Judi Dench started her career as a theatre actress before starring in the television series ‘Hilda Lessways’ in 1959. After appearing in television series like ‘Armchair Theatre’ (1960), ‘The Four Just Men’ (1960), ‘The Cherry Orchard’ (1962), and ‘Z-Cars’ (1963), she made her big-screen debut with the 1964 British CinemaScope neo-noir psychological mystery thriller film ‘The Third Secret.’ The film was not well-received by critics and failed to perform at the box office. The following year, she played the role of ‘wife’ in the British film ‘Four in the Morning’ which earned her the 'BAFTA Awards’ for ‘Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Role.’Â
She went on to star in films like ‘He Who Rides a Tiger’ (1965), ‘A Midsummer Night's Dream’ (1968), ‘Luther’ (1974), ‘A Room with a View’ (1985), ‘A Handful of Dust’ (1988), and ‘Henry V’ (1989). In 1995, Dench starred as ‘M’ in the Martin Campbell-directed ‘GoldenEye.’ The film was the seventeenth installment of the James Bond series. ‘GoldenEye’ garnered positive reviews from critics and was a massive box office success. She reprised her role as ‘M’ in ‘Tomorrow Never Dies’ (1997), ‘The World Is Not Enough’ (1999), ‘Die Another Day’ (2002), ‘Casino Royale’ (2006), ‘Quantum of Solace’ (2008), and ‘Skyfall’ (2012). She returned for a cameo appearance in Spectre’ (2015).
Some of Dench’s notable film performances came with ‘Shakespeare in Love’ (1998) for which she won the ‘Academy Award,’ ‘The Shipping News’ (2001), ‘Mrs Henderson Presents’ (2005), ‘Notes on a Scandal’ (2006), and ‘Philomena’ (2013). She has also appeared in a lot of television series and shows such as ‘Talking to a Stranger’ (1966), On Giant's Shoulders’ (1979), ‘Saigon: Year of the Cat’ (1983), As Time Goes By (1992-2005), and ‘Cranford’ (2007).Â
Judi Dench was last seen in the 2021 coming of age comedy-drama film ‘Belfast‘ directed by Kenneth Branagh. The film premiered at the 48th Telluride Film Festival and received rave reviews from critics.