Fans have rallied behind beloved retired actress Dame Judi Dench after “heartbreaking” footage emerged from the red carpet of a royal documentary premiere.
The 91-year-old screen icon, who has long battled age-related macular degeneration (AMD), made a rare public appearance on Wednesday to attend the premiere of King Charles III’s documentary Finding Harmony: A King’s Vision at Windsor Castle.
In footage released by GB News, Dench is seen smiling for photographers alongside her partner, 80-year-old British conservationist David Mills, when paparazzi begin calling out instructions, asking her to “look this way please, just eyes here please”.
Clearly unsettled, the Oscar-winning actress clutched Mills and whispered to him: “I can’t see.”
As the photographers continued calling out directions, with one asking the Bond star to look “just down the middle,” Dench was forced to explain her condition again, telling them she “can’t see anything at all.”
“Just looking towards this voice if you could,” a photographer responded, attempting to switch gears.
The moment has since sparked widespread outrage online, with many fans branding the exchange “cruel” and “disrespectful”.
“She said on many occasions that she can’t see any more. To ask her to look somewhere for a picture is cruel,” one Facebook user wrote.
“They hadn’t the manners to listen to her tell them she couldn’t see anything. Such a great lady, very sad for her,” another added.
On Instagram, fans called for more compassion from the paparazzi.
“A little respect please, she’s a national treasure,” one person wrote, while another said: “Ohh that’s heartbreaking! Respect Queen Judi paps please xx.”
“Paparazzi actually made me feel a bit sick,” another commented, while one user simply said: “How disrespectful.”
Others said the footage was distressing to watch: “This is difficult to watch, how polite and gracious she’s being whilst no one is respecting not only the words she’s saying,” one fan wrote.
Many also praised Dench for her grace under pressure.
“What a gracious lady Dame Judy is. It must be an absolute nightmare for her with all the clicking of the cameras and requests to look this way or that. She handles it outwardly so calmly so graciously,” one Facebook user said.
Not all reactions were sympathetic, however, with some arguing the backlash was overblown.
“Obviously it’s not a nice thing her losing her vision. It’s hardly heartbreaking… It’s life, unfortunately. I’m sure she’s adapting to it or she would not be out the house,” one user said.
“It isn’t heartbreaking, it is life,” another concurred.
Dench was first diagnosed with AMD in 2012 at the age of 77.
The condition is the leading cause of permanent vision loss in people over 50 and currently has no cure.
In a recent interview with close friend and longtime collaborator Sir Ian McKellen, Dench revealed her eyesight has deteriorated so significantly that she can no longer see loved ones, read scripts or watch television.
“I can’t see anymore,” she told McKellen when asked why she hasn’t appeared on screen in recent years.
McKellen replied: “But we can see you,” to which Dench responded: “Yes, and I can see your outline, and I know you so well, but I can’t recognise anybody now.
“People think, ‘Oh, get her, she’s got very grand’, but it’s because I can’t see. I can’t see the television, I can’t see to read.”
Despite the awkward red carpet moment, Dench appeared in good spirits throughout the evening, mingling with King Charles, Queen Camilla and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh.
The premiere was attended by Kate Winslet, Benedict Cumberbatch, who narrated the documentary, along with Stanley Tucci, Alan Titchmarsh, and Sir Rod Stewart.
The documentary, which focuses on the monarch’s environmental campaign, is set to be released on Prime Video next month.