Celebrities
Judi Dench explains why acting has become ‘impossible’ for her
The actress, who suffers from macular degeneration, explained how the condition has impacted the way she works.
Judi Dench has opened up about how her deteriorating eyesight has made it impossible for her to act.
Dench suffers from macular degeneration
For over 10 years, Dench has suffered from age-related macular degeneration, which causes her eyesight to worsen over time.
However, during an appearance on ‘The Graham Norton Show’, Dench shed light on just how bad her eyesight has become.
“It has become impossible and because I have a photographic memory, I need to find a machine that not only teaches me my lines but also tells me where they appear on the page,” said Dench.
“I used to find it very easy to learn lines and remember them. I could do the whole of Twelfth Night right now.”
Dench has previously spoken about her condition
Back in 2014, Dench released a statement asking that her condition not be overblown, as its something that thousands of people deal with, that that it won’t lead to blindness.
“In response to the numerous articles in the media concerning my eye condition - macular degeneration - I do not wish for this to be overblown,” Dench said in a statement to Reuters.
“This condition is something that thousands and thousands of people all over the world are having to contend with. It’s something that I have learnt to cope with and adapt to - and it will not lead to blindness.”
However, the condition does affect the central vision, which makes everyday tasks extremely difficult.
In 2016, she revealed that her eyesight had gotten so bad that she no longer travelled alone.
“These days I can’t really travel on my own because I need someone to say, ‘Look out, there’s a step here!’” she told the UK’s Radio Times. “Or else I fall all over the place like a mad, drunk lady.”
At that time, she mentioned that she gets her daughter, agent or a close friend to help her with her scripts.
“I like that, because I sit there and imagine the story in my mind … The most distressing thing is in a restaurant in the evening, I can’t see the person I’m having dinner with,” she said.
Despite the condition, Dench can currently be seen in ‘Allelujah’, a film adaptation of Alan Bennett’s play of the same name that is directed by Richard Eyre.