At last, Judi's darkest fear comes to light
SHE'S a double Oscar winner but Dame Judi Dench confesses that she can’t watch a film on her own in a cinema because of the claustrophobia and fear of the dark that she suffered from as a child.
The doyenne of stage and screen was cheered by critics and fellow actors as she stepped up to receive the Dilys Powell award for outstanding contribution to cinema at the London Film Critics’ Circle Awards.
But Dame Judi, looking glamorous in a black dress, told us she was far from being a film buff as a youngster.
“I used to have claustrophobia inside the cinema because I didn’t like it in the dark,” she revealed.
“I missed out on films as a kid. Now I’m better watching films on DVD with friends around than on my own.”
Dame Judi, 74, was accompanied at the awards by her attentive chum, married director Richard Eyre – she has laughed off rumours that they are more than just good friends – who directed her in such films as Notes On A Scandal and Iris.
And Dame Judi, who has just finished shooting the big-screen version of the 1982 musical Nine, which also stars Daniel Day-Lewis, added that she still finds making movies a challenge.
“The difference between theatre and cinema is that once you’ve done a film, it’s over. With Nine, two days after I’d recorded my singing part, I did the performance I felt I should’ve done – in my bathroom.”
