Judi Dench Judi Dench Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. 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 such roles as Ophelia in "Hamlet", Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet", and Lady Macbeth in "Macbeth". Although most of her work during this period was in theatre, she also branched into film work and won a BAFTA Award as Most Promising Newcomer. She drew strong reviews for her leading role in the musical "Cabaret" in 1968. Over the next two decades,
Judi Dench 365 in 1966, as Terry in the four-part series Talking to a Stranger, for which she won a BAFTA Television for Best Actress. The 1966 BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles was made to Dench for her performance in "Four in the Morning" and this was followed in 1968 by a BAFTA Television Best Actress Award for her role in John Hopkins' 1966 BBC drama "Talking to a Stranger". In 1968, she was offered the role of Sally Bowles in the musical "Cabaret". As Sheridan Morley later reported: "At first she thought they were joking. She