Dame Judi Dench becomes an honorary Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College

07-Jul-2005 • Actor News

Oscar-winning actress Dame Judi Dench has been made an Honorary Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College - reports Cambridge News.

Dame Judi took time out from her hectic schedule to visit Cambridge to receive the accolade.

She had lunch with fellows of the college before attending a reception for staff and students.

A star of stage, film and television, and one of the country's best-loved actresses, Dame Judi was born in 1934 in York and made her debut with the Old Vic Company in Liverpool in Hamletin 1957.

She went on to join the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1961, and during her 47-year career has played all the leading female Shakespearean roles.

On the small screen, she played in the si.comAs Time Goes By, and A Fine Romance, with her late husband Michael Williams, who died of cancer in 2001.

In the 1980s she began to take on more cinema roles, including A Room with a View (1985), A Handful of Dust (1987), Henry V(1989), Tea with Mussolini (1999), The Shipping News (2001), and The Chronicles of Riddick(2004).

Oscar-nominated for the films Mrs Brown (1997) and Chocolat (2001), she won an Academy Award for the eight minutes she spent on screen as Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love (1998). She has also won a record six Laurence Olivier awards for theatre and a number of BAFTAs.

In 1995, she took over the role of M in the James Bond films, including GoldenEye (1995) Tomorrow (Thursday, 07 July) Never Dies(1997), Die Another Day (2002), and she is set to return to the role in next year's Bond movie, Casino Royale.

Dame Judi is known for her modesty and famously doesn't like to watch herself on screen. She was made a Dame in 1988, and this year was given the prestigious Companion of Honour award.

Dame Veronica Sutherland, college president, said: "We were delighted to welcome Dame Judi Dench and to inaugurate her as a Honorary Fellow.

"It is a privilege to have amongst our Fellows one of the country's greatest living actors who has given pleasure to millions while promoting a deeper understanding of the great works of English literature.

"Dame Judi met many of our Fellows, students and staff, and we look forward to seeing her here in the college again."

Thanks to `Kyvan` for the alert.