Entertainment
Dame Judi Dench recalls rushing to be by late husband Michael Williams’ side before death from lung cancer-Kim Novak-Entertainment – Metro
She tried to get home by Concorde.
Dame Judi Dench still struggles to talk about the death of her husband (Picture: rex)
Dame Judi Dench has recalled battling to get home via Concorde to be by her husband’s side as he died from lung cancer.
The actress, 87, spoke to Louis Theroux in the latest instalment of his interview series, in which she opened up on her marriage with the late Michael Williams.
Williams died in 2001 following a battle with lung cancer, and Dame Judi recalled having to race to be by his side in his final hours.
She explained: ‘I was in New York and they said he was not well so my agent flew out and we came back on Concorde the next day.
‘And it aborted take off and we got off and went back and they said “oh it’ll be alright” and we got on another plane and the same thing happened.
‘So it took us a long, long time to get back, but we were back, and got back here so we were all in the house together and that was very, very good indeed.’
She opened up to Louis Theroux (Picture: BBC/Mindhouse)
Dame Judi and Williams had been married for 30 years until his death aged 65 in 2001, and she admitted she threw herself into work after he died in order to ‘use up a bit of energy instead of thinking about it’.
The couple had purchased their house after starring together in a lucrative series of adverts for Clover Butter and Dame Judi revealed that laughing together was a key component of their marriage.
She told Louis it was ‘impossible to tell’ what the foundation of their successful marriage was, adding: ‘Sense of humour mostly.
Dame Judi Dench was married to Michael Williams for 30 years before his death in 2001 (Picture: Tony Kyriacou/REX/Shutterstock)
‘Michael used to laugh and when he used to laugh he used to cry. I think mostly, interest in the same things of course, but I mean what is it? It’s impossible to tell.’
She added that Williams convinced her to take on her role as M in eight James Bond films from 1995’s GoldenEye until 2015’s Spectre.
Dame Judi revealed he told her: ‘”You’ve got to do it, I’ve got to live with a Bond woman.”’
Louis Theroux Interviews is available on iPlayer.
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