Always reading scripts beforehand
O'Hea contrasts his acting preparation with Dench's habit of taking roles unread, stating he has always read scripts and lacks her appetite for risk.
B
Brendan O'Hea
Brendan O'Hea is a theatre director and Associate Artist at Shakespeare's Globe, where he has appeared in fourteen productions. He trained as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and has worked at the National Theatre and RSC. He co-wrote and recorded the audiobook for Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent with Dame Judi Dench, and co-authored Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? with her.
On LuvemBooks, we've reviewed Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? by Judi Dench and Brendan O'Hea.
1
Books ReviewedIn Brendan O'Hea's own words
Brendan O'Hea and Judi Dench discuss their book Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? and reflect on stories from Dench's acting career.
Uploaded by Waterstones, 2026 · Watch on YouTube
Playing Barnie in Mrs Brown
O'Hea recalls filming his role as Barnie the stable boy in Mrs Brown, where makeup artists glued cornflakes to his scalp to make him appear scabby, resulting in an empty train carriage on his way home.
Insights into Dench from co-authoring book
O'Hea explains that collaborating on the book revealed how Dench's early childhood, family life, and Quaker upbringing formed both her discipline and her mischievous streak.
Ask LuvemBooks about Brendan O'Hea
Brendan O'Hea is a theatre director and Shakespeare's Globe Associate Artist who writes in close collaboration with Dame Judi Dench, drawing on his acting training at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and stage work at the National Theatre and RSC. We've reviewed 1 of his books: Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It?, a memoir built from conversations between O'Hea and Dench rather than a conventional single-voice autobiography. That conversational structure — one friend drawing out another's seven-decade career — is the defining feature of the work we have from him.
- Where should I start?
- Start with Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? — it's the only Brendan O'Hea book we've reviewed so far, and it's the natural entry point into his partnership with Judi Dench. The book presents Dench's life and seven-decade career as a conversation between her and O'Hea, so you get both voices at once. It also arrived with starred reviews from Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist, making it one of the most enthusiastically received celebrity memoirs of its season.
- What's their writing style?
- On the evidence of the one book we've reviewed, O'Hea's signature is the interview-as-memoir: Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? tells Judi Dench's story through conversation with him rather than as a straight first-person narrative. That format suits his background — as an actor and director, his role on the page is closer to drawing a performance out of a scene partner than delivering a monologue. The result reads as a dialogue between friends, with Dench's voice front and centre.
- Books we've reviewed
- We've reviewed 1 Brendan O'Hea book. Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? (co-written with Judi Dench) — Dench's life and seven-decade career told in conversation with O'Hea, published by St. Martin's Press in November 2026, and a starred-review standout with Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist.
- What genre do they write?
- The one Brendan O'Hea book we've reviewed, Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It?, sits squarely in Biography & Memoir. It's Judi Dench's account of her own life and career, with O'Hea as co-author and conversation partner. His theatre background shapes the material, but on the shelf this is memoir.
- How does the Judi Dench collaboration work?
- O'Hea and Dench are described as friends and writing partners, and their book is built on that relationship: Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? is Dench's account of her life and seven-decade career told in conversation with him. It follows their earlier work together on Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent, which they co-wrote and recorded as an audiobook. In both cases O'Hea acts as the interlocutor shaping Dench's recollections into a book.
- How was the memoir received?
- Very warmly by the trade press: our summary notes that Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist all awarded Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? starred reviews. That made it one of the most enthusiastically received celebrity memoirs of its season. It was published by St. Martin's Press in November 2026.
Who is Brendan O'Hea?
Where should I start?
What's their writing style?
Books we've reviewed
What genre do they write?
How does the Judi Dench collaboration work?
How was the memoir received?
Who is Brendan O'Hea?
Brendan O'Hea is a theatre director and Associate Artist at Shakespeare's Globe, where he has appeared in fourteen productions. He trained as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and has also worked at the National Theatre and the RSC. In print, he's best known as Dame Judi Dench's writing partner: he co-wrote and recorded the audiobook for Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent with her, and co-authored the memoir Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It?.
Follow up
What is Brendan O'Hea's connection to Shakespeare's Globe?
How did Brendan O'Hea start working with Judi Dench?
Synthesized from verified book data & published reviews · How we review
Press Enter to ask. Answers come from our editorial Q&A — start typing to see related questions.
Authors Like Brendan O'Hea
Lionel Richie
Biography & Memoir
Lionel Brockman Richie Jr.
1 book reviewed
J
Judi Dench
Biography & Memoir
Judi Dench is the author of "Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It?".
1 book reviewed
J. D. Vance
Biography & Memoir
James David Vance is an American politician, author, and venture capitalist serving as the 50th vice president of the United States.
1 book reviewed
M
Matthew McConaughey
Biography & Memoir
Matthew David McConaughey was born on November 4, 1969, in Uvalde, Texas, and has Irish heritage from the County Cavan/County Monaghan area. An Academy Award–winning actor and #1 New York Times bestselling author, he published his memoir *Greenlights* on October 20, 2020, through Crown Publishing Group, drawing on personal journals and life experiences.
1 book reviewed
M
Matthew Perry
Biography & Memoir
Matthew Perry was an American-Canadian actor and author. On November 1, 2022, he published *Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing*, a memoir released by Macmillan Publishers (Headline in the UK) with a foreword by Lisa Kudrow, in which he details his struggles with alcoholism and painkiller dependency. Perry passed away on October 28, 2023, a year after the memoir's release.
1 book reviewed
Jeannette Walls
Biography & Memoir
Jeannette Walls is an American author and journalist widely known as former gossip columnist for MSNBC.com and author of The Glass Castle, a memoir of the nomadic family life of her childhood.
1 book reviewed