Dame Judi Dench said having her late husband’s pocket watch repaired by a team at a repair shop and engraved with his initials was “more than she could have hoped for.”
His veteran actress restored sentimental items as part of a special live session for the BBC One program at the Edinburgh Television Festival.
Before the 87-year-old took the stage, a videotape was played showing her presenting the team with a pocket watch she had given to her late husband, actor Michael Williams, in 1972.
Dame Judy told furniture restorer and show host Jay Blaze that Williams gave him the watch when they were in a play together and used it during production.
She then said he carried it around in his pocket and “cherished it” until he died of lung cancer in 2001 at the age of 65, after nearly 30 years of marriage.
The actress described her late husband as “wonderful” and said it would be “nice” to hear the movement of her pocket watch again to remind her of the time they shared.
Another clip showed horologist Steve Fletcher taking the watch apart, cleaning it thoroughly, and repairing the mechanism.
Dame Judy looked moved as he unveiled the repaired clock live on stage at the Television Festival, holding his ear to hear it ticking again after years of silence. At the time, he described the work as “sublime”.
The team also noted that they had her husband’s initials engraved on the back of the watch for her, to which she responded: Thank you very much. “
She added that she was “admiring” their work and was an avid viewer of the show.
video of the day
Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood, 57, also joined Wednesday’s live session. by a team of specialists.
In the video clip, furniture restorer Will Kirk and stuffed animal specialists Amanda Middleditch and Julie Tatchel meticulously restore the chimpanzee’s thinned fur, not just with liquid rubber. was seen to be Give it a hair plug.
After being shown the reanimated animal, the notoriously tough Horwood said the transformation was “amazing”.
He added:
When the team asked if they would get a 10 out of 10 for their work, they said “better than 10”.
Mrs. Judy then hugs the chimpanzee and describes him as “beautiful”.
Earlier this year, the actress appeared in a sketch disguised as a Comic Relief repair shop.
She played a character struggling with memory, wanting to fix up an old doll from her childhood to remind her of her youth, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders.
