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PRESS RELEASE from the QMU Website Dame Judi Dench Awarded Honorary Degree Dame Judi Dench, one of Britain's best loved actresses was, today (15 July), awarded an honorary degree from Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh. At a graduation ceremony held at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh, Dame Judi was honoured for her remarkable life's contribution to film, television and live theatre. Dame Judi was raised in York and trained at Central School. In the late fifties, a young Judi played many promising actress roles and her early work at the Royal Shakespeare Company marked the rise of a Shakespearean star. Throughout her career she has gained numerous honours and awards including Associate Member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, an honour reserved for the very best classical actors. Her 1966 landmark Talking to a Stranger and her film work won the 1965 British Film Academy Most Promising Newcomer Award. She earned four 1980 Best Actress Awards and while in the 1996 Olivier Awards she won both Best Actress in a musical and Best Actress in a play, a theatrical League and Cup double. Dame Judi's recent film roles range from a memorable duet with Maggie Smith in Room with a View, through James Bond's boss, to two stunning royals. In Mrs Brown, her Victoria won a filmic Five Nations Championship: Best Actress - BAFTA Scotland, BAFTA London, London Film Critics, Golden Globe, and New York Screen Actors Guild. Her Elizabeth in Shakespeare in Love brought not only the BAFTA, but, the Oscar. Aside from her acting triumphs, one of her most memorable moments must surely be in 1988 when she was made Dame of the British Empire. Principal, Professor Joan Stringer said "Dame Judi's concern for our culture's future lies not just in her acting: it ranges from her membership of the Royal National Theatre Board to her role as Friend of our very own Gateway Theatre in Leith Walk, Edinburgh. Her life and work embody the University College's values of excellence and service to the community through her integration of practical craft with intellectual and social commitment." Professor Stringer concluded "Dame Judi plays everything from high tragedy to popular comedy, and all excellently. Her wide public following marks the fundamentally democratic nature of great acting: it reaches us all; it speaks to us all. Queen Margaret University College has great pleasure in conferring upon Dame Judi the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters." Dame Judi said "I am thrilled and delighted to have been honoured in this way by Queen Margaret University College."
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