Judi Dench regular contact with the theatre. Her father, a physician, was also the GP for the York theatre, and her mother was its wardrobe mistress. 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. In the third production she played the role of the Virgin Mary, performed on a fixed stage in the Museum Gardens. Though she initially trained as a set designer, she became interested in drama school as her brother Jeff
Nothing Like a Dame (film) Nothing Like a Dame (film) Nothing Like a Dame (released in the United States as Tea With the Dames) is a 2018 documentary film directed by Roger Michell. The film documents conversations between actresses Eileen Atkins, Judi Dench, Joan Plowright and Maggie Smith interspersed with scenes from their career on film and stage. "Nothing Like a Dame" was released in the United Kingdom on May 2, 2018. The film was shown on television in the United Kingdom a few weeks after its initial theatrical release. Peter Bradshaw of "The Guardian" gave the film a five out of five star rating,