Oscar-winner and James Bond star Judi Dench has said sight loss due to macular degeneration means she can no longer see faces clearly, calling the condition a "crusher" as she marked her 91st birthday on Tuesday.

The veteran star of stage and screen, whose role as "M" in eight Bond films shot her to global fame, has suffered from the degenerative eye condition for over a decade.

Last year she disclosed it had reached the point where she had effectively been forced to retire.

Since then, a further deterioration means she can now only see faces -- even at close quarters -- "in a fog".

She still puts the television on but just to listen to, she added in the interview with the Radio Times listings magazine to mark her birthday.

Dench, nominated seven times for an Academy Award, won for be

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