Knee Jerk Reaction

Current best actress Oscar nominee and former one time winner Judi Dench (pictured) will not be attending the 79th Annual Academy Awards on February 25th in Hollywood--Thanks to some much needed surgery on one of her knees

This Is London tells the tale

This year's Oscar ceremony will see three of Britain's finest leading ladies compete to win the statuette for Best Actress.

But while Dame Helen Mirren, nominated for her role in The Queen, and Kate Winslet, for her performance in Little Children, have both spoken of their excitement at attending the most prestigious award ceremony in film...Dame Judi Dench will be unable to attend due to poor health.

Dame Judi, arguably the nation's favourite actress, has been nominated for her performance as the manipulative schoolteacher in Notes On A Scandal.

But the 72-year-old, who famously won an Oscar in 1999 for her eight-minute performance as Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare In Love, is scheduled to have an important knee operation at the end of this month and has told friends it will coincide with the most important date in the film industry's calender.

'Judi has had this knee injury for a while and finally decided to do something about it,' says a friend.

'It has to be carried out by a specialist at a certain time. Even if they bring the operation forward, she is going to need some recovery time.'

Dame Judi has suffered from the knee problem for a number of years and has told friends that the pain is unbearable - she once described it as 'bone on bone'.

'She feels she would be jeopardising her health if she were to miss the operation for the sake of going to the Oscars,'says a chum.

'She wants to go but Judi has been to the Oscars before and doesn't care about the glitz and the glam of it all.'

However, sources insist Judi's insouciant approach to the ceremony also lies in her belief there is no point attending as Helen Mirren is tipped to win.

'Judi said in a recent interview that she didn't give 'two hoots' that Helen had been nominated, but really she thinks it has ruled out any chance of her walking away with a gong,' continues a friend.

'Helen has already won the Golden Globe for best actress and that's usually a good indicator of who will go on to win an Oscar.'

As a fan of Dame Judi, both as an actress and as a person, I wish the lady nothing but a speedy recovery and best wishes. Even though Dench is probably correct in assuming that Mirren is likely going to win this year...I would be far from upset if somehow Judi managed to pull off a total upset and take home the prize.

If Mirren does indeed win a golden statue, I hope when she accepts her kudos, that she watches her language...Actually I think the F-bomb story (courtesy of Ireland Online) is really freaking hilarious...