Dame Judi Dench and Sharleen Spiteri from Texas presented the guests of the hotel in Scotland with an unexpected performance of ABBA’s “Waterloo” on New Year’s Eve.
During the hogmanay celebration at the Fife Arms in Braemar, Aberdeenshire, the couple improvised a rendition of the hit on the piano in the hotel lobby.
Sharing a piano chair, Spiteri took over the lead vocals, and Dench played the piano. During the performance, Spiteri exclaimed about her partner: “What a pianist!”
The video was filmed by hotel owner Evan Venters, who told BBC Scotland: “Judi Dench and Charlene Spiteri stayed at the hotel and we had an impromptu moment at the piano.
“It was a happy evening, a lot of guests and locals applauded.”
He added to PA that the couple “had met before, but after dinner they met in the lobby and sat down at the piano. The guests were somewhat shocked, but they liked it!
“Two legends — the Scottish singer Sharleen Spiteri — and Dame Judy, who, although born in York, is an honorary Scot, not least for playing Queen Victoria so many times. Mrs. Brown is back on Royal Deeside!”
See the performance below.
GLOBAL EXCLUSIVE – Dame Judi Dench gigs with Sharleen Spiteri at The Fife Arms, Braemar – future dates are in the planning. Watch this space, meantime, HAPPY NEW YEAR! #damejudidench #judidench #sharleenspiteri #thefifearms #braemar #scotland 🏴 #newyear #happynewyear pic.twitter.com/5iOcl3SuB3
— Ewan Venters (@ewanventers) January 1, 2023
In a less hospitable demeanor, Judi Dench recently recalled an incident when she shouted “jerk” at a complete stranger.
Dench said she thought it would be “funny” to yell at the man she thought was her friend Alistair McGowan as she drove down the road, not realizing it wasn’t him.
“I was driving and I saw who I thought was Alistair McGowan, and I shouted ‘jerk’… and it was a complete stranger,” the actor said.
Reflecting on her loved ones in another recent interview, Judi Dench said she planted “memorial trees” in her private forest in honor of her friends, including Alan Rickman and Helen McCrory.
Speaking about why she started planting trees in memory, Dench said, “Well, I love them. I love trees and just thought it would be nice to do it.”
