Judi Dench discusses macular degeneration in a candid interview, describing how her sight loss means she can no longer recognize faces or read easily
Judi Dench shared a health update on her vision loss, revealing that she can no longer identify people.
In a joint interview with her former Macbeth costar Ian McKellan for ITV News, published on Wednesday, November 26, Dench, 90, detailed how macular degeneration has impacted her sight. “I can see your [McKellan’s] outline and I know you so well … but I can’t recognize anybody now,” Dench said as she turned from the actor, 86, to the interviewer. “I can’t see the television, [and I] can’t see to read.”
Dench revealed in 2012 that she was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration, with Cleveland Clinic describing it as “primarily an age-related retinal condition” that affects central vision, with “treatments, but [no] cure.”
The Notes on a Scandal star, who reunited with McKellan 50 years after starring alongside him in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s U.K. stage production of Macbeth, added that she was no longer able to attend theater performances due to her diminishing sight.
