London West End's Shaftesbury Theatre to be renamed to honour Judi Dench

She is considered one of Britain’s finest actresses and has shone throughout her seven-decade career in unforgettable roles on stage and screen.

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She has won an Oscar, a Tony, two Golden Globes, six BAFTAs, seven Olivier Awards, and has been appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

She was also James Bond’s boss for 17 years.

Now, Dame Judi Dench is getting her very own theatre.

More precisely, London’s Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End is to be renamed the Judi Dench Theatre, in honour of the 91-year-old stage and screen legend.

Dame Judi said the renaming was “truly overwhelming,” adding: “The Shaftesbury Theatre has always held a special place in my heart. My relationship to the Theatre of Comedy and to the Taffner family goes back many years… Live theatre continues to be so important as a way of telling stories and entertaining audiences, something I have aimed to do all my working life.”

Chief Executive Eleanor Lang said the theatre was “so excited” to honour Dame Judi: “Not only does she play an important role in our history, but she is an iconic figure of the stage and screen landscape.”

She added: “We don’t celebrate brilliant women enough in our West End theatre names, so we are delighted that her name will be forever in lights above our doorway.”

Chairman Donald Taffner Jnr. paid tribute to a “close friend of the DLT family for so long,” recalling fond memories of Dame Judi at the Shaftesbury “from the meetings for the Theatre of Comedy members to when her husband was performing in a number of the Theatre of Comedy productions.”

The Shaftesbury Theatre was originally called New Prince’s Theatre when it was built in 1911, and changed its name in 1962 in commemoration of the original Shaftesbury Theatre, which was destroyed in the Blitz.

The renaming is set to take place in February 2027, following a renovation of the theatre.