Judi Dench has said she can no longer perform on stage or in films because of her deteriorating eyesight, more than a decade after revealing she had been diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration.

“I can’t be on stage. I can’t do a play any more. I can’t do a film any more. I can’t read any more,” the 91-year-old actor told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Thursday.

Dench, one of Britain’s most celebrated actors, was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in 2012. The condition causes progressive sight loss and has increasingly affected her ability to work, as well as her independence in everyday life.

She described how she can no longer read or recognise faces. “I go up to lots of the wrong people and give them an almost hug and say: ‘Oh sorry, didn’t realise’,” she said. She also told the presenter Emma Barnett: “I can’t see your face at all.”

Dench’s comments mark a stark development in a gradual deterioration that has affected her ability to work for years.…