of Being Earnest]]'', a comedy about mistaken identity set in English high society during the [[Victorian Era]]. Based on [[Oscar Wilde]]'s classic [[comedy of manners]] [[The Importance of Being Earnest|of the same name]], she portrayed Lady Bracknell, a role she had repeatedly played before, including a stint at the [[Royal National Theatre]] in 1982.<ref>{{cite news|first=Scott|last=Matthewman|title=Turn off the TV: Radio choices October 10–16|url=http://blogs.thestage.co.uk/tvtoday/2009/10/turn-off-the-tv-radio-choices-october-10-16/|newspaper=The Stage|date=9 October 2009|access-date=13 November 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128182431/http://blogs.thestage.co.uk/tvtoday/2009/10/turn-off-the-tv-radio-choices-october-10-16/|archive-date=28 January 2013}}</ref> The film was released to lukewarm reactions by critics - who called it "breezy entertainment, helped by an impressive cast", but felt that it also suffered "from some peculiar directorial choices" - and earned just US$17.3 million during its limited release.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Importance of Being Earnest|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=importanceofbeingearnest.htm|website=Box Office Mojo|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Dench's other film of 2002 was ''[[Die Another Day]]'', the twentieth installment in the [[James Bond series]]. The spy film, directed by [[Lee Tamahori]], marked her fourth appearance as [[MI6]] head M and the franchise's last performance by [[Pierce Brosnan]] as Bond. ''Die Another Day'' received mixed reviews.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/die_another_day/ |title=Die Another Day (2002)|website= Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Moore |first=Roger |title=Bye bye to Ian Fleming's James Bond? |newspaper=[[The Times]] |date=4 October 2008 |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/london_film_festival/article4866756.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615113213/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/london_film_festival/article4866756.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2011 |access-date=5 October 2008|location=London}}</ref> Regardless, it became the highest-grossing James Bond film up to that time.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/tv_film/newsid_2505000/2505093.stm |title=Die Another Day explodes at the box office |publisher=BBC News |access-date=21 September 2007| date= 22 November 2002}}</ref> In the 2002 animated children's series ''[[Angelina Ballerina (TV series)|Angelina Ballerina]]'', Dench lent her voice to Miss Lilly, Angelina's ballet teacher, and her daughter, [[Finty Williams]], provided the voice of Angelina herself.{{citation needed|date=February 2020}}

In 2004, Dench appeared as Aereon, an ambassador of the [[Riddick (character)|Elemental race]] who helps uncover the mysterious past of [[Richard B. Riddick]], played by [[Vin Diesel]], in [[David Twohy]]'s science fiction sequel ''[[The Chronicles of Riddick]]''. Selected by Diesel, who prompted writers to re-create the character to fit a female persona because he wanted to work with the actress,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blackfilm.com/20041112/features/vindiesel.shtml|title=The Chronicles of Riddick: An Interview with Vin Diesel|work=Backfilm.com|access-date=13 November 2012| date=1 November 2004}}</ref> she called filming "tremendous fun", although she "had absolutely no idea what was going on in the plot".<ref>{{cite news|first=Donald|last=Clarke|url=https://www.irishtimes.com|title=Dame's Treat|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|access-date=13 November 2012|date=24 November 2005}}</ref> The film was a critical and box office failure.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chronicles_of_riddick/|title=The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)|work=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> In his review of the film, [[James Berardinelli]] from ''[[ReelViews]]'' remarked that he felt that Dench's character served no more "useful purpose than to give [her] an opportunity to appear in a science-fiction movie".<ref>{{cite web|first=James |last=Berardinelli|url=http://preview.reelviews.net/movies/c/chronicles_riddick.html|title=Chronicles of Riddick, The|work=[[ReelViews]]|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref>

She followed ''Riddick'' with a more traditional role in [[Charles Dance]]'s English drama ''[[Ladies in Lavender]]'', also starring friend [[Maggie Smith]]. In the film, Dench plays one half of a sister duo and takes it upon herself to nurse a washed up stranger to health, eventually finding herself falling for a man many decades younger than she. The specialty release garnered positive reviews from critics, with [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' calling it "perfectly sweet and civilized [and] a pleasure to watch Smith and Dench together; their acting is so natural it could be breathing".<ref>{{cite web|first=Roger|last=Ebert|url=http://www.reelviews.net/movies/c/chronicles_riddick.html|title=Ladies in Lavender (2004)|work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Also in 2004, Dench provided her voice for several smaller projects. In [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney]]'s ''[[Home on the Range (2004 film)|Home on the Range]]'', she, along with [[Roseanne Barr]] and [[Jennifer Tilly]], voiced a mismatched trio of [[dairy cow]]s who must capture an infamous cattle rustler, for his [[Bounty (reward)|bounty]], in order to save their idyllic farm from foreclosure. The film was mildly successful for Disney.<ref>{{cite web|title=Home on the Range|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=importanceofbeingearnest.htm|website=Box Office Mojo|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref>

A major hit for Dench came with [[Joe Wright]]'s ''[[Pride & Prejudice (2005 film)|Pride & Prejudice]]'', a 2005 adaptation of [[Pride and Prejudice|the novel]] by [[Jane Austen]], starring [[Keira Knightley]] and [[Donald Sutherland]].<ref>{{cite web|first=Liz|last=Hoggard|title=Meet the puppet master|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/sep/11/features.review|work=The Guardian|date=11 September 2005 |access-date=10 February 2015}}</ref> Wright persuaded Dench to join the cast as [[Lady Catherine de Bourgh]] by writing her a letter that read: "I love it when you play a bitch. Please come and be a bitch for me."<ref>{{cite journal|last=Dole|first=Carol M.|date=Summer 2007|title=Jane Austen and Mud: ''Pride & Prejudice'' (2005), British Realism, and the Heritage Film|url=http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/on-line/vol27no2/dole.htm|journal=[[Persuasions]]|volume=27|issue=2}}</ref> Dench had only one week available to shoot her scenes, forcing Wright to make them his first days of filming.<ref>{{cite news |title=Unlikely Director Brought New Approach to ''Pride & Prejudice'' |last=Hewitt |first=Chris |date=9 November 2005 |newspaper=[[Ottawa Citizen]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite video |first=Joe |last=Wright |author-link=Joe Wright |year=2005 |title=[[Audio commentary]] for ''Pride & Prejudice'' | medium=DVD |publisher=[[Universal Pictures|Universal Studios]] |department=Bonus Features |time=1:00:05–1:00:15}}</ref> With both a worldwide gross of over US$121 million and several Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations, the film became a critical and commercial success.<ref name="nine">{{cite web|title=Pride & Prejudice (2005)|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/people/BBLET.php|work=The Numbers|access-date=10 February 2009}}</ref>

Dench, in her role as M, was the only cast member carried through from the [[Pierce Brosnan|Brosnan films]] to appear in ''[[Casino Royale (2006 film)|Casino Royale]]'' (2006), Martin Campbell's [[reboot (fiction)|reboot]] of the James Bond film series, starring [[Daniel Craig]] in his debut performance as the fictional MI6 agent. The thriller received largely positive critical response, with reviewers highlighting Craig's performance and the reinvention of the character of Bond.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/casino_royale/?critic=columns&sortby=rotten&name_order=asc&view=#contentReviews |title=Casino Royale (2006)|work=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=12 November 2012}}</ref> It earned over US$594 million worldwide, ranking it among the highest-grossing James Bond films ever released. Also in April 2006, Dench returned to the West End stage in ''[[Hay Fever (play)|Hay Fever]]'' alongside [[Peter Bowles]], [[Kim Medcalf]] and [[Belinda Lang]]. She finished off 2006 with the role of Mistress Quickly in the RSC's new musical ''The Merry Wives'', a version of ''[[The Merry Wives of Windsor]]''.<ref name=merryw>{{cite web |title=Merry Wives – The Musical |url=http://www.rsc.org.uk/WhatsOn/3537.aspx |publisher=Royal Shakespeare Company |access-date=29 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070114014308/http://www.rsc.org.uk/WhatsOn/3537.aspx |archive-date=14 January 2007 }}</ref>

[[File:Flickr - Siebbi - A rose for Dame Judi Dench (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Dench attending the premiere of ''[[Notes on a Scandal (film)|Notes on a Scandal]]'' at the [[2007 Berlin International Film Festival]]]]

Dench appeared opposite [[Cate Blanchett]] as a London teacher with a dedicated fondness for vulnerable women in [[Richard Eyre]]'s 2006 drama film ''[[Notes on a Scandal (film)|Notes on a Scandal]]'', an adaption from the 2003 [[Notes on a Scandal|novel of the same name]] by [[Zoë Heller]]. A fan of Heller's book, Dench "was thrilled to be asked to...play that woman, to try to find a humanity in that dreadful person".<ref name="observer" /> The specialty film opened to generally positive reviews and commercial success, grossing US$50 million worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=notesonascandal.htm |title=NOTES ON A SCANDAL (2007) |access-date=7 June 2009| work=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> exceeding its £15 million budget.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3662746/How-to-make-a-scandalously-good-movie.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3662746/How-to-make-a-scandalously-good-movie.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=How to make a scandalously good movie |date=26 January 2007 |access-date=22 August 2009 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |last=Gritten |first=David |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In his review for ''Chicago Sun-Times'', Roger Ebert declared the main actresses "perhaps the most impressive acting duo in any film of 2006. Dench and Blanchett are magnificent."<ref>{{cite web |title=Notes on a Scandal (2006)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/notes_on_a_scandal/|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=12 November 2012}}</ref> The following year, Dench earned her sixth [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Academy]] nomination and went on to win a [[BIFA for Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film|British Independent Film Award]] and an [[Evening Standard Award]].<ref name="awards" /> Dench, as Miss Matty Jenkyns, co-starred with [[Eileen Atkins]], [[Michael Gambon]], [[Imelda Staunton]], and [[Francesca Annis]] in the [[BBC One]] five-part series ''[[Cranford (TV series)|Cranford]]''. The first season of the series began transmission in November 2007. In the same year Dench narrated ''Go Inside to Greet the Light'', a film about the [[Spiritualism (beliefs)|spiritual]] experience of [[Quaker]] meetings for worship in [[James Turrell]]'s Deershelter Skyspace.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Mead |first=Helen |title=Judi Dench narrates new Quaker film |url=https://thefriend.co.uk/articledisplay.asp?articleid=2895 |url-access=registration |magazine=[[The Friend (Quaker magazine)|The Friend]] |date=21 September 2007 |access-date=7 September 2022}}</ref>

Dench became the voice for the narration for the updated [[Walt Disney World]] [[Epcot]] attraction [[Spaceship Earth (Epcot)|Spaceship Earth]] in February 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefloridanewsjournal.com/2012/10/01/disneys-theme-park-epcot-turns-30-today-and-celebreates|title=Disney's Theme Park EPCOT Turns 30 Today And Celebreates|date=10 November 2012|work=The Floria News Journal|access-date=10 November 2012|archive-date=14 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140814031312/http://www.thefloridanewsjournal.com/2012/10/01/disneys-theme-park-epcot-turns-30-today-and-celebreates|url-status=usurped}}</ref> The same month, she was named as the first official patron of the York Youth Mysteries 2008, a project to allow young people to explore the York Mystery Plays through dance, film-making and circus.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.york.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/february/266423|title=Dame Judi Dench gives her support to York Youth Mysteries|date=20 February 2008|publisher=City of York Council|access-date=10 November 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121030215022/http%3A//www.york.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/february/266423|archive-date=30 October 2012}}</ref> Her only film of 2008 was [[Marc Forster]]'s ''[[Quantum of Solace]]'', the twenty-second [[Eon Productions|Eon]]-produced [[James Bond film]], in which she reprised her role as M along with Daniel Craig. A direct sequel to the 2006 film ''Casino Royale'', Forster felt Dench was underused in the previous films, and wanted to make her part bigger, having her interact with Bond more.<ref>{{cite news|title=Fostering change|work=[[The Star (Malaysia)|The Star]]|date=11 October 2008|url=http://www.star-ecentral.com/news/story.asp?file=/2008/10/11/movies/2202154&sec=movies|access-date=13 October 2008}}</ref> The project received mixed reviews from critics, who mainly felt that ''Quantum of Solace'' was not as impressive as the predecessor ''Casino Royale'',<ref>{{cite web|title=Quantum of Solace (2008)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/quantum_of_solace|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=10 November 2012}}</ref> but became another hit for the franchise with a worldwide gross of US$591&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web |title=Quantum of Solace|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2008/JB22.php|publisher=The Numbers |access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> For her performance, Dench was nominated for a [[Saturn Award]] the following year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.saturnawards.org/nominations.html |title=Nominations for the 35th Annual Saturn Awards |publisher=[[Saturn Award|Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films]] |access-date=17 March 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120221234527/http://www.saturnawards.org/nominations.html |archive-date=21 February 2012}}</ref>

Dench returned to the West End in mid-2009, playing Madame de Montreuil in [[Yukio Mishima]]'s play ''[[Madame de Sade]]'', directed by [[Michael Grandage]] as part of the Donmar season at [[Wyndham's Theatre]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Mark|last=Espiner |title=What to say about ... Judi Dench in Madame de Sade|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/mar/19/judi-dench-madame-de-sade|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=19 March 2009|access-date=10 November 2012 |location=London}}</ref> The same year, she appeared in [[Sally Potter]]'s experimental film ''[[Rage (2009 American film)|Rage]]'', a project that featured 14 actors playing fictional figures in and around the fashion world, giving monologues before a plain backdrop.<ref name="guardian 20120909">{{cite news|first=Kira|last=Cochrane|title=Judi Dench: 'Does nobody ever believe anything I do?'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/sep/12/judi-dench-interview|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=12 September 2009|access-date=10 November 2012|location=London}}</ref> Attracted to the fact that it was unlike anything she had done before, Dench welcomed the opportunity to work with Potter.<ref name="guardian 20120909" /> "I like to do something that's not expected, or predictable. I had to learn to smoke a joint, and I set my trousers alight", she said about filming.<ref name="guardian 20120909" /> Her next film was [[Rob Marshall]]'s musical film ''[[Nine (2009 live-action film)|Nine]]'', based on [[Arthur Kopit]]'s [[libretto|book]] for the 1982 [[Nine (musical)|musical of the same name]], itself suggested by [[Federico Fellini]]'s semi-autobiographical film ''[[8½]]''.<ref>{{cite news|first=Ernio|last=Hernandez|title=Work Resumes on Script for Rob Marshall's ''Nine'' Film|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114520.html|work=Playbill News|publisher=[[Playbill]]|date=23 January 2008|access-date=7 August 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081219221433/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114520.html|archive-date=19 December 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> Also starring [[Daniel Day-Lewis]], [[Marion Cotillard]], [[Penélope Cruz]], and [[Sophia Loren]], she played Lilli La Fleur, an eccentric but motherly French costume designer, who performs the song "[[Folies Bergère]]" in the film. ''Nine'' was nominated for four [[Academy Awards]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Nine (2009)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/nine_2009/|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=10 November 2012}}</ref> and awarded both the [[Satellite Award for Best Film]] and [[Satellite Award for Best Cast&nbsp;– Motion Picture|Best Cast]].<ref name="awards" /> Also in 2009, Dench reprised the role of Matilda Jenkyns in ''[[Return to Cranford]]'', the two-part second season of a [[Simon Curtis (filmmaker)|Simon Curtis]] television series. Critically acclaimed, Dench was nominated for a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Satellite Award.<ref name="awards" />

=== 2010s ===
In 2010, Dench renewed her collaboration with [[Peter Hall (director)|Peter Hall]] at the [[Rose Theatre, Kingston|Rose Theatre]] in [[Kingston upon Thames]] in ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'', which opened in February 2010; she played Titania as Queen Elizabeth I in her later years – almost 50 years after she first played the role for the Royal Shakespeare Company.<ref>{{cite news |last=Espiner |first=Mark |title=Judi Dench in A Midsummer Night's Dream: Press views|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8518193.stm|publisher=BBC News|date=16 February 2010|access-date=10 November 2012}}</ref> In July 2010, Dench performed "[[Send in the Clowns]]" at a special celebratory promenade concert from the [[Royal Albert Hall]] as part of the proms season, in honour of composer [[Stephen Sondheim]]'s 80th birthday.<ref>{{cite news |last=White |first=Lesley |work=The Sunday Times |location=London |date=14 February 2010 |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/theatre/article7021949.ece |title=Peter and Judi play a Tug of Love}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rosetheatrekingston.org/about-us |title=About the Rose |work=The Rose Theatre |access-date=22 October 2009}}</ref>

In 2011, Dench starred in ''[[Jane Eyre (2011 film)|Jane Eyre]]'', ''[[My Week with Marilyn]]'' and ''[[J. Edgar]]''. In [[Cary Joji Fukunaga]]'s period drama ''Jane Eyre'', based on the 1847 [[Jane Eyre|novel of the same name]] by [[Charlotte Brontë]], she played the role of Alice Fairfax, housekeeper to Rochester, the aloof and brooding master of Thornfield Hall, where main character Jane, played by [[Mia Wasikowska]], gets employed as a [[governess]].<ref>{{cite web|first=Mayer |last=Nissim |title=Judi Dench had no ego on 'Jane Eyre' set, says director Cary Fukunaga|work=[[Digital Spy]] |url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/movies/news/a346793/judi-dench-had-no-ego-on-jane-eyre-set-says-director-cary-fukunaga.html/|date=21 October 2011|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> Dench reportedly signed to the project after she had received a humorous personal note from Fukunaga, in which he "promised her that she'd be the sexiest woman on set if she did the film".<ref>{{cite news|title=Judi Dench given sexy Jane Eyre promise|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/english/hollywood/news/Judi-Dench-given-sexy-Jane-Eyre-promise/articleshow/9953576.cms|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509031147/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-12/news-interviews/30144704_1_sexiest-woman-dame-judi-dench-jane-eyre|url-status=live|archive-date=9 May 2013|work=[[The Times of India]]|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> Acclaimed among critics,<ref>{{cite web |title=Jane Eyre (2011)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/jane_eyre_2011/|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> it was a mediocre arthouse success at the box office, grossing US$30.5 million worldwide.<ref>{{cite web|title=Jane Eyre|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Jane-Eyre-(2010)|publisher=The Numbers|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> In [[Simon Curtis (filmmaker)|Simon Curtis]]' ''My Week with Marilyn'', which depicts the making of the 1957 film ''[[The Prince and the Showgirl]]'' starring [[Marilyn Monroe]] and [[Laurence Olivier]], Dench played actress [[Sybil Thorndike]]. The film garnered largely positive reviews,<ref>{{cite web|title=My Week with Marilyn (2011 film profile)
|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/my_week_with_marilyn/|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> and earned Dench a [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role|Best Actress in a Supporting Role]] nomination at the [[65th British Academy Film Awards|65th BAFTA Awards]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://awards.bafta.org/award/2012/film/supporting-actress|title=Film {{!}} Supporting Actress in 2012|publisher=BAFTA|access-date=18 September 2018}}</ref>

Dench's last film of 2011 was [[Clint Eastwood]]'s ''[[J. Edgar]]'', a biographical drama film about the career of [[FBI]] director [[J. Edgar Hoover]], played by [[Leonardo DiCaprio]], from the [[Palmer Raids]] onwards, including an examination of his private life as a [[closeted]] homosexual.<ref name="WSJ.com">{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703293204576106080298279672|title=A Hollywood Icon Lays Down the Law|work=WSJ.com|access-date=18 February 2011|first=Michael|last=Judge|date=29 January 2011}}</ref> Hand-picked by Eastwood to play Anna Marie Hoover, Hoover's mother, Dench initially thought a friend was setting her up upon receiving Eastwood's phone call request. "I didn't take it seriously to start with. And then I realised it was really him and that was a tricky conversation", she stated.<ref name="observer">{{cite news|first=Tim|last=Adams|title=Judi Dench: 'I never want to stop working'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/oct/14/judi-dench-interview-skyfall|work=[[The Observer]]|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|date=14 October 2012|access-date=9 November 2012|location=London}}</ref> Released to mixed reception, both with critics and commercially, the film went on to gross US$79 million worldwide.<ref>{{cite web |title=J. Edgar (2011)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/j_edgar/|publisher=The Numbers |access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> The same year, Dench reunited with [[Rob Marshall]] and [[Johnny Depp]] for a [[cameo appearance]] in ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides]]'', playing a noblewoman who is robbed by [[Captain Jack Sparrow]], played by Depp. She made a second cameo that year in [[Ray Cooney]]'s ''[[Run for Your Wife (2012 film)|Run for Your Wife]]''.<ref>{{cite web|first=James|last=Pozzi|title=Dame Judi Dench set to make cameo in Wimbledon-shot film|url=http://swlondoner.co.uk/content/0909315-dame-judi-dench-set-make-cameo-wimbledon-shot-film|work=South West Londoner|access-date=9 November 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130206024852/http://swlondoner.co.uk/content/0909315-dame-judi-dench-set-make-cameo-wimbledon-shot-film|archive-date=6 February 2013}}</ref>

In 2011, Dench reunited with director [[John Madden (director)|John Madden]] on the set of the [[comedy drama]] ''[[The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel]]'' (2012), starring an [[ensemble cast]] also consisting of [[Celia Imrie]], [[Bill Nighy]], [[Ronald Pickup]], [[Maggie Smith]], [[Tom Wilkinson]], and [[Penelope Wilton]], as a group of British [[pensioner]]s moving to a retirement hotel in India, run by the young and eager Sonny ([[Dev Patel]]). Released to positive reviews by critics,<ref name="rt-tbemh">{{cite web |title=The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_best_exotic_marigold_hotel_2012 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=30 October 2012}}</ref> who declared the film a "sweet story about the senior set featuring a top-notch cast of veteran actors",<ref name="rt-tbemh" /> it became a surprise box-office hit following its international release, eventually grossing $US134 million worldwide, mostly from its domestic run.<ref name="cs">{{cite web|url=https://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=90881|title=The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Crosses $100 Million|work=Fox Searchlight Pictures|publisher=CommingSoon.net|date=31 May 2012|access-date=30 October 2012|archive-date=29 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140429215037/http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=90881|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''Best Exotic Marigold Hotel'' was ranked among the highest-grossing specialty releases of the year,<ref>{{cite web|first=Peter|last=Knegt|url=https://www.indiewire.com/article/specialty-box-office-queen-reigns-for-indie-debuts-lcd-soundsystem-doc-has-great-one-night-only?page=2|title=Specialty Box Office: 'Queen' Reigns For Indie Debuts; LCD Soundsystem Doc Has Great 'One Night Only'|work=Indiewire|date=23 July 2012|access-date=30 October 2012}}</ref> and Dench, whom [[Peter Travers]] from ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' called "resilient marvel",<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/the-best-exotic-marigold-hotel-20120503|first=Peter|last=Travers|title=The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=3 May 2012|access-date=30 October 2012|archive-date=12 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130112090627/http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/the-best-exotic-marigold-hotel-20120503|url-status=dead}}</ref> garnered a [[BIFA for Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film|Best Actress]] nod at both the [[British Independent Film Awards]] and Golden Globe Awards.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/movies/news/a435735/broken-sightseers-berberian-sound-studio-lead-bifa-nominations.html|title='Broken', 'Sightseers', 'Berberian Sound Studio' lead BIFA nominations|last=Reynolds|first=Simon|date=5 November 2012|work=[[Digital Spy]]|publisher=[[Hearst Magazines UK]]|access-date=6 November 2012}}</ref>

[[File:Judy and Ben (8749969035) (2).jpg|thumb|upright|Dench with ''[[Skyfall]]'' co-star [[Ben Whishaw]] at the [[Noël Coward Theatre]] in 2013]]

Also in 2012, ''[[Friend Request Pending]]'', an indie short film which Dench had filmed in 2011, received a wide release as part of the feature films ''[[Stars in Shorts]]'', "Camden Clog dancing Nelson Mills" by Pat Tracey, and ''The Joy of Six''. In the 12-minute comedy, directed by ''My Week with Marilyn'' assistant director [[Chris Foggin]] on a budget of just £5,000, she portrays a pensioner grappling with a crush on her church choirmaster and the art of cyber-flirting via [[social networking]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/what-m-did-next-judi-dench-tries-cyberflirting-in-lowbudget-indie-film-8300460.html|title=What M did next: Judi Dench tries cyber-flirting in low-budget indie film|first=Alice|last=Jones|date=9 November 2012|work=[[The Independent]]|access-date=9 November 2012|location=London}}</ref> Dench made her seventh and final appearance as M in the 23rd [[James Bond film]], ''[[Skyfall]]'' (2012),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemablend.com/news/1759799/judi-dench-always-has-to-correct-one-fact-about-her-time-on-the-james-bond-movies|title=Judi Dench Always Has To Correct One Fact About Her Time On The James Bond Movies|publisher=Cinema Blend|date=5 January 2018|access-date=25 December 2018}}</ref> directed by [[Sam Mendes]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Coyle|first=Jake|title=Judi Dench On ''Skyfall'' & Her Reign As M|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/09/judi-dench-skyfall-007-bond_n_2102516.html|work=The Huffington Post|access-date=11 November 2012|date=9 November 2012}}</ref> In the film, Bond investigates an attack on MI6; it transpires that it is part of an attack on M by former MI6 operative Raoul Silva (played by [[Javier Bardem]]) to humiliate, discredit and kill M as revenge against her for betraying him. Dench's position as M was subsequently filled by [[Ralph Fiennes]]' character. Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the James Bond series, ''Skyfall'' was positively received by critics and at the box office, grossing over $1 billion worldwide, and became the [[List of highest-grossing films in the United Kingdom|highest-grossing film of all time in the UK]] and the highest-grossing film in the James Bond series. Critics called Dench's [[Saturn Awards]]-nominated performance "compellingly luminous".<ref name="S Tel: McCartney">{{cite news |last=McCartney |first=Jenny |title=Older and wiser |newspaper=[[The Sunday Telegraph]] |location=London |date=28 October 2012 |page=19}}</ref>

In 2013, Dench starred as the title character in the [[Stephen Frears]]-directed film ''[[Philomena (film)|Philomena]]'', which was inspired by true events of a woman looking for the son whom, half a century earlier, the [[Catholic Church]] had taken from her.<ref name="Venice">{{cite web|url=http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/70th-festival/line-up/off-sel/venezia70|title=Venezia 70|access-date=26 July 2013|work=labiennale|archive-date=28 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728070816/http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/70th-festival/line-up/off-sel/venezia70|url-status=dead}}</ref> The film was screened in the main competition section at the [[70th Venice International Film Festival]], where it was very favorably received by critics.<ref name="Awards">{{cite web|url=http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/news/07-09.html|title=Official Awards of the 70th Venice Film Festival|access-date=8 September 2013|archive-date=21 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921081416/http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/news/07-09.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Guardian">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/jul/25/venice-film-festival-2013-line-up|title=Venice film festival 2013: the full line-up|access-date=26 July 2013|work=The Guardian|location=London|date=25 July 2013}}</ref> On Dench's performance, ''[[Time Magazine]]'' commented that "this is Dench's triumph. At 78, she has a golden career behind her, often as queens and other frosty matriarchs. So the warmth under pressure she radiates here is nearly a surprise [...] Dench gives a performance of grace, nuance, and cinematic heroism."<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Mary|last=Corliss|magazine=[[TIME]]|url=https://entertainment.time.com/2013/08/31/philomena-at-venice-reserve-an-oscar-for-judi-dench/#ixzz2gHWC3WI4|title=Philomena at Venice: Reserve an Oscar for Judi Dench|access-date=29 September 2013|date=31 August 2013}}</ref> She was subsequently nominated for many major acting awards, including a seventh [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] nomination.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Maggie|last1=Coughlan|first2=Michele|last2=Corriston|work=[[People (magazine)|People]]|url=http://www.peoplestylewatch.com/people/stylewatch/package/article/0,,20768377_20776573,00.html?xid=rss-topheadlines|title=Oscars 2014: Julia Roberts, Amy Adams & More React to Nominations|date=16 January 2013|access-date=20 January 2013|archive-date=1 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201103110/http://www.peoplestylewatch.com/people/stylewatch/package/article/0,,20768377_20776573,00.html?xid=rss-topheadlines|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2015, Dench appeared opposite [[Dustin Hoffman]] in [[Dearbhla Walsh]]'s [[Roald Dahl's Esio Trot|small-screen adaptation]] of [[Roald Dahl]]'s children's novel ''[[Esio Trot]]'' (1990), in which a retired bachelor falls in love with his widowed neighbor, played by Dench, who keeps a [[tortoise]] as a companion after the death of her husband,<ref>{{cite news |last=Sweney |first=Mark |title=Dustin Hoffman and Judi Dench to star in Roald Dahl adaptation for BBC |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/aug/22/dustin-hoffman-judi-dench-esio-trot |work=The Guardian |date=22 August 2013 |access-date=23 December 2013}}</ref> First broadcast on [[BBC One]] on New Year's Day 2015, it became one of the most-watched programmes of the week,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.barb.co.uk/whats-new/weekly-top-30 |title=Weekly top 30 programmes |publisher=BARB |access-date=12 September 2018}}</ref> and earned Dench her first [[International Emmy Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] nomination at the [[44th International Emmy Awards|2016 International Emmy Awards]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2016/09/judi-dench-dustin-hoffman-shonda-rimes-international-emmy-nominations-1201826138/|title=Brazil, UK Lead Pack For International Emmy Nominations|website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|access-date=25 November 2016|date=26 September 2016}}</ref> On her performance, ''[[The Daily Telegraph|Telegraph]]''{{'}}s Michael Hogan commented: "We've grown accustomed to seeing Dench in forbidding roles, but here, she recalled her footloose, flirtatious side, displayed in sitcoms as ''[[A Fine Romance (1981 TV series)|A Fine Romance]]'' and ''[[As Time Goes By (UK TV series)|As Time Goes By]]''. The Dame was sparkly and downright ravishing."<ref>{{cite news |last=Hogan |first=Michael |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/tv-and-radio-reviews/11319398/Roald-Dahls-Esio-Trot-review.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/tv-and-radio-reviews/11319398/Roald-Dahls-Esio-Trot-review.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Roald Dahl's Esio Trot, BBC One, review: 'a magical start to 2015'|date= 1 January 2015|access-date=2 May 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

[[File:Judi Dench 2015.jpg|thumb|upright|Dench at [[St Paul's Covent Garden]] in 2015]]

As with most of the original cast, Dench reprised the role of Evelyn in John Madden's ''[[The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel]]'' (2015), the sequel to the [[The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel|2011 sleeper hit]]. The comedy drama was released to lukewarm reviews from critics, who found it "as original as its title – but with a cast this talented and effortlessly charming, that hardly matters".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_second_best_exotic_marigold_hotel/|title=The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel|work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|publisher=[[Flixster]]|access-date=27 May 2015}}</ref> From April to May 2015, Dench played a mother, with her real-life daughter [[Finty Williams]] playing her character's daughter, in ''[[The Vote]]'' at the [[Donmar Warehouse]].<ref name="TheVote">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/11582961/The-Vote-Donmar-Warehouse-review-art-meets-life-in-real-time-drama.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/11582961/The-Vote-Donmar-Warehouse-review-art-meets-life-in-real-time-drama.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=The Vote, Donmar Warehouse, review: art meets life in real-time drama|access-date=20 July 2015|work=The Telegraph|location=London|date=7 May 2015|first=Dominic|last=Cavendish}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The final performance was broadcast live on [[More4]] at 8:25 pm; the time when the events in the play take place.<ref name="TheVote" /> The appearance marked her first performance at the theatre since 1976.<ref name="indepen">{{cite news | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/news/the-vote-judi-dench-to-star-with-daughter-in-polling-station-play-aired-live-on-election-night-10122004.html | title=Judi Dench to star with daughter in polling station play aired live on election night | work=[[The Independent]] | date=20 March 2015 | access-date=24 May 2015}}</ref> On 20 September 2015, she was the guest on [[BBC Radio 4]]'s ''[[Desert Island Discs]]'' for the third time, in which she revealed that her first acting performance was as a snail.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=Dame Judi Dench |url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06bd681 |series=Desert Island Discs |series-link= Desert Island Discs |network=BBC |station=Radio 4|date=20 September 2015}}</ref> She reprised her role as M in the 2015 James Bond film ''Spectre'', in the form of a recording that was delivered to Bond.

In 2016, Dench made [[Olivier Award]] history when she won [[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role|Best Actress in a Supporting Role]] for her role as Paulina in ''[[The Winter's Tale]]'', breaking her own record with her eighth win as a performer.<ref>{{cite web |title=Olivier Awards 2016: The Winners List |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=4 March 2016|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/2016-olivier-award-winners-879552/item/best-actor-olivier-2016-award-879547 |access-date=10 May 2017}}</ref> Next, she co-starred as [[Cecily Neville, Duchess of York]] to [[Benedict Cumberbatch]]'s [[Richard III]] in the second series of the [[BBC Two]] historical series ''[[The Hollow Crown (TV series)|The Hollow Crown]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Principal photography begins on The Hollow Crown: The Wars Of The Roses |website=BBC Media Centre |publisher=BBC |date=1 October 2014 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2014/hollow-crown-roses |access-date=7 September 2015}}</ref> The same year, she was cast alongside [[Eva Green]] and [[Asa Butterfield]] in [[Tim Burton]]'s dark fantasy film ''[[Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (film)|Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children]]''. Dench played Miss Esmeralda Avocet, a headmistress who can manipulate time and can transform into a bird.<ref name=PurnellCast>{{cite news|last1=Kroll|first1=Justin|title=Ella Purnell and Asa Butterfield to Star in Tim Burton's 'Miss Peregrine's' (EXCLUSIVE)|url=https://variety.com/2014/film/news/ella-purnell-tim-burtons-miss-peregrines-1201342728/|access-date=20 February 2015|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=5 November 2014}}</ref> The film garnered mixed reviews from critics, who felt it was "on stronger footing as a visual experience than a narrative one".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/miss_peregrines_home_for_peculiar_children/ |title=Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children |date=12 October 2016 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=12 October 2016}}</ref> Budgeted on US$110&nbsp;million, it became a commercial hit, grossing nearly US$300 million worldwide.<ref name="V1">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/box-office-miss-peregrines-masterminds-deepwater-horizon-1201875830/|title=Box Office: 'Miss Peregrine' Tops With $28.5 Million, 'Deepwater Horizon', 'Masterminds' Bomb|first=Brent|last=Lang|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=2 October 2016|access-date=2 October 2016}}</ref>

Dench's first film of 2017 was [[Justin Chadwick]]'s ''[[Tulip Fever]]'', alongside [[Alicia Vikander]] and [[Christoph Waltz]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Judi Dench to star in Tulip Fever movie|date=6 June 2014| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-27732965|publisher=bbc.co.uk|access-date=6 June 2014}}</ref> Set during the period of the [[tulip mania]], the historical drama follows a [[Tulip mania|17th-century]] painter in [[Amsterdam]] who falls in love with a married woman whose portrait he has been hired to paint. Filmed in 2014, the film went through [[Production hell|several delays]] and earned largely negative reviews from critics, who called it a "handsomely-mounted period piece undone by uninspired dialogue and excessive plotting".<ref>{{cite web|title=''Tulip Fever'' (2017)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tulip_fever|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|publisher=[[Fandango Media|Fandango]]|access-date=17 September 2017}}</ref> Also in 2017, Dench reprised the role of [[Queen Victoria]] when she headlined [[Stephen Frears]]'s ''[[Victoria & Abdul]]''.<ref name="Jun2016THR">{{cite news|last1=Ritman|first1=Alex|title=Judi Dench to play Queen Victoria in Stephen Frears' 'Victoria and Abdul'|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/judi-dench-play-queen-victoria-903888|access-date=18 June 2016|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=17 June 2016}}</ref> The biographical comedy drama depicts the real-life relationship between the monarch and her Indian Muslim servant [[Abdul Karim (the Munshi)|Abdul Karim]], played by opposite [[Ali Fazal]]. While the film was met with lukewarm reviews for its "imbalanced narrative", Dench earned specific praise for her performance,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/victoria_and_abdul|title=''Victoria & Abdul'' (2017)|work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=6 November 2017}}</ref> earning the actress her 12th [[Golden Globe]] nomination.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/golden-globe-nominations-2018-nominees-full-list-1202634435/|title=Golden Globe Nominations: Complete List|work=Variety|date=11 December 2017|access-date=11 December 2017|first=Rebecca|last=Rubin}}</ref>

In September 2017, the website [[LADbible]] posted a video of Dench rapping with UK [[Grime music|Grime]] MC [[Lethal Bizzle]]. The collaboration came about because the [[British slang|slang]] term "dench", which is used as a compliment, features in Bizzle's lyrics and on his clothing brand Stay Dench which Dench had previously helped to promote.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/14/watch-judi-dench-proves-dench-rapping-grime-star-lethal-bizzle/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/14/watch-judi-dench-proves-dench-rapping-grime-star-lethal-bizzle/ |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Watch as Judi Dench proves she is 'dench' by rapping with grime star Lethal Bizzle |work=The Telegraph|date=14 September 2017|access-date=7 January 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|editor-first1= Deborah |editor-last1= Jermyn |editor-first2=Susan|editor-last2=Holmes|title= Women, Celebrity and Cultures of Ageing: Freeze Frame|publisher=Springer|year=2015|page=152|isbn= 978-1-137-49512-9|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=4wxaCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA152|access-date=7 January 2018}}</ref> Dench's last film that year was [[Kenneth Branagh]]'s ''[[Murder on the Orient Express (2017 film)|Murder on the Orient Express]]'', based on the 1934 novel [[Murder on the Orient Express|of the same name]] by [[Agatha Christie]].<ref>{{cite news|last2=Kit|first2=Borys|last1=Ford|first1=Rebecca|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/johnny-depp-talks-star-murder-933797|title=Johnny Depp in Talks to Star in 'Murder on the Orient Express'|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=29 September 2016|access-date=30 September 2016}}</ref> The [[mystery film|mystery]]–[[drama film|drama]] [[ensemble film]] follows world-renowned detective [[Hercule Poirot]], who seeks to solve a murder on the [[Orient Express|famous European train]] in the 1930s. Dench portrayed Princess Dragomiroff opposite [[Johnny Depp]], [[Michelle Pfeiffer]], and [[Penélope Cruz]]. The film has grossed $351 million worldwide and received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for the cast's performances, but criticism for not adding anything new to previous adaptations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/murder-on-the-orient-express-mostly-stays-on-track/|title=Murder on the Orient Express Mostly Stays on Track |first=Jeff |last=Giles |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|date=9 November 2017|access-date=9 November 2017}}</ref>

Dench was cast as the elder version of titular character Joan Elizabeth Stanley in [[Trevor Nunn]]'s spy drama film ''[[Red Joan]]'' (2018). Based on Jennie Rooney's same-titled novel, it was inspired by the life of [[KGB]] intelligence source [[Melita Norwood]].<ref name="screendaily.com">{{cite news|last=Grater|first=Tom|url=https://www.screendaily.com/news/judi-dench-sophie-cookson-to-star-in-trevor-nunns-red-joan-exclusive/5122043.article|title=Judi Dench, Sophie Cookson to star in Trevor Nunn's 'Red Joan' (exclusive)|work=Screendaily|date=7 September 2017|access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/movies-tv/review-judi-dench-shows-range-in-red-joan-portraying-a-complete-idiot|title=Review: Judi Dench shows range in 'Red Joan,' portraying a complete idiot|last=LaSalle|first=Mick|date=22 April 2019|website=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> While the film earned generally negative reviews, Dench was applauded for her performance, with ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' agreeing that "Dench is wasted in this absurd portrayal."<ref>{{cite news |last=Collin |first=Robbie|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/red-joan-review-judi-dench-wasted-absurd-portrayal-ofthe-bolshevik/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/red-joan-review-judi-dench-wasted-absurd-portrayal-ofthe-bolshevik/ |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Red Joan, review: Judi Dench is wasted in this absurd portrayal of the Bolshevik of Bexleyheath|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=18 April 2019|access-date=26 January 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Her other film of 2018 was ''[[All Is True]]'', a fictional historical film for which she reunited with Kenneth Branagh to portray [[William Shakespeare]]'s wife [[Anne Hathaway (wife of Shakespeare)|Anne Hathaway]]. Released to favorable reviews, critics called the film "impressively cast and beautifully filmed. ''All Is True'' takes an elegiac look at Shakespeare's final days."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/all_is_true|title=All Is True (2019)|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|publisher=[[Fandango Media]]|access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> Also in 2018, Dench appeared alongside [[Eileen Atkins]], [[Joan Plowright]] and [[Maggie Smith]] in [[Roger Michell]]'s documentary film ''[[Nothing Like a Dame (film)|Nothing Like a Dame]]'' which documents conversations between the actresses, interspersed with scenes from their career on film and stage. It received rave reviews, with ''The Guardian'' declaring it an "outrageously funny film".<ref name="guardian">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/apr/26/nothing-like-a-dame-review-judi-dench-eileen-atkins-maggie-smith-joan-plowright|work=[[The Guardian]]|title=Nothing Like a Dame review – Judi Dench and Maggie Smith trade brutal banter|access-date=26 January 2020|date=26 April 2018|last=Bradshaw|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Bradshaw}}</ref>

In 2019, Dench presented a two-part nature documentary series for the [[ITV (TV Network)|ITV]] network called ''Judi Dench's Wild Borneo Adventure'' in which she and her partner travelled across [[Borneo|the island]], looking at its remarkable wildlife and efforts by conservationists to preserve it for future generations.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.itv.com/hub/judi-denchs-wild-borneo-adventure/2a6312a0001|title=Judi Dench's Wild Borneo Adventure – Series 1 – Episode 1|via=www.itv.com|access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> In autumn 2019, she starred as [[Old Deuteronomy]] in [[Tom Hooper]]'s [[Cats (2019 film)|film adaptation]] of ''[[Cats (musical)|Cats]]'' alongside [[Jennifer Hudson]], [[Ian McKellen]], and [[James Corden]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://deadline.com/2018/10/cats-movie-judi-dench-andrew-lloyd-webber-deuteronomy-1202485723/|title=Judi Dench Set To Pounce On 'Cats'|first=Anthony|last=D'Alessandro|magazine=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|date=18 October 2018|access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> The film received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics, who criticized the [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI effects]], plot, and tone, with many calling it one of the worst films of 2019. Also, the film became a [[box-office bomb]], having so far grossed $62 million on a budget as high as $100 million.<ref name="BOM">{{Cite web |url= https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5697572/ |title= Cats (2019) |website= [[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=26 January 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191231023501/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5697572/ |archive-date= 31 December 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> Dench was also became the narrator in the Walt Disney World's EPCOT attraction, The EPCOT Experience, a preview space for the park's expansion project, in Odyssey Pavilion on October 1, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-07-14 |title=Extinct Disney - The EPCOT Experience |url=https://www.extinctdisney.com/epcot-experience-disney-future/ |access-date=2025-12-18 |website=www.extinctdisney.com |language=en-US}}</ref> In May 2020, Dench became the oldest British person to be featured on the cover of British ''[[Vogue (magazine)|Vogue]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Judi Dench, 85, is the oldest British Vogue cover star ever — see her photo shoot!|url=https://www.today.com/style/judi-dench-85-oldest-british-vogue-cover-star-ever-t180718|website=TODAY.com |date=4 May 2020 |access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref>

=== 2020s ===
[[File:GylesDamesPalladium050323 (46 of 74) (52728413729) (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Dench in March 2023]]
In 2020, Dench reteamed with Kenneth Branagh in his science fantasy adventure film ''[[Artemis Fowl (film)|Artemis Fowl]]'', based on the first novel in the [[Artemis Fowl|same-titled series]] by [[Eoin Colfer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thewrap.com/disney-bumps-new-mutants-and-artemis-fowl-to-2020/|title=Disney Bumps 'New Mutants' and 'Artemis Fowl' to 2020|first=Jeremy|last=Fuster|website=[[The Wrap]]|date=7 May 2019|access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> The film received generally negative reviews from critics, who criticized the plot, dialogue, characters, and visual effects.<ref>{{cite web |date=11 June 2020 |last= Libbey |first= Dirk |title= Artemis Fowl Reviews Are In, Here's What Critics Are Saying |url=https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2548019/artemis-fowl-reviews-are-in-heres-what-critics-are-saying |work=CinemaBlend |access-date=29 September 2021}}</ref> She also appeared as a headmistress alongside [[Eddie Izzard]], [[Carla Juri]], and [[James D'Arcy]] in [[Andy Goddard]]'s war drama film ''[[Six Minutes to Midnight]]'' (2020) about a discovery at a school for the daughters of the [[Nazi]] elite that leads to a series of deadly events.<ref name="BFC">{{cite web |title=Six Minutes to Midnight |url=http://film.britishcouncil.org/six-minutes-to-midnight |website=British Council Film |access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> The film received largely mixed reviews from critics who found it a "fascinating fact-based [[WWII]]-era story to tell," but also remarked that it "largely loses it in muddled spy [[Practical joke|shenanigan]]s."<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/six_minutes_to_midnight |title=Six Minutes to Midnight (2018) |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |publisher=[[Fandango Media]] |access-date=29 September 2021 }}</ref> Dench's third film in 2020 was ''[[Blithe Spirit (2020 film)|Blithe Spirit]]'', a comedy film based upon the [[Blithe Spirit (play)|1941 play of the same name]], in which she played a talentless but eccentric medium named Madame Arcati. Directed by [[Edward Hall (director)|Edward Hall]], it was released to negative reviews,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.launchingfilms.com/release-schedule?filmSearch=Blithe+Spirit|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328182030/https://www.launchingfilms.com/release-schedule?filmSearch=Blithe+Spirit|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 March 2020|title=Blithe Spirit|website=Launching Films|access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> with Sheila O'Malley from [[RogerEbert.com]] calling it "aggressively un-funny.<ref>{{cite web|first=Sheila|last=O'Malley|title=Review: Blithe Spirit |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/blithe-spirit-movie-review-2021|website=[[RogerEbert.com]]|access-date=29 September 2021}}</ref>

In 2021, Dench had a brief role in Jules Williamson's comedy drama ''[[Off the Rails (2021 film)|Off the Rails]]'', starring [[Kelly Preston]], [[Jenny Seagrove]], and [[Sally Phillips]], about three friends in their 50s who embark on a European train adventure to celebrate the life of their recently deceased friend. The film earned largely negative reviews.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/off_the_rails_2021|title=Off the Rails – Rotten Tomatoes|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|publisher=[[Fandango Media|Fandango]]|access-date=29 September 2021}}</ref> Her other film that year was Kenneth Branagh's ''[[Belfast (film)|Belfast]]'', a black-and-white [[coming of age]] [[comedy drama]] that centers on a young boy's childhood amid [[The Troubles|the tumult]] of [[Belfast]], Northern Ireland, in the 1960s.<ref>{{cite web|first=Rebecca |last=Rubin|title=Kenneth Branagh's Drama 'Belfast' Lands at Focus Features|url=https://variety.com/2020/film/news/kenneth-branagh-belfast-focus-features-1234863903/|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=16 December 2020|access-date=29 September 2021}}</ref> Released to rave reviews, the film won the [[Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award|People's Choice Award]] at the [[2021 Toronto International Film Festival]] and earned Dench her eighth Academy Award nomination.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Samantha|last1=Bergeson |first2=Ryan |last2=Lattanzio|title=21 Oscar Snubs and Surprises: Lady Gaga, Denis Villeneuve, Ruth Negga, and More|url=https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/2022-oscar-snubs-surprises-academy-awards/mcddune-wb010/|work=[[Indiewire]]|date=8 February 2021|access-date=8 February 2021}}</ref><ref>Steve Pond, [https://www.thewrap.com/belfast-wins-toronto-film-festivals-peoples-choice-award/ "‘Belfast’ Wins Toronto Film Festival’s People’s Choice Award"]. ''[[TheWrap]]'', 29 September 2021.</ref> In October 2021, it was announced that Dench would be joining the cast of ''[[Allelujah (film)|Allelujah]]'', a film adaptation of [[Alan Bennett]]'s [[Allelujah!|play of the same name]] directed by [[Richard Eyre]], which also starred [[Jennifer Saunders]], [[Russell Tovey]], [[David Bradley (English actor)|David Bradley]], and [[Derek Jacobi]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2021/film/news/bfi-london-film-festival-2021-audience-numbers-1235096680/.article|title = Crowds Throng U.K.-Wide BFI London Film Festival – Global Bulletin|date = 25 October 2021}}</ref> In November 2022, the BBC aired ''Louis Theroux Interviews: Dame Judi Dench'' featuring Dench and documentarian [[Louis Theroux]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2022/11/01/louis-theroux-interviews-review-dont-call-dame-judi-dench-national/|title=Louis Theroux Interviews..., review: don't call Dame Judi Dench a national treasure|website=The Telegraph|last=Singh|first=Anita|date=1 November 2022|access-date=2 November 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/judi-dench-clint-eastwood-louis-theroux-b2214422.html|title=Judi Dench calls Clint Eastwood 'the most laidback man I have ever met'|website=The Independent|last=Lewis|first=Isobel|date=1 November 2022|access-date=2 November 2022}}</ref>

In January 2023, Dench appeared in the [[BBC]] concert, ''[[Stephen Sondheim]]'s Old Friends'' where she sang "[[Send in the Clowns]]" from ''[[A Little Night Music]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://playbill.com/article/watch-highlights-from-stephen-sondheims-old-friends-featuring-bernadette-peters-michael-ball-judi-dench-clive-rowe-more|title= Watch Highlights From Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends, Featuring Bernadette Peters, Michael Ball, Judi Dench, Clive Rowe, More|website= Playbill|accessdate= 10 January 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://deadline.com/2022/05/exclusive-curtain-raiser-as-cameron-mackintoshjudi-dench-and-old-friends-prepare-to-celebrate-musical-geniusstephen-sondheim-1235014534/|title= Exclusive Curtain-Raiser: Cameron Mackintosh, Judi Dench & 'Old Friends' Prepare To Celebrate Musical Genius Stephen Sondheim|website= [[Deadline Hollywood]]|date= 2 May 2022|accessdate= 10 January 2023}}</ref> In March 2023, it was announced that Dench would be appearing in a one-off show at that year's [[Edinburgh Festival Fringe]], discussing her life and career with [[Gyles Brandreth]], and would also sing and perform excerpts from her past works. The show was titled ''I Remember It Well: Judi Dench in Conversation with Gyles Brandreth''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.scotsman.com/whats-on/arts-and-entertainment/edinburgh-festival-fringe-dame-judi-dench-to-appear-in-stage-show-4075684|title=Edinburgh Festival Fringe: Dame Judi Dench to appear in stage show|website=The Scotsman|last=Ferguson|first=Brian|date=22 March 2023|access-date=8 June 2023}}</ref> In April 2023, Dench was the subject of a [[Channel 5 (British TV channel)|Channel 5]] documentary, titled ''The Divine Judi Dench: Our National Treasure''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-pj5v7v/judi-dench-our-national-treasure/|title=The Divine Judi Dench: Our National Treasure|website=Radio Times|last=Rackham|first=Jane|access-date=24 April 2023}}</ref>

== Public image ==
In March 2013, Dench was listed as one of the fifty best-dressed over-50s by ''[[The Guardian]]''.<ref>{{cite news |last=Cartner-Morley |first=Jess |title=The 50 best-dressed over 50s – in pictures |url=https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/gallery/2013/mar/29/50-best-dressed-over-50s |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=28 March 2013 |access-date=3 September 2023}}</ref> One of the highest-profile actresses in [[British popular culture]], Dench appeared on [[Debrett's]] 2017 list of the most influential people in the UK.<ref>{{cite news|title=Debrett's 500 List: Stage & Screen|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/debretts-500-list-stage-screen/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/debretts-500-list-stage-screen/ |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=28 March 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Dench is a long-time resident of [[Outwood, Surrey]].<ref>{{cite web|date=17 December 2017|title=Dame Judi Dench has been filming new BBC documentary on trees in Leatherhead woodland|url=https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/dame-judi-dench-been-filming-14045308|access-date=26 January 2018}}</ref> A [[Quaker]] since her school years, she said of her faith in 2013, "I think it informs everything I do. [...] I couldn't be without it."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-news/9941570/I-take-memory-supplements-to-help-recall-my-lines-says-Judi-Dench.html|work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|title=I take memory supplements to help recall my lines, says Judi Dench|first=John-Paul|last=Ford Rojas|date=19 March 2013|access-date=2 October 2024}}</ref> She is a long-time supporter of [[Everton F.C.|Everton]], and has been an honorary patron of [[Everton in the Community|their charity branch]] since 2012.<ref name="EITC">{{cite web|url=http://community.evertonfc.com/news/dame-judi-dench-accepts-starring-role-for-everton|title=Judi Dench is Everton F.C. supporter|work=community.evertonfc.com|access-date=6 November 2013|archive-date=21 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321215035/http://community.evertonfc.com/news/dame-judi-dench-accepts-starring-role-for-everton|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Dench married actor [[Michael Williams (actor)|Michael Williams]] in February 1971 at [[St Mary's Church, Hampstead]]; they remained together until his death from lung cancer in 2001.<ref name="personallife">{{cite news |title=Actor Michael Williams dies |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1114233.stm |publisher=[[BBC News Online|BBC News]] |date=15 January 2001 |access-date=4 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Cary |first=Alice |date=2020-05-04 |title=20 Heavenly Archive Images Of Judi Dench |url=https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/gallery/judi-dench-on-stage |access-date=2025-11-25 |website=British Vogue |language=en-GB}}</ref> Their only child, daughter [[Finty Williams]], was born in 1972 and became an actress. Through her daughter, Dench has a grandson.<ref>{{cite news |last=Jardine |first=Cassandra |title=My Grandson Was a Big Surprise |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4710259/My-grandson-was-a-big-surprise.html |work=[[The Sunday Telegraph]] |date=24 August 1997 |access-date=9 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150126051611/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4710259/My-grandson-was-a-big-surprise.html |archive-date=26 January 2015}}</ref>

Dench has been in a relationship with David Mills, a [[Conservationism|conservationist]], since 2010. In a 2014 interview with ''[[The Times]]'' magazine, she discussed how she never expected to find love again after her husband's death and said, "I wasn't even prepared to be ready for it. It was very, very gradual and grown up. It's just wonderful."<ref>{{cite news |last=Carpenter |first=Louise |title=Judi Dench: in love again |url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/judi-dench-in-love-again-3qqkqvcxr6v |website=[[The Times]] |date=December 6, 2014}}</ref> The couple met when Dench agreed to officiate at the opening of a new squirrel enclosure at the [[British Wildlife Centre]], of which Mills is the {{shy|founder/di|rec|tor}}.<ref>{{cite news |last=Singh |first=Anita |title=Dame Judi Dench: I've got a jolly nice chap, just don't call him my 'partner' |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/25/dame-judi-dench-got-jolly-nice-chap-just-dont-call-partner/ |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=25 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170825064651/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/25/dame-judi-dench-got-jolly-nice-chap-just-dont-call-partner/ |archive-date=25 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://britishwildlifecentre.co.uk/aboutus/our-story/|title=Our story|date=18 July 2018 |publisher=[[British Wildlife Centre]]|access-date=21 February 2024}}</ref>

Dench has been an outspoken critic of prejudice in the movie industry against older actresses. She stated in 2014, "I don't want to be told I'm too old to try something. [...] I want to see for myself if I can't do it rather than be told you might have a fall or you can't learn your lines. [...] Age is a number. It's something imposed on you. [...] It drives me absolutely [[wiktionary:spare#Adjective|spare]] when people say, 'Are you going to retire? Isn't it time you put your feet up?' Or tell me [my] age."<ref>{{cite news |last=Rahman |first=Abid |title=Judi Dench Is Tired of People Saying She Is Too Old to Act |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/judi-dench-is-tired-people-748698 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=12 November 2014 |access-date=3 September 2023}}</ref>

At [[Hogmanay]] on 31 December 2022, she joined [[Sharleen Spiteri]] in an impromptu performance of [[ABBA]]'s "[[Waterloo (ABBA song)|Waterloo]]" at the Fife Arms hotel in [[Braemar]], where they were both staying.<ref>{{cite news |last=Clinton |first=Jane |title=Dame Judi Dench and Sharleen Spiteri delight hotel guests with Abba's Waterloo |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jan/01/dame-judi-dench-and-sharleen-spiteri-delight-hotel-guests-with-abbas-waterloo? |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=1 January 2023}}</ref>

===Health===
In early 2012, Dench discussed her [[macular degeneration]], with one eye "dry" and the other "wet", for which she has been treated with injections into the eye. She also stated that she needed someone to read scripts to her.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-02-21/judi-dench-says-she-isn27t-going-blind/3841484|title=Judi Dench says she isn't going blind|work=ABC News |agency=[[Reuters]]|via=[[ABC Online]]|date=21 February 2012}}</ref> She also underwent knee surgery in 2013, but recovered from the procedure and stated that her knee was no longer an issue.<ref>{{cite news |last=Feinberg |first=Scott |title=Judi Dench on Beating Failing Eyesight, Bad Knees and Retirement |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/judi-dench-beating-failing-eyesight-682164 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=21 February 2014 |access-date=3 September 2023}}</ref>

In 2024, it was reported that Dench's eyesight has deteriorated to the point where she is effectively retired from acting.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shoard |first=Catherine |date=May 28, 2024 |title='I can't even see': Judi Dench suggests retirement from acting due to blindness |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/article/2024/may/28/judi-dench-retirement-from-acting-due-to-blindness |access-date=September 7, 2024 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Her eyesight problems prevent her from going out alone.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Leaver |first=Joel |date=2025-01-23 |title=Dame Judi Dench says she can't go anywhere alone as she shares health update |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/dame-judi-dench-reveals-cant-34535479 |access-date=2025-11-25 |website=Daily Mirror |language=en}}</ref>{{better source needed|reason=tabloid|date=November 2025}} She does however want to carry on working.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Noah |first=Sherna |title=Judi Dench "wants to carry on" amid sight issues ahead of Shakespeare documentary |url=https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/documentaries/dame-judi-dench-shakespeare-family-director-interview/ |access-date=2025-11-25 |work=Radio Times |language=en-GB}}</ref>

In November 2025, during an interview she gave to [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]], Dench stated that her eyesight had further deteriorated and that she was no longer able to see clearly:

<blockquote>"I can't see anyone. I've got, you know, that thing. I can't recognize anybody. I can't see the television, I can't see to read."<ref>{{cite web
 |url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/aNe2JuzkO_o
 |title=Interview excerpt (November 2025)
 |website=YouTube
 |publisher=ITV
 |access-date=27 November 2025
}}</ref></blockquote>

===Political views and interests===
Dench has worked with the non-governmental indigenous organisation [[Survival International]], campaigning in the defence of the [[San people]] of [[Botswana]] and the [[Arhuaco people]] of [[Colombia]]. She made a supporting video saying the San are victims of tyranny, greed and racism. Dench is also a patron of the [[Karuna Trust (UK)|Karuna Trust]], a charity that supports work amongst some of India's poorest and most oppressed people, mainly, though not exclusively, [[Dalits]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.karuna.org/about-us/people/dame-judi-dench/|title=Dame Judi Dench, Patron of the Karuna Trust|publisher=karuna.org|access-date=20 February 2014}}</ref>

On 22 July 2010, Dench was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters (DLitt) by [[Nottingham Trent University]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/news/98814-15/Stars_of_stage_and_screen_among_honorary_graduates_of_Nottingham_Trent_University.aspx|title=Stars of stage and screen among honorary graduates of Nottingham Trent University|publisher=Ntu.ac.uk|access-date=4 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100827062254/http://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/news/98814-15/Stars_of_stage_and_screen_among_honorary_graduates_of_Nottingham_Trent_University.aspx|archive-date=27 August 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Dr Hadwen Trust]] announced on 15 January 2011 that Dench had become a patron of the trust, joining, among others, [[Joanna Lumley]] and [[David Shepherd (artist)|David Shepherd]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.drhadwentrust.org/smartweb/latest-news/news-and-views/post/26-dame-judi-dench-announced-as-patron-of-the-dr-hadwen-trust|title=Dame Judi Dench announced as Patron of the Dr Hadwen Trust|date=15 January 2011|publisher=Drhadwentrust.org|access-date=4 September 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007161813/http://www.drhadwentrust.org/smartweb/latest-news/news-and-views/post/26-dame-judi-dench-announced-as-patron-of-the-dr-hadwen-trust|archive-date=7 October 2011}}</ref> On 19 March 2012, it was announced that Dench was to become honorary patron of [[Everton in the Community]], the charity branch of [[Liverpool]]-based football team Everton, of which she is a long-time supporter.<ref name="EITC" />

Dench is an advisor to the [[American Shakespeare Center]]. She is a patron of the [[Shakespeare Schools Festival]], a charity that enables school children across the UK to perform Shakespeare in professional theatres.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.shakespeareschools.org/about-us/patrons#dame-judi-dench |title=Patrons: Dame Judi Dench|publisher=[[Shakespeare Schools Foundation]] |access-date=22 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171211165434/https://www.shakespeareschools.org/about-us/patrons#dame-judi-dench |archive-date=11 December 2017}}</ref> She is also a patron of [[Shakespeare North]], a cultural and educational venue that opened on 15 July 2022 in the town of [[Prescot]], near Liverpool,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.shakespearenorth.org/a-letter-to-liverpool-from-dame-judi-dench/ |title=A Letter to Liverpool from Dame Judi Dench |publisher=[[Shakespeare North]] |access-date=12 September 2018 |archive-date=12 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612142523/http://www.shakespearenorth.org/a-letter-to-liverpool-from-dame-judi-dench/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> and a patron of [[The Festival Players Theatre Company]], a peripatetic theatre company which puts on travelling performances of Shakespeare plays.<ref name="aboutus">{{cite web |title=About Us |url=https://www.thefestivalplayers.co.uk/about-us |website=The Festival Players |access-date=28 July 2025}}</ref> She is patron of East Park Riding for the Disabled, a riding school for disabled children in [[Newchapel, Surrey]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/East-Park-Riding-Disabled-Association-open/story-12854255-detail/story.html|title=East Park Riding for the Disabled Association is open for business|date=5 July 2011|work=East Grinstead Observer|access-date=19 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506072351/http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/East-Park-Riding-Disabled-Association-open/story-12854255-detail/story.html|archive-date=6 May 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dench is also a vice-president of the national charity Revitalise, which provides accessible holidays for those with disabilities.<ref>{{cite web|title=Vice Presidents|url=http://revitalise.org.uk/meet-team/?role=18#roles|website=Revitalise|access-date=10 August 2016}}</ref> In 2011, along with musician [[Sting (musician)|Sting]] and billionaire entrepreneur [[Richard Branson]], she publicly urged policy-makers to adopt more progressive drug policies by decriminalising drug use.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-13625241 |title=Dame Judi Dench and Sting head drug rethink call |website=[[BBC News Online|BBC News]] |date=2 June 2011}}</ref>

In 2014, Dench was one of 200 celebrities to sign an open letter to the people of Scotland asking them to vote to remain part of the UK in [[2014 Scottish independence referendum|that year's referendum]].<ref>''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]'', 10 August 2014</ref>

In a 2022 opinion piece for ''[[The Times]]'', following the death of [[Queen Elizabeth II]], Dench expressed criticism of the [[Netflix]] show ''[[The Crown (TV series)|The Crown]]'', accusing it of "crude [[sensationalism]]" and being "cruelly unjust to the individuals and damaging to the institution they represent", as well as having the potential to mislead non-British viewers through dramatic licence. She furthermore argued the show should add a disclaimer warning to remind viewers that it is a fictional drama.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-63326250 |title=The Crown: Dame Judi Dench accuses Netflix hit of 'crude sensationalism' |website=[[BBC News Online|BBC News]] |date=20 October 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/11/11/1136071036/the-crown-queen-elizabeth-king-charles-diana |title=Heavy is the head that does not like 'The Crown' |website=[[NPR]] |date=11 November 2022}}</ref> In 2023, Dench and her partner David Mills were both invited to ride in [[King Charles III]]'s [[Royal Ascot]] Procession.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ascot Racecourse on Twitter |url=https://twitter.com/Ascot/status/1672199380139425792 |website=[[Twitter]] |access-date=29 June 2023}}</ref>

=== Philanthropy and advocacy ===
Dench is the Patron and President of the alumni foundation of [[Drama Studio London]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dramastudiolondon.co.uk/alumni/career-prospects |title=Archived copy |access-date=24 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008080431/http://www.dramastudiolondon.co.uk/alumni/career-prospects |archive-date=8 October 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Rules |first=L. |title=Famous Drama Studio London Alumni |url=https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-drama-studio-london-alumni-and-students/reference |website=[[Ranker]] |access-date=24 August 2019}}</ref> a Patron of the British Shakespeare Association, and a vice-president of [[wildlife conservation]] NGO [[Fauna and Flora International]].<ref>{{cite news|title=People |url=https://www.fauna-flora.org/people|access-date=5 December 2020|newspaper=[[Fauna & Flora International]]}}</ref> She has participated multiple times in the Explorers against Extinction wildlife conservation fundraiser Sketch For Survival, in which celebrity artists join prominent wildlife artists in sketching wildlife as well as they can in 26 minutes, and the results are auctioned off.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.yorkshirelife.co.uk/out-about/events/the-sketch-for-survival-exhibition-1-6291383 |title=The Sketch for Survival exhibition at The Wildlife & Safari Travel Show |access-date=11 December 2020 |website=Yorkshire Life |date=3 October 2019}}</ref>

In a [[biography]] by John Miller it was noted that in the late 1990s Dench was the patron of over 180 charities, many of which were related either to the theatre or to medical causes, for example [[York Against Cancer]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Miller|first=John|title=Judi Dench: With A Crack in Her Voice|publisher=[[Hachette Livre|Hatchette UK]]|year=2013|isbn=978-1-78022-644-6|section=Introduction}}</ref> Dench is a patron of [[the Leaveners]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thefriend.org/article/quaker-composer-new-leaveners-patron|title=Quaker composer new Leaveners' patron|website=The Friend|date=26 March 2015|access-date=6 October 2021}}</ref> The [[Archway Theatre]], [[Horley]], Surrey,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wscountytimes.co.uk/arts-and-culture/theatre-and-stage/dame-judi-dench-calls-donations-locked-down-archway-theatre-2849435|title=Dame Judi Dench calls for donations to locked-down Archway Theatre|website=West Sussex County Times|date=11 May 2020|access-date=6 October 2021}}</ref> and the relationship research and innovation charity OnePlusOne (formally known as OnePlusOne Marriage and Partnership Research, London.)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oneplusone.org.uk/news/dame-judi-dench|title=OnePlusOne|website=www.oneplusone.org.uk}}</ref>

She became president of [[Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts]] in London in 2006,<ref>{{cite news |title=Dench is appointed Mountview president|newspaper=[[The Stage]]|location=London|issn=0038-9099|date=30 March 2006|page=6}}</ref> taking over from Sir [[John Mills]]. She has been president of [[Questors Theatre]], [[Ealing]], since 1985, where the main auditorium is known as The Judi Dench Playhouse, being the only theatre to bear her name.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.questors.org.uk/prods/2014/50playhouse/doc/Questors%20P50%20Brochure.pdf|title=50 years of the Playhouse at The Questors Theatre|pages=1, 4|year=2014|access-date=6 October 2021}}</ref> She was also patron of [[Ovingdean Hall School]], a special day and boarding school for the deaf and hard of hearing in [[Brighton]], which closed in 2010,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ovingdeanhallschool.org.uk/|title=home|publisher=Ovingdean Hall School|access-date=13 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110113102021/http://www.ovingdeanhallschool.org.uk/|archive-date=13 January 2011}}</ref> and Vice President of [[The Little Foundation]]. Dench is also a long-standing and active vice president of Revitalise, a national disabled people's charity.

== Acting credits ==
{{main|List of Judi Dench performances}}

==Awards and honours==
{{Main|List of awards and nominations received by Judi Dench}}

Among her [[List of awards and nominations received by Judi Dench|numerous accolades]] for her acting work, Dench has won an [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress]] for her role as [[Queen Elizabeth I]] in the romantic comedy ''[[Shakespeare in Love]]'' (1998). She has received five [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] nominations, and three Best Supporting Actress nominations. She also has earned six [[British Academy Film Awards]], four [[British Academy Television Awards]], two [[Golden Globe Awards]], and two [[Screen Actors Guild Awards]], a [[Tony Award]], and seven [[Laurence Olivier Awards]].

Over her distinguished career she has been recognised by the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] for the following performances:

* [[70th Academy Awards]]: [[Best Actress in a Leading Role]], nomination, for ''[[Mrs. Brown]]'' (1997)
* [[71st Academy Awards]]: [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Actress in a Supporting Role]], '''win''', ''[[Shakespeare in Love]]'' (1998)
* [[73rd Academy Awards]]: Best Actress in a Supporting Role, nomination, ''[[Chocolat (2000 film)|Chocolat]]'' (2000)
* [[74th Academy Awards]]: Best Actress in a Leading Role, nomination, ''[[Iris (2001 film)|Iris]]'' (2001)
* [[78th Academy Awards]]: Best Actress in a Leading Role, nomination, for ''[[Mrs Henderson Presents]]'' (2005)
* [[79th Academy Awards]]: Best Actress in a Leading Role, nomination, for ''[[Notes on a Scandal (film)|Notes on a Scandal]]'' (2006)
* [[86th Academy Awards]]: Best Actress in a Leading Role, nomination, ''[[Philomena (film)|Philomena]]'' (2013)
* [[94th Academy Awards]]: Best Actress in a Supporting Role, nomination, ''[[Belfast (film)|Belfast]]'' (2021)

Dench was appointed [[Officer of the Order of the British Empire]] (OBE) in the [[1970 Birthday Honours]]<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=45117|date=5 June 1970|page=6374|supp=y}}</ref> and [[Order of the British Empire|Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (DBE) in the [[1988 New Year Honours]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=51171|date=31 December 1987|page=7|supp=y}}</ref> She was appointed [[Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour]] (CH) in the [[2005 Birthday Honours]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=57665|date=11 June 2005|page=4|supp=y}}</ref> She has also earned a variety of [[List of awards and nominations received by Judi Dench#Honors, degrees, and titles|scholastic, Commonwealth, and honorary awards, titles, and degrees]].

In 2024, Dench and [[Siân Phillips]] became the first female members of the [[Garrick Club]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jul/01/judi-dench-and-sian-phillips-become-first-female-members-of-garrick-club|title=Judi Dench and Siân Phillips become first female members of Garrick Club|first=Amelia|last=Gentleman|date=1 July 2024|work=The Guardian}}</ref>

== Discography ==
* ''[[Pericles, Prince of Tyre|Pericles]]'' (1968) Shakespeare Recording Society, Caedmon Records
* ''[[Cabaret (musical)|Cabaret]]'' (1968), Original London cast album CBS (1973)
* ''[[The Good Companions (musical)|The Good Companions]]'' (1974), Original London cast recording (1974)
* ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream (Seiji Ozawa recording)|A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'' (1995) by [[Felix Mendelssohn]], conducted by [[Seiji Ozawa]] (as Narrator)
* ''[[A Little Night Music]]'' (1995) by [[Stephen Sondheim]], [[Royal National Theatre]] Cast
* ''[[Nine (2009 live-action film)|Nine]]'' (2009) Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
* [[Spaceship Earth (Epcot)]] narrator of the current version of the attraction (2008).

== Books ==
* {{cite book |author=Jacobs, David |year=1980 |title=David Jacob's Book of Celebrities' Jokes & Anecdotes |publisher=[[HarperCollins|Robson Books]] |contributor-last=Dench |contributor-first=Judie |contribution=Contributor |page= 38|isbn=0860511251 |author-link=David Jacobs (broadcaster)}}
* {{Cite book |last=Dench |first=Judi |year=2010 |title=And Furthermore |location=London |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |isbn=978-0-297-85967-3 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last=Dench |first=Judi |year=2014 |title=Behind the Scenes |location=New York |publisher=St. Martin's Press |isbn=978-1-250-07111-8 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Dench |first1=Judi |year=2024 |title=Shakespeare: The man who pays the rent |last2=O'Hea |first2=Brendan |location=New York |publisher=St. Martin's Press |isbn=978-1-250-32577-8 |ref=none}}

== See also ==
* [[List of British actors]]
* [[List of Academy Award winners and nominees from Great Britain]]
* [[List of oldest and youngest Academy Award winners and nominees#Oldest winners 5|List of oldest and youngest Academy Award winners and nominees — Oldest winners for Best Supporting Actress]]
* [[List of actors with Academy Award nominations]]
* [[List of actors with two or more Academy Award nominations in acting categories]]
* [[List of Golden Globe winners]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{Cite book |last=Billington |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Billington (critic) |year=1993 |title=One Night Stands: A Critic's View of British Theatre from 1971–1991 |location=London |publisher=Nick Hern Books |isbn=1-85459-185-1 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Herbert |first1=Ian |last2=Baxter |first2=Christine |last3=Finlay |first3=Robert E. |year=1981 |title=Who's Who in the Theatre |url=https://archive.org/details/whoswhointheatre0002unse |url-access=registration |edition=17th |location=Detroit, MI |publisher=Gale |isbn=0-273-01717-9 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Miller |editor-first=John |year=2004 |title=Darling Judi: A Celebration of Judi Dench |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |location=London |isbn=0-297-84791-0 |ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last=Trowbridge |first=Simon |title=The Company: A Biographical Dictionary of the Royal Shakespeare Company |publisher=Editions Albert Creed |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-9559830-2-3 |location=Oxford |ref=none}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Judi Dench}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb name|0001132}}
* {{IBDB name|37830}}
* {{Screenonline name | 459437 }}

{{Navboxes
|title = [[List of awards and nominations received by Judi Dench|Awards for Judi Dench]]
|list =
{{AcademyAwardBestSupportingActress 1981–2000}}
{{AACTA International Award for Best Supporting Actress}}
{{AARP Movies for Grownups Award for Best Actress}}
{{AARP Movies for Grownups Award for Best Supporting Actress}}
{{BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role}}
{{BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actress 1985–2009}}
{{Bafta Award for Most Promising Newcomer}}
{{BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award}}
{{British Academy Television Award for Best Actress}}
{{British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance}}
{{British Film Institute Fellowship}}
{{BAFTA Los Angeles Britannia Awards}}
{{British Independent Film Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film}}
{{Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress}}
{{Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Best Actress}}
{{Donostia Award}}
{{European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award}}
{{Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actress}}
{{Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actress}}
{{GoldenGlobeBestActressMotionPictureDrama 1981–2000}}
{{GoldenGlobeBestActressTVMiniseriesFilm}}
{{IFTA Award for Best International Actress}}
{{Kirk Douglas Award}}
{{OlivierAward PlayActress}}
{{OlivierAward MusicalActress 1979–2000}}
{{OlivierAward PlaySupportingPerformance}}
{{London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actress of the Year}}
{{National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress}}
{{Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress}}
{{The Richard Harris Award}}
{{Satellite Award Best Actress Motion Picture}}
{{Satellite Award Best Actress Television Miniseries or Film}}
{{ScreenActorsGuildAward FemaleSupportMotionPicture}}
{{OlivierAward SpecialAward}}
{{St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress}}
{{TonyAward PlayLeadActress 1976–2000}}
{{Trewin Award for Best Shakespearean Performance}}
}}
{{British Triple Crown of Acting winners}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dench, Judi}}
[[Category:1934 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century English actresses]]
[[Category:20th-century English women writers]]
[[Category:21st-century English actresses]]
[[Category:21st-century English women writers]]
[[Category:21st-century Quakers]]
[[Category:Actresses awarded damehoods]]
[[Category:Actresses from York]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama]]
[[Category:Audiobook narrators]]
[[Category:BAFTA fellows]]
[[Category:Best Actress BAFTA Award (television) winners]]
[[Category:Best Actress BAFTA Award winners]]
[[Category:Best Entertainment Performance BAFTA Award (television) winners]]
[[Category:Best Drama Actress Golden Globe (film) winners]]
[[Category:Best Miniseries or Television Movie Actress Golden Globe winners]]
[[Category:Best Supporting Actress AACTA International Award winners]]
[[Category:Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winners]]
[[Category:Best Supporting Actress BAFTA Award winners]]
[[Category:Converts to Quakerism]]
[[Category:Critics' Circle Theatre Award winners]]
[[Category:Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:Dench family|Judi]]
[[Category:English autobiographers]]
[[Category:English film actresses]]
[[Category:English monarchists]]
[[Category:English musical theatre actresses]]
[[Category:English people of Danish descent]]
[[Category:English people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:English Quakers]]
[[Category:English racehorse owners and breeders]]
[[Category:English radio actresses]]
[[Category:English Shakespearean actresses]]
[[Category:English television actresses]]
[[Category:English theatre directors]]
[[Category:English video game actresses]]
[[Category:English voice actresses]]
[[Category:European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award recipients]]
[[Category:Everton F.C. non-playing staff]]
[[Category:Indigenous rights activists]]
[[Category:Laurence Olivier Award winners]]
[[Category:Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour]]
[[Category:Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners]]
[[Category:Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Screen Actors Guild Award winners]]
[[Category:People associated with Nottingham Trent University]]
[[Category:People educated at The Mount School, York]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Praemium Imperiale]]
[[Category:Royal Shakespeare Company members]]
[[Category:Tony Award winners]]