British actor Dame Judi Dench says her worsening eye condition has left her unable to perform on stage or read.
The 91-year-old Dame told the BBC that her age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has worsened to the point where she can’t see well enough to appear on stage.
"I can’t be on stage. I can’t do a play any more. I can't do a film any more. I can’t read any more," she told Emma Barnett on BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"So you've got to adjust to all that, and make allowances for it. And just get on and don't think about it too much."
She won an Academy Award for best supporting actress for playing Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love in 1999, and became internationally recognised for her portrayal of "M", James Bond's boss.
The star was diagnosed with the degenerative eye condition in 2012, which has affected her vision and makes it difficult to make out faces.
Dame Judi shared that the condition had led to awkward encounters, saying she sometimes approached the wrong people "and give them an almost hug" before realising her mistake.
She also revealed that certain colours were no longer visible to her.
"They said this summer was absolutely sensational with bluebells [but] I couldn't see one," she said.
"I know what my trees look like, and so part of it is in my memory and part of it is what I can hopefully just about make out."
Asked about how she had been finding the ageing process, Dame Judi labelled it: "rubbish".
"There’s nothing to say for it at all," she said.
"Nothing at all. Don't think about it too much and just keep on trying to do the rollerskates or whatever, do anything.
"And if you can’t see as well, which I can’t, it’s a whole other ball game."
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