We’ve seen on many occasions that has a cheeky, but infectious, sense of humour, but one person in particular wasn’t so amused by it back in the day.
The actress, 87, actually caused Lesley Manville, 66, to have an embarrassing accident on stage, when the two worked together in the 1980s.
Dame Judi and Lesley were starring in The Cherry Orchard at Aldwych Theatre in Westminster , telling the story of the decline of power of the aristocracy in the 20th century.
Despite the serious subject matter, Dame Judi was determined to inject some laughter into the production by getting her co-star to laugh – but Lesley ended up wetting herself in the process!
Talking about her long career in the theatre, and reminiscing about working with Dame Dench in the 1989 production, Lesley shared details of her humiliating incident on The Graham Norton Show on Friday.
‘We were in the Cherry Orchard and I was on stage on my own and she was in the wings trying to make me laugh,’ Lesley said, already unable to contain her laughter.
Struggling to keep a straight face, she continued: ‘She was pretending she was being pleasured from behind! I laughed so much I wet myself.
‘Luckily, I had a long dress on but the stage was raked and I could see my pee trickling down and over the edge into the stalls.’
‘She is so naughty!’, Lesley declared, leaving the host and audience in fits of laughter.
Also on the BBC chat show, the star spoke about her new comedy-drama, Mrs Harris Goes to Paris, set in 1950s London and following a widowed cleaning lady who embarks on an adventure to the French capital with an obsession with a particular haute couture Dior dress.
Lesley described the show as ‘a musical without music’ and ‘a soothing balm.’
‘It is two hours of gorgeous escapism and people like it, which is great.’
Asked if the cockney expressions might be confusing for some American audiences, she say: ‘I said, “Gordon Bennett” a few times but I didn’t overdo it – I didn’t want the movie to have to have subtitles!’
The Graham Norton Show airs Fridays on BBC One at 10.40pm and is available on BBC iPlayer.
