The big interview
Dame Judi Dench has an enviable zest for life and loves a practical joke, as GH found out when we met her with the man who makes her laugh most, actor and director Brendan O’Hea
Dame Judi Dench is one of those people you can’t help but want to be friends with. So, when the GH team meets her along with her friend of almost 30 years, actor and director Brendan O’Hea, we’re intrigued to know if it’s everything we’ve imagined.
The pair, who met when they were both performing at the National
Theatre, have been each other’s co-stars, housemates, plus-ones and confidantes – and their bond is clear to see. They laugh, bicker (‘Brendan! If that gets written down!’ Judi often quips during the interview) and rely on each other. ‘I know that at any time of the day or night, I could ring Brendan. Whether he’d answer, that’s a different story!’ Judi, 88, laughs.
They are also now co-authors, having spent the past four years working on their new book, Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays The Rent, in which Brendan, who has appeared in and directed more than a dozen Shakespeare plays, chats to Judi about each of the Shakespearean roles she’s played. It’s a moving trip down memory lane, interspersed with deeply personal moments – from the birth of Judi’s daughter, Finty, to the loss of her husband, Michael.
Judi and Brendan talk about their new book, their enduring friendship and why laughter is the key to life…
Congratulations on your new book! How did it come about?
Brendan: I had this idea of interviewing Jude about every Shakespeare role she’s ever played and then offering the tape to the archive department of Shakespeare’s Globe. But the problem was, there were so many swearwords in the full 100 hours that I couldn’t hand it over! Oh, and dare I say it, all those stories about her ex-lovers…
Judi: Brendan! That’s not true, don’t believe him.
B: No, no… that’s volume two!
J: Because we’re old friends, it was just like having a very relaxed chat – or a long series of them. Brendan would come to my house, put his recorder on, and we’d talk about all these wonderful memories.
How did you avoid getting sick of each other?
B: We probably did get sick of each other, didn’t we?
J: Sometimes – that was usually when I’d leave the room and get the Butterkist popcorn.
B: Oh God, yes. I’ve got
