Judi Dench novel "Esio Trot" (1990), in which a retired bachelor falls in love with his widowed neighbour, played by Dench, who keeps a tortoise as a companion after the death of her husband, First broadcast on BBC One on New Year's Day 2015, it became one of the most-watched programmes of the week, and earned Dench her first Best Actress nomination at the 2016 International Emmy Awards. On her performance, "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" and "As Time
Roald Dahl's Esio Trot repeated on BBC1 on 31 December 2015 and on BBC2 on 30 December 2016. The musical score is by composer Tim Phillips. All the commercial music used in the show is that of New Orleans jazz legend, Mr. Louis Armstrong and his All-Stars; which include Edmond Hall, Trummy Young, Billy Kyle, Arvell Shaw & Barrett Deems. Charlotte Moore announced the television film at the Edinburgh International Television Festival on 22 August 2013. It was produced by Hilary Bevan Jones and directed by Dearbhla Walsh. Bevan Jones said: "To bring together two of the world’s favourite actors in Dame Judi and