This marvelous collection of images, many of which are drawn from Judi Dench’s personal photo albums, offer the actress’s many fans a rare insight into her life. John Miller, her biographer, has augmented Judi Dench’s own photos with images depicting 50 years of distinguished work in film, theater, and television. From her childhood in York and her first work as an actress in her teens to recent informal shots backstage and private family photos, these images show Judi Dench as never seen before. Judi Dench is the foremost actress in contemporary British theater. She has also won acclaim for her films, with memorable performances in Shakespeare in Love, for which she received an Oscar, as well as Iris, Chocolat, Mrs. Brown, and Mrs. Henderson Presents, all of which garnered her Oscar nominations.
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'This delightful book is the closest that Dame Judi has come to writing an autobiography.' -- DAILY EXPRESS
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
About the Author
Dame Judi Dench is the foremost actress in the British theatre. Created a DBE in 1988 and a Companion of Honour in 2005. John Miller is the author of biographies of Ralph Richardson, Judi Dench, and Peter Ustinov. He collaborated with John Gielgud on An Actor and His Time. He has also edited Darling Judi, which celebrated Judi Dench's 70th birthday.
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Judi Dench: scenes from my life: a elegant look at a marvelous actress
Jan 12 2009
By M. Kirouack
Format:Paperback
Anyone who has been following the carreer of Judi Dench, will be glad to add this book to their library. More a photo album than a book per se, it closely follows the different periods of her career, decade by decade, and underlines the important roles she undertook in each of them, both on stage, in film or in television, though the latter is less prevalent. Each role is illustrated with lavish pictures. Judi Dench own comments, thoughts and souvenirs are interspaced with the pictures. The overall feeling is of someone reminiscing freely as they peruse an old photo album.
Being an unconditional of Judi Dench, I really enjoyed this book and will surely go back to it time and time again. However, anyone expecting an in-depth biography or an thorough account of either her personal or professional life, will be disappointed. The format of this book does not permit any in-depth analysis, nor does it purports to do so, as it is, first and foremost, a pictorial history. Finally, most of the book covers her professional life, though there is a chapter covering more personal matters: her immediate family, her daughter Finty and her great love, Michael Williams.
Anyone interested in Judi Dench is sure to enjoy this book, especially given the fact that it covers the extraordinary array of roles she has undertook so far in her carreer.
Being an unconditional of Judi Dench, I really enjoyed this book and will surely go back to it time and time again. However, anyone expecting an in-depth biography or an thorough account of either her personal or professional life, will be disappointed. The format of this book does not permit any in-depth analysis, nor does it purports to do so, as it is, first and foremost, a pictorial history. Finally, most of the book covers her professional life, though there is a chapter covering more personal matters: her immediate family, her daughter Finty and her great love, Michael Williams.
Anyone interested in Judi Dench is sure to enjoy this book, especially given the fact that it covers the extraordinary array of roles she has undertook so far in her carreer.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars
18 reviews
144 of 144 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Guided Tour Through Dame Judi's Photo Album!
Dec 3 2005
By Tiggah
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
As I already have John Miller's biography of Dame Judi Dench, I debated getting the newly-released (as of the date of writing) Scenes from My Life, which I assumed was Dame Judi's autobiography and which I thought might be somewhat repetitious. I needn't have worried, for this is, in essence, a photo album annotated with brief anecdotes or fond memories concerning each photo. This is a beautiful, slightly oversized 223-page hardcover, which is printed on heavy, photo-quality paper and is packed with quality colour and black-and-white photos on every page with very little text.
Dame Judi is generous in sharing with us a number of personal photographs. Though there are shots of her at various ages and stages in her life and career, there are not many childhood family photos (sadly, she lost most of her personal photo collection in a house fire). Still, she has managed to amass a nice assortment. There are photos of her with her late-husband, actor Michael Williams, with their daughter Finty, with grandson Sam, and with her darling and obviously much-loved little shih tzu (photos of whom I noticed even adorn her dressing room mirror in one shot!). Though the majority of photos are scenes of Judi in her professional capacity, there are as many "off stage" photos (ie. behind-the-scenes shots, dressing room shots, etc.) as their are stills from films or photos taken on stage.
The book is divided into eleven chapters, beginning with "My Family and other animals." The next seven chapters are a visual chronology of Dame Judi's roles on stage from the fifties through to the nineties. Chapters nine and ten cover Dame Judi's roles on screen (both on television and on film). The final chapter, entitled "Some Off-Duty Moments," brings the book full circle with a few more spatterings of personal photos.
Dame Judi is reputed to be a lovely person, and her wonderful sense of humour is apparent throughout. With so many photos and so little text, I suppose one would best describe this as a "coffee table" book. Certainly, it doesn't take long to read (and is well suited to being picked up and put down), but the nicest thing about it is the feeling one gets while going through the book, for it's almost as if Judi Dench herself is sitting with us, giving us a guided tour as we look through her photo album.
In conclusion, this is a lovely book which is sure to be enjoyed by fans of Dame Judi Dench, whether one is an avid reader or not, and it's the sort of book that is a pleasure to return to again and again. Highly recommended to all fans of this lovely, talented, and very successful Oscar-winning actress.
Dame Judi is generous in sharing with us a number of personal photographs. Though there are shots of her at various ages and stages in her life and career, there are not many childhood family photos (sadly, she lost most of her personal photo collection in a house fire). Still, she has managed to amass a nice assortment. There are photos of her with her late-husband, actor Michael Williams, with their daughter Finty, with grandson Sam, and with her darling and obviously much-loved little shih tzu (photos of whom I noticed even adorn her dressing room mirror in one shot!). Though the majority of photos are scenes of Judi in her professional capacity, there are as many "off stage" photos (ie. behind-the-scenes shots, dressing room shots, etc.) as their are stills from films or photos taken on stage.
The book is divided into eleven chapters, beginning with "My Family and other animals." The next seven chapters are a visual chronology of Dame Judi's roles on stage from the fifties through to the nineties. Chapters nine and ten cover Dame Judi's roles on screen (both on television and on film). The final chapter, entitled "Some Off-Duty Moments," brings the book full circle with a few more spatterings of personal photos.
Dame Judi is reputed to be a lovely person, and her wonderful sense of humour is apparent throughout. With so many photos and so little text, I suppose one would best describe this as a "coffee table" book. Certainly, it doesn't take long to read (and is well suited to being picked up and put down), but the nicest thing about it is the feeling one gets while going through the book, for it's almost as if Judi Dench herself is sitting with us, giving us a guided tour as we look through her photo album.
In conclusion, this is a lovely book which is sure to be enjoyed by fans of Dame Judi Dench, whether one is an avid reader or not, and it's the sort of book that is a pleasure to return to again and again. Highly recommended to all fans of this lovely, talented, and very successful Oscar-winning actress.
38 of 38 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
an added bonus....
Mar 11 2006
By PNWmuse
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
As a long-time fan of Dame Judi Dench, I found this book to be a perfect companion to her autobiography by John Miller 'Judi Dench: With a Crack in Her Voice'. I didn't have the advantage of following her life more closely by living in England. When I read the autobiography, I wanted to 'see' more of her to sense this life she was sharing with us. This book gives the reader a full spectrum of her life and the pictures are wonderfully presented. I am so glad to have added this to my collection which also includes 'Darling Judi'. For me, the three books together complete a full and beautiful picture of this wonderful lady and actress.
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dame Judi
Feb 21 2006
By Eileen R. Maguire
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I am a fan of Judi Dench's and this book is a keeper--the photos and anecdotes are superb.
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Go to Amazon.com to see all 18 reviews
4.7 out of 5 stars
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