DAME Judi Dench is coming again to Winchester to help raise funds for Home-Start Winchester.

She’ll talk about her career on stage and screen – and life in lockdown, in conversation with her friend and biographer, John Miller, from Bishop's Sutton, near Alresford, at the Theatre Royal on Sunday October 24 at 7pm.

Public tickets go on sale on Tuesday July 13. The price will be £25 and we are expecting heavy demand once this news is shared in the media.

Dame Judi’s last visit to Winchester in 2016 sold out very quickly and many people were disappointed not to attend.

Home-Start supporters have an opportunity to buy tickets in advance of the public sale. Priority booking will open at 10am on July 6 at www.theatreroyalwinchester.co.uk/whats-on.

Home-Start says it is a "real coup" for to have secured Dame Judi’s visit and it is grateful to Mr Miller for his support in making it happen.

Dame Judi has not been on the Theatre Royal Winchester stage since 2008 when she appeared in Great Eccentrics, a dramatic recital written and produced by John Miller. However Dame Judi was last in the city in 2016 to help raise funds for Home-Start, when she sold out the Guildhall, and she has not let the grass grow under feet since. Their latest platform conversation will examine the highlights of her career, on stage and screen and, during the lockdown, on Zoom.

“We are very grateful for the sponsorship from William Heller Associates, which has enabled us to stage such an important event,” says Home-Start Winchester chairman, Barry Page. “We must raise 90 per cent of our income from fundraising, donations and gifts so that we can maintain our support for vulnerable families in this area. We must also thank John Miller for bringing Dame Judi to Winchester again.”

Judi Dench In Conversation with John Miller will take place at the Theatre Royal Winchester on Sunday October 24 at 7pm and will be followed by a book signing. Tickets at £25 can be obtained from the Theatre Royal Winchester Box Office at www.theatreroyalwinchester.co.uk/whats-on or by calling 01962 840440.