Barmy For The Bard: Dame Judi On Her 'Passion'

Dame Judi Dench has described Shakespeare as "the man who paid the rent" as the world marks the 400th anniversary of the bard's death.

Dame Judi told Sky News the playwright is her passion and is still as relevant today as ever.

"He was known in our family as the man who paid the rent because Michael and I only ever did Shakespeare for the first five years of my career and he's my passion.

"He's totally relevant to everything I believe.

"We use expressions that he has written every day and he knew everything about love, jealousy, anger, ambition - everything."

The centrepiece of celebrations will be the Globe Theatre in London, where 37 screens will line the banks of the Thames each showing a specially made film shot in an international location.

Sir Kenneth Branagh, whose theatre company has recently staged a production of The Winter's Tale starring both himself and Dame Judi, believes this anniversary has only increased creativity.

"He's a man who understood human nature so profoundly and it keeps reinventing itself.

"However much we say he was fusty, dusty, dowdy... you celebrate something like his passing 400 years ago and the creative energy that's unleashed is amazing."

The commemorations will continue at the British Library where the reason for Shakespeare's iconic status will be examined by looking at 10 key productions and how they have been interpreted by generations throughout history.

Zoe Wilcox, the lead curator, says it shows how the bard has always been reinvented and re-imagined over the years ensuring his relevance.

"What's so important about the exhibition is we look at the first moment a woman acted in a Shakespeare play in 1660 and the first moment a black actor played Othello in 1825.

"It's because we have a diversity of voices performing Shakespeare now that his works are relevant to us because the stories are being told by so many people all around the world."

Events are taking place across the globe to mark the anniversary including celebrations in Stratford-upon-Avon and a unique tour by the Royal Shakespeare Company of Midsummer Night's Dream which combines professional actors with amateurs from around the country.