Judi Dench to join Benedict Cumberbatch in Richard III

To be brutally honest, we would watch Judi Dench do the dishes for an hour straight if it was ever an option. The acclaimed actress, who has stolen scenes in everything from Skyfall to Notes on a Scandal to Shakespeare In Love, is joining the previously cast Benedict Cumberbatch in a new BBC adaptation of Richard III.

Dench will be taking on the role of Cecily, Duchess of York alongside the star of Sherlock and every other story you see online.

It's one chapter in a new three-part special, called The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses, which will also include Henry VI, told in two parts. Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville will star as Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester while Oscar nominee Sophie Okonedo will play Queen Margaret and Keeley Hawes will be Queen Elizabeth.

Henry himself will be played by Tom Sturridge, last seen in On the Road.

All three films will be directed by Dominic Cooke based on adapted screenplays from Ben Power.

Dench is an old hand when it comes to the works of the Bard, having starred as Ophelia in Hamlet, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth.

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[via Hollywood Reporter]

(Images: Rex Features)