Editing Judi Dench (section)

==Personal life==
Dench is a long-time resident of [[Outwood, Surrey]].<ref>{{cite web|date=17 December 2017|title=Dame Judi Dench has been filming new BBC documentary on trees in Leatherhead woodland|url=https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/dame-judi-dench-been-filming-14045308|access-date=26 January 2018}}</ref> A [[Quaker]] since her school years, she said of her faith in 2013, "I think it informs everything I do. [...] I couldn't be without it."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-news/9941570/I-take-memory-supplements-to-help-recall-my-lines-says-Judi-Dench.html|work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|title=I take memory supplements to help recall my lines, says Judi Dench|first=John-Paul|last=Ford Rojas|date=19 March 2013|access-date=2 October 2024}}</ref> She is a long-time supporter of [[Liverpool]]-based football club [[Everton F.C.|Everton]], and has been an honorary patron of [[Everton in the Community|their charity branch]] since 2012.<ref name="EITC">{{cite web|url=http://community.evertonfc.com/news/dame-judi-dench-accepts-starring-role-for-everton|title=Judi Dench is Everton F.C. supporter|work=community.evertonfc.com|access-date=6 November 2013|archive-date=21 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321215035/http://community.evertonfc.com/news/dame-judi-dench-accepts-starring-role-for-everton|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Dench married actor [[Michael Williams (actor)|Michael Williams]] in 1971; they remained together until his death from lung cancer in 2001.<ref name="personallife">{{cite news |title=Actor Michael Williams dies |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1114233.stm |publisher=[[BBC News Online|BBC News]] |date=15 January 2001 |access-date=4 May 2020}}</ref> Their only child, daughter [[Finty Williams]], was born in 1972 and became an actress. Through her daughter, Dench has a grandson.<ref>{{cite news |last=Jardine |first=Cassandra |title=My Grandson Was a Big Surprise |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4710259/My-grandson-was-a-big-surprise.html |work=[[The Sunday Telegraph]] |date=24 August 1997 |access-date=9 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150126051611/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4710259/My-grandson-was-a-big-surprise.html |archive-date=26 January 2015}}</ref>

Dench has been in a relationship with David Mills, a [[Conservationism|conservationist]], since 2010. In a 2014 interview with ''[[The Times]]'' magazine, she discussed how she never expected to find love again after her husband's death and said, "I wasn't even prepared to be ready for it. It was very, very gradual and grown up. It's just wonderful."<ref>{{cite news |last=Carpenter |first=Louise |title=Judi Dench: in love again |url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/judi-dench-in-love-again-3qqkqvcxr6v |website=[[The Times]]}}</ref> The couple met when Dench agreed to officiate at the opening of a new squirrel enclosure at the [[British Wildlife Centre]], of which Mills is the {{shy|founder/di|rec|tor}}.<ref>{{cite news |last=Singh |first=Anita |title=Dame Judi Dench: I've got a jolly nice chap, just don't call him my 'partner' |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/25/dame-judi-dench-got-jolly-nice-chap-just-dont-call-partner/ |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |date=25 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170825064651/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/25/dame-judi-dench-got-jolly-nice-chap-just-dont-call-partner/ |archive-date=25 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://britishwildlifecentre.co.uk/aboutus/our-story/|title=Our story|date=18 July 2018 |publisher=[[British Wildlife Centre]]|access-date=21 February 2024}}</ref>

Dench has been an outspoken critic of prejudice in the movie industry against older actresses. She stated in 2014, "I don't want to be told I'm too old to try something. [...] I want to see for myself if I can't do it rather than be told you might have a fall or you can't learn your lines. [...] Age is a number. It's something imposed on you. [...] It drives me absolutely [[wiktionary:spare#Adjective|spare]] when people say, 'Are you going to retire? Isn't it time you put your feet up?' Or tell me [my] age."<ref>{{cite news |last=Rahman |first=Abid |title=Judi Dench Is Tired of People Saying She Is Too Old to Act |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/judi-dench-is-tired-people-748698 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=12 November 2014 |access-date=3 September 2023}}</ref>

At [[Hogmanay]] on 31 December 2022, she joined [[Sharleen Spiteri]] in an impromptu performance of [[ABBA]]'s "[[Waterloo (ABBA song)|Waterloo]]" at the Fife Arms hotel in [[Braemar]], where they were both staying.<ref>{{cite news |last=Clinton |first=Jane |title=Dame Judi Dench and Sharleen Spiteri delight hotel guests with Abba's Waterloo |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jan/01/dame-judi-dench-and-sharleen-spiteri-delight-hotel-guests-with-abbas-waterloo? |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=1 January 2023}}</ref>

===Health===
In early 2012, Dench discussed her [[macular degeneration]], with one eye "dry" and the other "wet", for which she has been treated with injections into the eye. She said that she needs someone to read scripts to her.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-02-21/judi-dench-says-she-isn27t-going-blind/3841484 Judi Dench says she isn't going blind], [[Reuters]] per [[ABC Online]], 21 February 2012</ref> She also underwent knee surgery in 2013, but recovered from the procedure well and stated that her knee was no longer an issue.<ref>{{cite news |last=Feinberg |first=Scott |title=Judi Dench on Beating Failing Eyesight, Bad Knees and Retirement |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/judi-dench-beating-failing-eyesight-682164 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=21 February 2014 |access-date=3 September 2023}}</ref>

In 2024, it was reported that Dench's eyesight has deteriorated to the point where she is effectively retired from acting.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shoard |first=Catherine |date=2024-05-28 |title='I can't even see': Judi Dench suggests retirement from acting due to blindness |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/article/2024/may/28/judi-dench-retirement-from-acting-due-to-blindness |access-date=2024-09-07 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> 

===Political views and interests===
Dench has worked with the non-governmental indigenous organisation [[Survival International]], campaigning in the defence of the [[San people]] of [[Botswana]] and the [[Arhuaco|Arhuaco people]] of [[Colombia]]. She made a supporting video saying the San are victims of tyranny, greed and racism. Dench is also a patron of the [[Karuna Trust (UK)|Karuna Trust]], a charity that supports work amongst some of India's poorest and most oppressed people, mainly, though not exclusively, [[Dalits]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.karuna.org/about-us/people/dame-judi-dench/|title=Dame Judi Dench, Patron of the Karuna Trust|publisher=karuna.org|access-date=20 February 2014}}</ref>

On 22 July 2010, Dench was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters (DLitt) by [[Nottingham Trent University]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/news/98814-15/Stars_of_stage_and_screen_among_honorary_graduates_of_Nottingham_Trent_University.aspx|title=Stars of stage and screen among honorary graduates of Nottingham Trent University|publisher=Ntu.ac.uk|access-date=4 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100827062254/http://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/news/98814-15/Stars_of_stage_and_screen_among_honorary_graduates_of_Nottingham_Trent_University.aspx|archive-date=27 August 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Dr Hadwen Trust]] announced on 15 January 2011 that Dench had become a patron of the trust, joining, among others, [[Joanna Lumley]] and [[David Shepherd (artist)|David Shepherd]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.drhadwentrust.org/smartweb/latest-news/news-and-views/post/26-dame-judi-dench-announced-as-patron-of-the-dr-hadwen-trust|title=Dame Judi Dench announced as Patron of the Dr Hadwen Trust|date=15 January 2011|publisher=Drhadwentrust.org|access-date=4 September 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007161813/http://www.drhadwentrust.org/smartweb/latest-news/news-and-views/post/26-dame-judi-dench-announced-as-patron-of-the-dr-hadwen-trust|archive-date=7 October 2011}}</ref> On 19 March 2012, it was announced that Dench was to become honorary patron of [[Everton in the Community]], the charity branch of [[Liverpool]]-based football team Everton, of which she is a long-time supporter.<ref name="EITC" />

Dench is an advisor to the [[American Shakespeare Center]]. She is a patron of the [[Shakespeare Schools Festival]], a charity that enables school children across the UK to perform Shakespeare in professional theatres.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.shakespeareschools.org/about-us/patrons#dame-judi-dench |title=Patrons: Dame Judi Dench|publisher=[[Shakespeare Schools Foundation]] |access-date=22 December 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171211165434/https://www.shakespeareschools.org/about-us/patrons#dame-judi-dench |archive-date=11 December 2017}}</ref> She is also a patron of [[Shakespeare North]], a playhouse project due to be completed in 2022 in the town of [[Prescot]], near Liverpool.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.shakespearenorth.org/a-letter-to-liverpool-from-dame-judi-dench/ |title=A Letter to Liverpool from Dame Judi Dench |publisher=[[Shakespeare North]] |access-date=12 September 2018 |archive-date=12 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612142523/http://www.shakespearenorth.org/a-letter-to-liverpool-from-dame-judi-dench/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> She is patron of East Park Riding for the Disabled, a riding school for disabled children in [[Newchapel, Surrey]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/East-Park-Riding-Disabled-Association-open/story-12854255-detail/story.html|title=East Park Riding for the Disabled Association is open for business|date=5 July 2011|work=East Grinstead Observer|publisher=Northcliffe|access-date=19 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506072351/http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/East-Park-Riding-Disabled-Association-open/story-12854255-detail/story.html|archive-date=6 May 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dench is also a vice-president of the national charity Revitalise, which provides accessible holidays for those with disabilities.<ref>{{cite web|title=Vice Presidents|url=http://revitalise.org.uk/meet-team/?role=18#roles|website=Revitalise|access-date=10 August 2016}}</ref> In 2011, along with musician [[Sting (musician)|Sting]] and billionaire entrepreneur [[Richard Branson]], she publicly urged policy-makers to adopt more progressive drug policies by decriminalising drug use.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-13625241 |title=Dame Judi Dench and Sting head drug rethink call |publisher=[[BBC News Online|BBC News]] |date=2 June 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.metro.co.uk/news/865135-judi-dench-and-sting-post-letter-to-pm-urging-decriminalisation-of-drugs |title=Judi Dench and Sting post letter to PM urging decriminalisation of drugs |work=[[Metro (British newspaper)|Metro News]] |date=2 June 2011 |access-date=12 September 2018}}</ref>

In 2014, Dench was one of 200 celebrities to sign an open letter to the people of Scotland asking them to vote to remain part of the UK in [[2014 Scottish independence referendum|that year's referendum]].<ref>''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]'', 10 August 2014</ref>

In a 2022 opinion piece for ''[[The Times]]'', following the death of [[Queen Elizabeth II]], Dench expressed criticism of the [[Netflix]] show ''[[The Crown (TV series)|The Crown]]'', accusing it of "crude [[sensationalism]]" and being "cruelly unjust to the individuals and damaging to the institution they represent," as well as having the potential to mislead non-British viewers through dramatic license. She furthermore argued the show should add a disclaimer warning to remind viewers that it is a fictional drama.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-63326250 |title=The Crown: Dame Judi Dench accuses Netflix hit of 'crude sensationalism' |publisher=[[BBC News Online|BBC News]] |date=20 October 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/11/11/1136071036/the-crown-queen-elizabeth-king-charles-diana |title=Heavy is the head that does not like 'The Crown' |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=11 November 2022}}</ref> In 2023, Dench and her partner David Mills were both invited to ride in [[King Charles III]]'s [[Royal Ascot]] Procession.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ascot Racecourse on Twitter |url=https://twitter.com/Ascot/status/1672199380139425792 |website=[[Twitter]] |access-date=29 June 2023}}</ref>

=== Philanthropy and advocacy ===
Dench is the Patron and President of the alumni foundation of [[Drama Studio London]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dramastudiolondon.co.uk/alumni/career-prospects |title=Archived copy |access-date=24 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008080431/http://www.dramastudiolondon.co.uk/alumni/career-prospects |archive-date=8 October 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Rules |first=L. |title=Famous Drama Studio London Alumni |url=https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-drama-studio-london-alumni-and-students/reference |publisher=[[Ranker]] |access-date=24 August 2019}}</ref> a Patron of the British Shakespeare Association, and a vice-president of [[wildlife conservation]] NGO [[Fauna and Flora International]].<ref>{{cite news|title=People |url=https://www.fauna-flora.org/people|access-date=5 December 2020|newspaper=[[Fauna and Flora International|Fauna & Flora International]]}}</ref> She has participated multiple times in the Explorers against Extinction wildlife conservation fundraiser Sketch For Survival, in which celebrity artists join prominent wildlife artists in sketching wildlife as well as they can in 26 minutes, and the results are auctioned off.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.yorkshirelife.co.uk/out-about/events/the-sketch-for-survival-exhibition-1-6291383 |title=The Sketch for Survival exhibition at The Wildlife & Safari Travel Show |access-date=11 December 2020 |publisher=Yorkshire Life |date=3 October 2019}}</ref>

In a [[biography]] by John Miller it was noted that in the late 1990s Dench was the patron of over 180 charities, many of which were related either to the theatre or to medical causes, for example [[York Against Cancer]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Miller|first=John|title=Judi Dench: With A Crack in Her Voice|publisher=[[Hachette Livre|Hatchette UK]]|year=2013|isbn=978-1-78022-644-6|section=Introduction}}</ref> Dench is a patron of [[the Leaveners]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thefriend.org/article/quaker-composer-new-leaveners-patron|title=Quaker composer new Leaveners' patron|website=The Friend|date=26 March 2015|access-date=6 October 2021}}</ref> The [[Archway Theatre]], [[Horley]], Surrey,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wscountytimes.co.uk/arts-and-culture/theatre-and-stage/dame-judi-dench-calls-donations-locked-down-archway-theatre-2849435|title=Dame Judi Dench calls for donations to locked-down Archway Theatre|website=West Sussex County Times|date=11 May 2020|access-date=6 October 2021}}</ref> and the relationship research and innovation charity OnePlusOne (formally known as OnePlusOne Marriage and Partnership Research, London.)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oneplusone.org.uk/news/dame-judi-dench|title=OnePlusOne|website=www.oneplusone.org.uk}}</ref>

She became president of [[Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts]] in London in 2006,<ref>{{cite news |title=Dench is appointed Mountview president|newspaper=[[The Stage]]|location=London|issn=0038-9099|date=30 March 2006|page=6}}</ref> taking over from Sir [[John Mills]]. She has been president of [[Questors Theatre]], [[Ealing]], since 1985, where the main auditorium is known as The Judi Dench Playhouse, being the only theatre to bear her name.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.questors.org.uk/prods/2014/50playhouse/doc/Questors%20P50%20Brochure.pdf|title=50 years of the Playhouse at The Questors Theatre|pages=1, 4|year=2014|access-date=6 October 2021}}</ref> She was also patron of [[Ovingdean Hall School]], a special day and boarding school for the deaf and hard of hearing in [[Brighton]], which closed in 2010,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ovingdeanhallschool.org.uk/|title=home|publisher=Ovingdean Hall School|access-date=13 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110113102021/http://www.ovingdeanhallschool.org.uk/|archive-date=13 January 2011}}</ref> and Vice President of [[The Little Foundation]]. Dench is also a long-standing and active vice president of Revitalise, a national disabled people's charity.