Natalia Chubenko

Dame Judi Dench, born Judith Olivia Dench, is a celebrated English actress. A recipient of numerous awards including Oscars, Golden Globes, BAFTAs (film), and Tonys and Laurence Olivier Awards (theatre), she is considered one of the most important actresses of the 20th century. Born in Heworth in 1934 to Eleanora Olive and Reginald Arthur Dench, both of Irish descent, she had a brother, Jeffery Dench (1928-2014), who was also an actor. Her father's work as a doctor at the York Theatre immersed her in the world of theatre from a young age. While initially working as a set designer, she developed a passion for acting, attending the Central School of Speech and Drama, graduating successfully. Her first professional stage role was Ophelia in an Old Vic production of Hamlet. In the early 1960s, her performances in numerous Shakespearean adaptations established her talent throughout Britain. She also began appearing in films, winning a BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer for Four in the Morning (1965). Throughout the mid-1980s, she continued working in theatre, television, and film, winning two more BAFTAs for Best Supporting Actress, for A Room With A View (1985) and A Handful of Dust (1988). Her role as M in the 1995 James Bond film GoldenEye brought her international recognition. She reprised the role in subsequent Bond films. Her performance as Queen Victoria in Mrs. Brown (1997) marked a turning point in her mainstream film career, earning her a BAFTA and Golden Globe for Best Actress, as well as her first Academy Award nomination. Her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love (1998) won her a BAFTA and an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Throughout the 2000s, Dench continued to appear in popular films, receiving critical acclaim for her roles in Chocolat, Iris, Mrs Henderson Presents, Notes on a Scandal (with Cate Blanchett), and Nine. She received her seventh Academy Award nomination for her role in Philomena (2013). In 2017, she starred as Princess Dragomiroff in Murder on the Orient Express and was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her performance as Queen Victoria in Victoria & Abdul. She married actor Michael Williams in 1971 and they remained married until his death in 2001. They had one daughter, Finty Williams, born in 1972.