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People Magazine -- May 2007
Note: Helen Mirren "rated" her own full-size page Thanks to Connie E, USA, for scanning and sharing this
March 18, 2007 The Times Magazine -- UK -- March 17, 2007 Issue
When I Grow Up : Childhood Dreams Portrayed The Children's Society (www.thechildrenssociety.org.uk) The Exhibition runs from 28th March to 10th April 07 When I Grow Up , a unique photography exhibition that lets you sneak a peak into the childhood dreams of 20 celebrities. We asked famous faces from Dame Judi Dench to Eric Sykes, Chris Tarrant to Cherie Blair - "What did you really want to be as a child?" This is the first time any of the sitters have been asked this and photographed in this way. Their real childhood dreams reveal a few surprises and portrayed as what they hoped to be as children, contrasts strongly with what they have become. This exhibition reveals another side to the people we see in our living rooms every day on TV and in the newspaper. These portraits sit alongside four images of the children the charity works with, photographed as themselves. Photographed by award winning photographer David Chancellor When I Grow Up shows that regardless of background all children have the right to dream. You can see the exhibition at The Hospital, a funky London gallery at: 24 Endell Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2H 9HQ. Tel: 020 7170 9100 www.thehospital.co.uk
November 7, 2006
Time Europe -- 60 Years of Heroes This week, TIME Europe publishes a special issue to celebrate 60 years of TIME magazine publishing in Europe, entitled ’60 Years of Heroes’. "Welcome to the greatest party ever held," writes TIME Senior Editor, Catherine Mayer. "In the 60 years that TIME has been publishing an Atlantic edition extraordinary people have emerged from the churn and turmoil, creativity and chaos of a period that witnessed the aftermath of world war, the toppling of communism in Central and Eastern Europe, the vanquishing of apartheid in South Africa, the advance of women, the failure of old certainties and the rise of new fears. These people are our heroes, and in this special anniversary issue, we celebrate them and their many achievements." "Some forged reputations in battles against repression and prejudice, others tapped into the energies of the era to produce great works of art. But the party isn’t a solemn one. We’ve also invited the men and women who have made our world more exciting: actors, musicians, adventurers, entrepreneurs, sports stars, together with representatives of a younger generation, brave hearts in an age of instability. Heroism is about taking risks—with ideas, with conventions, sometimes with life itself. Some of our heroes died prematurely; others lived to their full measure. All of them changed our world for the better. We raise a glass to them all—and to BUSINESS & CULTURE 1. Judi Dench,
Glenda Jackson, Helen Mirren & Vanessa Redgrave Click here to read the entire article
Tom Cruise, Lindsay Lohan Teach Dame Judi Dench New Tricks By Matthew Congdon -- Aug 29, 2006 HOLLYWOOD - Note to Hollywood divas and divettes: those stuffy studio suits are saying it's time to tear out a page from Emily Post, and stop ending up on the Post's Page Six. With movie boss James G. Robinson's recent tell-all note about Lindsay Lohan's after school activities and Paramount head Sumner Redstone's claim that Tom Cruise should be reclassified an insignificant dwarf star, it's been a high-profile power play in the halls of Hollywood High recently. Studios that once looked the other way are now naming names and telling all those A-list Goodtime Charlies that their Tom Foolery is no longer so Jim Dandy. Time to make like Johnny B. Goode unless you want to end up just another Joe Schmo. The latest lambasting lecture goes to another silver screen "It" girl who enjoys being a dame a little too much—literally. It looks like the jig is up for her rowdy highness Dame Judi Dench after some unladylike antics on the set of her latest film, Notes on a Scandal, have put her in hot tea. Director Richard Eyre penned his own scolding "note on a scandal" to Dame Dench herself, which was confidentially "leaked" to the Celebratty Chatter. Dearest Dame Judi, Where to begin with the reason for this letter? How about a quick list of just some of the numerous ways you have found to delay and disrupt this production: mandatory change of lip gloss flavors between takes; scolding craft services because your chai latte had only one Splenda instead of four; making the assistant director prank-call Helen Mirren; insisting your trailer be covered in pink monkey fur; walking off the set because "the new Zac Posen's arrived at Harvey Nicks"; converting the stunt crew to your weird mystic cult, the Quakers; referring to your Oscar as "bangers" and Golden Globe as "mash" and using them on set to strong-arm Cate Blanchette. I hope you realize that if you want to get ahead in this business, it's time to grow up and stop hiding behind excuses. And, to be frank, what lame excuses! "I hurt my head falling out of a coconut tree with Keith Richards" is not a valid reason to decamp to St. Barts for two weeks. Even if it were true, that just speaks volumes about the entourage you've taken up with. Judi, it's important to understand that you are still very impressionable and it's easy to fall in with a bad crowd. In retrospect, allowing your gal-pal Maggie Smith on set was faulty logic on my part. No doubt you suffered "exhaustion" after all those club-hopping nights that showed up in the Tattler. Another thing you should know about your "friend" Maggie: her insistence on finding out "what makes a best boy grip?" left us with a lawsuit and one less key crew member. In closing, Judi, I urge you to take a serious look at your behaviour. If you continue to treat cast and crew as your personal ladies-in-waiting, you'll find, as time goes by, it'll be Mrs. Henderson presents food stamps. Sincerely, Richard Eyre, or as you so lovingly say, "Bloke what Guy Ritchie could run circles around"
June 25, 2006 Article from a German Magazine -- titled "Everybody Loves Judi!"
Thanks to Anke B, Germany, for sharing
this August 9, 2006 Thanks to Glenda P, NC, USA for taking this photo while on a recent trip to London
July 19, 2006
The best one yet ...
27 May 2006 EWAN AND JUDI HAM IT UP
Click here to watch Dame Judi's lobster advert for Film Four Ewan and Judi try out roles as jobbing actors LUVVIES' BIZARRE COSTUME DRAMA By Cameron Robertson -- Daily Record UK MOVIE legends Ewan McGregor and Dame Judi Dench get their teeth into cheesey roles for a new TV advert. Star Wars hero Ewan, 35, and the 71-year-old actress, who plays M in the James Bond films, hammed it up in giant food costumes. Under the direction of Hollywood star Kevin Spacey, Ewan - better known for playing Obi Wan Kenobi - was dressed as a huge tomato as he handed out leaflets for TV channel FilmFour. And Dame Judi swapped M's stern business suits for a giant lobster costume as she offered promotional fliers from her snapping claws. In the advert to promote FilmFour launching free-to-air in July, viewers will see Dame Judi and Ewan's comic attempts to create a traditional marketing campaign. One onlooker of the shoot in London's Trafalgar Square said: "It was totally weird - but very funny. They got really into it. They looked like unknown actors taking desperate jobs at the start of their careers. There were a lot of double-takes from stunned passers-by." Ewan and Dame Judi are just two of several big names who have agreed to take part in the campaign. Other top stars who will appear in adverts include Christian Slater, Ray Winstone and Gael Garcia Bernal. Ewan McGregor Website FilmFour Website
Horse Sense -- Saturday March 25, 2006 Dame Judi Dench has ventured into racehorse ownership. The Oscar-winning actor part-owns the two-year-old Smokey Oakey with the colt's trainer Mark Tompkins. "Judi's chauffeur has had horses with us, but this is her first one. She loves her racing and Smokey Oakey is a nice horse who should give us a lot of fun," said Tompkins. Perhaps Dame Judi's racing interest was sparked by her leading role in the 1974 film Dead Cert, based on the Dick Francis novel.
Hello Magazine -- September 8, 1990
Thanks to Connie E, USA, for scanning and sharing this
Daily Mail -- February 3, 2006
Thanks to Diane P, UK, for scanning and
sharing this Yours Magazine -- February 2006
Thanks to Diane P, UK, for scanning and
sharing this December 18, 2005 The Washington Times Book Review HONKY TONK
PARADE Dame Judi Dench, loved and encouraged by her family, began acting as a young girl and has always been successful. She does not read scripts in advance; she relies on instinct; she communicates warmth, "a palpable, deep-seated generosity." Mr. Lahr describes her as a "deceptively sedate, suburban figure," when in fact "she trolls her turbulent Celtic interior, a vast tragic-comic landscape that ranges between despair and indomitability." Click here to read the entire Review
December 11, 2005 Camera legend O’Neill lashes dismal digital Richard Brooks, Arts Editor -- The Sunday Times - Britain ONE of Britain’s most famous photographers has taken a swipe at the state of his profession, blaming digital cameras for destroying much of the art of portrait photography. Terry O’Neill has been capturing the world’s royals, celebrities, models and politicians for more than 45 years. O’Neill, 67, has now decided the time has come to sell or give away large numbers of his pictures. The photographer, who used to be married to the actress Faye Dunaway, is highly critical of the digital camera. “I refuse to use it,” he said. “It’s going to ruin photography. “The problem with it is that the picture taker keeps on looking at what he’s just done rather than look at the subject. These days the modern technology means you also don’t have to be a real photographer. The eye and the feel of the stills photographer have gone.” In February more than 100 of O’Neill’s portraits will go on sale in the Chris Beetles gallery in Mayfair. They include well known photographs of Sir Sean Connery, Luciano Pavarotti, Janis Joplin, David Bowie, Jerry Hall and Orson Welles. Others have not been seen publicly before, among them a photo of Frank Sinatra with a gun. “I did this when I was working with him on some movie,” said O’Neill. “His character didn’t use a gun, but Sinatra had one when he took off his jacket. He seemed absolutely at ease with it, though I never dared ask him if he used one. He was the most extraordinary person I’ve known. His presence in a room was remarkable.” Another previously unseen photo is of his former lover Martha Stewart about three years ago, the domestic style guru described as an “Apple-pie Middle American” before she was jailed for lying about a share sale and obstructing justice. She is seen astride a motorcycle. The exhibition includes a picture of the Beatles taken in early 1963, with John Lennon striding out in front of the group. “It’s John as he wanted to be: the leader,” said O’Neill. He added that he hardly ever talked to his subjects: “You can’t work and talk at the same time. I also try to ensure I don’t discuss their personal lives even after the session is over.” O’Neill, who was born in the East End of London, said that out of the many of actresses he had photographed, including Audrey Hepburn and Brigitte Bardot, he had only ever met one who was happy: Dame Judi Dench. He photographed Kate Moss when she was 16: “I never thought then she would develop into such a beauty.” There is only one person O’Neill badly wanted to take, but failed: “The last pope. What an intriguing man.”
November 2, 2005
TV-am Good morning, Britain Interview -- Video clip excerpt -- 1988 Real Player Required Dame Judi discusses what it's like to direct Thanks to TV-am, Good Morning Britain for permission to use this clip Thanks to Sarah D. for sharing this
October 31, 2005 And how would you like to be remembered? FUNFARE By Ricardo F. Lo -- The Philippine Star 11/01/2005 "Show me Heaven. I have seen hell." That’s the epitaph Hollywood actress Patricia Neal would like to be engraved in her tomb. It’s one of the many gathered by the Larry King in his book Remember Me When I’m Gone, "an entertaining and eloquent collection of ‘last words’ from people in the arts, in politics, in sports, and in business, mostly still alive." "Why would anyone want to write his own obituary or epitaph?" King asked his good friend and book agent Bill Adler. "It is an opportunity for well-known people from all walks of life to let the world know how they would like to be remembered," Adler told King. "Very few people have that opportunity." (An atheist, King also wrote another interesting book, The Power of Prayer, which chronicles how famous people pray and how prayer affects their lives.) So how do you like to be remembered? Here are more samples from King’s book: • Alan Alda: Here Lies Anonymous – Our Greatest Author. • Michael Caine: See you later, no hurry. Take care of yourself! • Ted Danson: Be back in a minute. • Judi Dench: She had a great sense of humour. • Robert Evans: Living well is the best revenge! • Milos Forman: I am speechless. Trust me. • Jack Lemmon: Jack Lemmon. In. • Tony Randall: See you tomorrow. • Debbie Reynolds: Debbie Reynolds should be remembered for her sense of humor, love of her family, devotion to her work on her motion picture museum, and her love of performing. • Arnold Schwarzenegger: I had fun! • Joe Frazier: I want to be remembered as being a good guy, one who always tried to help others in need. • Billie Jean King: Thank you and God Bless! I have had a great life, but I still have so much more to do! • Jack Nicklaus: When I am gone, I’d like for them to say that in some small way I contributed to society. Most important, I’d like for them to say I was a good father, and that I certainly wasn’t a stranger to my kids and grandkids. They knew me and I knew them. • Stephen King: He tried to be better than he was. • Red Buttons: I never got a dinner and now I don’t need one. • Sid Caesar: At least I made some people laugh! • Tommy Hilfiger: An all-American classic designer who brought class to the masses. • Calvin Klein: Calvin Klein by Eternity. • Donald Trump: A man of great vision, who fulfilled many of his dreams, loved his family and was loyal to his friends. • Hugh Hefner: I’d like to be remembered as someone who played some part in changing our hurtful and hypocritical views on sex – and had a lot of fun doing it. • Maria Shriver: As a loving mom, wife, daughter, sister and friend. • Liz Smith: Well, the great Dorothy Parker wanted, "Excuse My Dust!" I would have to change mine to "Excuse My Dirt!" • Ted Turner: I have nothing more to say. • Pat Boone: Pat Boone: Christian. Address for Eternity: Heaven. • Art Garfunkel: Always with love, Art Garfunkel. • Andy Williams: "Moon River." Thank God I didn’t record "Why Don’t We Do It in the Road." • Yoko Ono: Imagine!
October 26, 2005 One CD, 40 years of theatre's greatest hits · Live recordings resurrect legendary RSC moments · Tapes were previously only heard by academics Charlotte Higgins, arts correspondent -- The Guardian From Peggy Ashcroft's spleen-wrenching, chilling Queen Margaret, to the gorgeous cadences of Laurence Olivier's Coriolanus, some of the most remarkable performances from the Royal Shakespeare Company's illustrious history are to be made available for the first time on CD. Until now, the existence of more than 200 complete live recordings of RSC Shakespeare productions has been known only to a few. The British Library sound archive has been recording performances for 40 years, but they have been available only by appointment to academics. From tomorrow such legendary theatrical moments as Paul Scofield's 1964 King Lear and Janet Suzman's Cleopatra of 1973 - performances that have existed only in the memories of theatregoers - can be heard by the public once more. Gregory Doran, associate director at the RSC, has selected 20 complete scenes from 18 plays for the double CD ... Judi Dench The Countess (All's Well That Ends Well, 2002) The danger with the Countess is of condescending graciousness, "like royalty opening a bazaar", as Tynan once said. Dench, however, finds infinite variety in the big scene with the lovestruck Helena. There is a recollected rapture in "even so it was with me when I was young". But there is also irony, mischief and impatience ("I say I am your mother") in her teasing of Helena. She is always specific; which is what makes her a great actress ... Click here to read the entire article
October 12, 2005 Photo of Dame Judi
from a new biography about Prunella Scales ...
Thanks to Lisa S, UK, for scanning and sharing this photo
Today's grans getting younger and trendier Excerpt from LifeStyle Extra Online Article -- Wednesday, 12th October 2005 ... The survey of
2,000 women with an average age of 69 by over-50s magazine Yours
found they've had the best of both worlds - they believe it was
better to be young in the 1960's (80 per cent) but better to be
a pensioner now (79 per cent). Click on the link
above to read the entire article.
October 2, 2005
Sayings of the week - To be perfect as a woman does not mean to be like a man. - Pope John-Paul II. - One cannot cancel out Hitler through Beethoven. - Roman Herzog, new President of Germany. - France's ambition and honour is to be a world power. - Edouard Balladur, French Prime Minister. - I do not believe that a modern welfare state is a hindrance to the efficient working of the market economy. - Kenneth Clarke. - I have a filthy mind and I get angrier and more intolerant the older I get. - Dame Judi Dench.
Thanks to Lisa S, UK, for sharing this
Viewfinder: Judi Dench (1965) by Lewis Morley September 17, 2005 -- The Telegraph
Irritated or mischevous? Judi Dench (1965) Lucy Davies praises Lewis Morely's volatile photographic portrait of a young Judi Dench A 30-year-old Judi Dench takes a break during filming Anthony Simmons's acclaimed kitchen-sink drama Four in the Morning. Draped across a chair, her stockinged feet casually dangling from its arm, the actress could almost be one of Matisse's odalisques. But, in spite of this languorousness, it is Dench's volatility that wins through: with a snap of her head towards the camera, that intense commitment to the Agatha Christie novel in her hand could turn equally to either irritation or mischief. The photographer is Lewis Morley who, two years earlier, had sealed his reputation with an unforgettable image of a naked Christine Keeler perched astride a curvy Arne Jacobsen chair. A distinctive talent for portraiture and access to the cream of London's entertainment world (his studio was on the first floor of Peter Cook's Establishment club) earned Morley the first published photographs of 1960s starlets Jean Shrimpton and Charlotte Rampling. These, among others, form part of a new retrospective at the Photographers' Gallery to celebrate Morley's 80th birthday. The exhibition focuses on his shots of cultural figures, but also includes some of his delightfully uncontrived vignettes of London life. The power of Morley's best images comes from his personal engagement with the subject that allows him to get in close, taking our hand and pulling us in there with him.
Dame Judi Dench supports
university project
Sep 16, 2005 -- by Michah Rynor -- University of Toronto Online Article Oscar winning actor Dame Judi Dench has endorsed one of U of T’s most renowned humanities projects, the Records of Early English Drama (REED). REED’s mission is to provide the scholarly world with uniform, accurate and complete editions of all surviving evidence of drama, secular music and community celebrations in Great Britain before 1642. The project is situated at Victoria College at the University of Toronto. Scholars consider it a monument to scholarship in the humanities, as evidenced by comments from professors such as Northern Illinois University’s William Proctor Williams, who called it “one of the remaining miracles of humanistic scholarship.” Dench is equally effusive. “Like the Records of Early English Drama project, my respect for theatre history took root with the York plays,” Dench wrote. “When they were revived in the 1950s, my mother was wardrobe mistress and a crowd ‘extra’; my York physician father played Annas the High Priest and Abraham; and I progressed from angel to resurrection angel to the Virgin Mary. “Since then my appreciation for the documents behind the performance has only increased. What’s past indeed is prologue -- Henslowe’s Diary to Shakespeare in Love, Queen of Heaven to Queen of England. Supporting REED research until these revels are ended and the last volumes published is a goal which can only enrich our theatre heritage.” Professor Alexandra Johnston, director and one of the founders of the REED project, is delighted by Dench’s support. “No other star of the British stage has such extensive knowledge of early English drama,” Johnston said. “Her interest in theatre history and her personal generosity are well known. REED is honoured that she has endorsed the project.” REED commissions highly qualified scholars as volume editors. They conduct exhaustive archival research in the United Kingdom by sifting through wills, diaries, letters and household accounts as well as records of churches, towns and civil and ecclesiastical courts. Afterward, the researchers transcribe references to dramatic and musical performances creating a detailed and comprehensive historical chronicle. So far, more than two dozen volumes have been published by the U of T Press; some volumes are published in conjunction with the British Library. The project is supported in part by the Canadian, British and American governments, generous friends such as Father Edward Jackman and the Jackman Foundation in Toronto, individual benefactors, Victoria College and the University of Toronto.
Birth of a diplomat
Thanks to Diane P, UK, for scanning and sending this article The Times of London -- May 21, 2005 DAME JUDI DENCH has played Queen Victoria, Elizabeth I, Dame Iris Murdoch and Bond’s irascible boss M. But at the opening night of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman at the Lyric Theatre Dame Judi was happy to play a minor role. La Dench led the standing ovation for the commanding performance by Brian Dennehy, who has won four awards in the United States for the role of Willy Loman, and by Clare Higgins, who plays his long-suffering wife. At the swish after-show party at the Atlantic Bar in Piccadilly Dench, flanked by her actress daughter Finty Williams, revealed that she is returning to the West End stage. “I have one more day filming Mrs Henderson Presents, which has been great fun,” she said. The film, which is based around the Windmill Theatre in Soho, marks the acting debut of Pop Idol singer Will Young. “He was lovely,” said the dame. Ever the diplomat, she would not be drawn on Young’s nude scene. Thanks to Ellen G for bringing this to my attention
New York Post -- Liz Smith -- April 24, 2005 I HAD lunch with two smart dames named Judi and Maggie this week down at The Ritz-Carlton in Battery Park. You know, as in — Dame Judi Dench and Dame Maggie Smith — as you might have guessed. The three of us sat staring out of the large picture windows on a part of Manhattan none of us had seen before; at least, not as it has become. We wondered where all the pastel-colored glass comes from that goes into building our latest skyscrapers. We sat in upholstered chairs around a table just a little too high for comfort, unless you are extremely long in the waist. We giggled as we joked about how we all felt like tiny tots at the table. Both dames ordered crabcakes, which they liked so much they ordered them all over again. It's not often you get to lunch with two divinely talented actresses who eat the same lunch twice in the space of an hour. Just why these dames are in town becomes obvious when the handsome British actor Charles Dance passed by giving both ladies fond pats. Mr. Dance has written and directed his first film, "Ladies in Lavender," and you guessed it — Judi and Maggie are the stars, and the film is part of the current Tribeca Film Festival. These great dames play two elderly sisters in a quiet coastal town outside the English coast of Cornwall before World War II. The only news the townspeople care about is the weather and how the fish are running. After a wild storm, the sisters find the body of a young man washed up on the beach. He's alive, but speaks no English, only Polish and German. They nurse him back to health, and so begins this warm and wonderful tale of hidden emotions and feelings, both happy and sad, that the sisters had long ago abandoned or forgotten. A divinely handsome Daniel Bruhl, of "Goodbye Lenin" fame, plays the young man. Over coffee, Maggie smiles at Judi and says, "It's great working with Judi again. We have done a lot of stage and screen together. And here we are in the same period of history as the last play we did. It seems we never get out of the '30s." I remember I so thoroughly enjoyed them both in the darkly divine drama "Breath of Life" on London's West End. They had to scramble as their schedule was formidable. Judi was going to "Wicked" that night, and Maggie wanted to see, well, "just everything I can fit in over the weekend." There's nothing like a dame!
Two of Dame Judi's Stage Roles Voted 2nd and 3rd Greatest Shakespeare Performance Telegraph.co.uk -- August 22, 2004
In a unique poll of members of the Royal Shakespeare Company, the veteran stage and screen actor's legendary portrayal of the King has been acclaimed as the best ever, writes Roya Nikkhah. It is the greatest accolade an actor could hope for. In a poll of actors and actresses of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Paul Scofield, the 82-year-old veteran of stage and cinema, has been acclaimed for giving the greatest performance in a Shakespeare play for his legendary portrayal of King Lear. Scofield, whose depiction of Lear in a 1962 production at Stratford was later made into a successful film, achieved his victory in a poll voted on by luminaries including Sir Ian McKellen, Donald Sinden, Janet Suzman, Ian Richardson, Sir Antony Sher and Corin Redgrave. Judi Dench took second place for her portrayal of Lady Macbeth in Trevor Nunn's 1976 production of Macbeth, and also shared third place with Sir Robert Stephens's King Lear of 1993 for her performance as the lead in Antony and Cleopatra in 1987.
Dame Judi Voted Favourite British Actress By Chris Hastings and Fiona Govan -- 15/08/2004 David Lean's Oscar-winning epic Lawrence of Arabia has been named the best British film of all time in a poll of the country's most acclaimed film-makers. The 1962 film, which starred Peter O'Toole as the enigmatic T E Lawrence, was one of four Lean classics to make it into the top 10 in the poll conducted by The Sunday Telegraph. Brief Encounter, the director's bitter-sweet tale of a doomed romance that starred Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard, was named runner-up ahead of his adaptation of Great Expectations, which came fourth, and his war-time epic, The Bridge On The River Kwai, which tied in seventh place. Lady Lean, the director's widow, last night welcomed the results describing her late husband as "a dreamer who knew how to put his dreams on screen". She added: "In private David would describe himself as a near miss. He didn't think he was great so he set himself enormously high standards. I think the films endure because people understand that they are about the stuff of life. They are about flawed characters, complex relationships and they all deal with those very fears we have to deal with in our own lives. "He worked best when he could relate to the characters on the screen, when they were a mirror image of him. David was Peter O'Toole in Lawrence of Arabia. He was Alec Guinness in Bridge On The River Kwai and he certainly was Trevor Howard in Brief Encounter." The final list of top 10 films reflects British cinema's long fixation with such genres as kitchen-sink realism, irreverent social satire and classic literary adaptation. Carol Reed's 1949 thriller, The Third Man, made it to third place ahead of The Ladykillers, Kind Hearts and Coronets, Kes, Alfred Hitchcock's The Thirty-Nine Steps, A Matter of Life and Death and Four Weddings and A Funeral. Just over 230 actors, technicians, writers and directors took part in the poll, which was organised by The Sunday Telegraph to celebrate British film and British film talent. Each voted for their 10 favourite British films and their five top actors and actress in several categories. Contemporary film-makers, including Julian Fellowes, the Oscar-winning writer of Gosford Park, Sir David Hare, and Ismail Merchant, the producer of Howards End and Remains of the Day, cast their votes alongside veterans including Ken Russell, Michael Winner and Jack Cardiff, the double Oscar-winning cinematographer. The results seem to confirm the view that the heyday of British cinema is over. Four Weddings and A Funeral, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year, and Trainspotting, released in 1996, were the only two relatively recent releases to make it into the top 20. By contrast, the list of the 10 films voted the worst British films of all time is dominated by a string of new releases, including Sex Lives of the Potato Men and Love Actually, both of which came out last year, and Spiceworld, The Movie from 1997. The prize for the ultimate stinker eventually went to the lamentable Carry On Columbus, released in 1992, a doomed attempt to relaunch the once-popular Carry On series. The impression of decline is confirmed by results in other categories. Dr No, Sean Connery's first outing as 007, easily took the prize of best Bond film, while Brief Encounter was the overwhelming favourite for the most romantic British film. The irreverent Monty Python film, Life of Brian, which will celebrate its 25th birthday this year, was voted Best British Comedy - ahead of the original Ealing version of The Ladykillers. The most surprising results came in the categories for individual talent. While Lean comfortably won the category for Best Director, he had to settle for third place in the race for the most influential Briton in world cinema. Alfred Hitchock, who began his career in Britain before moving to Hollywood in the 1940s, took the top prize ahead of Charlie Chaplin - another Briton who made his name on the other side of the Atlantic. Some of the acting categories also threw up surprises. Dame Judi Dench, a relative newcomer to international cinema and perhaps best known for her role as M in the Bond films, was named favourite actress ahead of veterans such as Maggie Smith, Margaret Rutherford, Vanessa Redgrave and Vivien Leigh, although she was named the actress who made the most impact on world cinema. Sir Alec Guinness narrowly beat Lord Olivier and the Bristol-born Cary Grant to be named the most influential British actor in world cinema.
Cleopatra Tidbits ... From the Independent (4/06/04) DAME JUDI Dench, currently appearing in All's Well that Ends Well (left) at London's Gielgud Theatre, can't be having as much fun as she and Anthony Hopkins did in their 1987 production of Antony and Cleopatra. Dench told the Cheltenham Spring Festival of Literature at the weekend that Hopkins could hardly wait for Antony to fall on his sword. "As he died in my arms," she said, "Tony would look up at me and say, I'm going off for a lovely cup of tea, now.'" But Dench also had her fun. As she and her maids hid in Cleopatra's monument, they would discuss food. Dench only had to mention a craving for dressed crab and champagne, and the next night it was there. Hidden from the audience, they gorged themselves while Hopkins lay dying outside. Thanks to Sandy C, USA, for sharing this
Dame Judi in "Cabaret" John Kander is the musical half of the show-writing team Kander and Ebb. Between them they have produced a string of hit musicals, of which the best-know are Cabaret, Chicago, and Kiss of the Spider Woman. We met Mr Kander at his house in New York's Upper West Side... Have you been to London recently to catch up with the production of Chicago? "Not for a while - I miss the second floor of the Covent Garden hotel, which is where I like to stay when I'm in London. I also miss the fact that Sam (Mendes) isn't round the corner from there, at the Donmar, any more! The original London production of Cabaret starred a young Judi Dench as Sally Bowles. Is there any chance of your working with her again? "I'd love to! She was wonderful to work with on Cabaret. I remember we went over one song again and again, trying to get her to do it just right, and she stopped, looked at me, and in that wonderful voice of hers [he imitates her] said, very solemnly, `Tell me what you want, what you really want" and I did and she did it!" Thanks to Connie E, USA, for sharing this March 28, 2004
PBS Insider -- March 2004 -- Volume 5, Issue 3
Thanks to Cindy Lou F. for sharing this February 16, 2004 Yesterday evening the Wolf Events chat room held a live chat with the actress Teryl Rothery. Teryl is best known for her portrayal of Dr Janet Fraiser on the MGM series "Stargate SG1". A couple of the questions asked, prompted Judi related responses! "From Rosemary56: Hi Teryl. Hope you have recovered from SG7. My Husband was so chuffed to chat to you on the phone I wondered If you were standing in your kitchen phoning hubby and a surprise Celebrity came on the phone who - apart from Patrick Stewart - would you like it to be, and what would you say? TerylR_2: I can honestly say, I would love to have a surprise phone call from Judi Dench. I would probably ask her if she was appearing in any theatre nearby as I would love the opportunity to see her work...live. " "TAGGART: hi teryl ......what sort of work would you like to appear in with Judi Dench and do you have a favourite English actress TerylR_2: taggart...I would work with Ms. Dench in whatever capacity...be it film, tv or theatre. Just to be able to work with her, would be a dream come true." I already knew that Teryl was a big Judi fan as we'd talked about her in the past (she pretended to be cross with me as I was going to see DJD for the first time in 'Breath of Life') and it just gives me a kick to know that another actress I admire is as big a Judi fan as we are :) If you want to know more about Teryl her official website is: Thanks to Shirl at the Wolf Events chat room for letting me post the chat snippets.
Thanks to Lisa S, UK for sharing this
with us January 14, 2004
Email message
and Press Release I received today from the I thought fans of Dame Judi ought to know that the hat worn by her in the penultimate episode of As Time Goes By to Judith's wedding is in an exciting new exhibition at Hat Works. We are the UK's only museum devoted to hats, and we're based in Stockport, Cheshire. Dame Judi's hat, a lovely pale purple straw and cinamay number, decorated with silk roses, is an eye-catching feature of the show and will surely be of interest to her devoted fans. Dame Judi kindly donated the hat to the museum especially for this exhibition. Please find a press release attached. Yours, Hannah
NEWS RELEASE
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Video Clip -- 1:34 Minutes
