Dame Judi Dench has got her first tattoo

Dame Judi Dench has got her first tattoo.

The 81-year-old actress was gifted the body art from her 43-year-old daughter Finty – who she had with her late husband Michael Williams – for her latest birthday, and is now left with the permanent marking of her favourite motto "Carpe Diem" on her wrist.

Speaking to the Mirror Online about the spontaneous present she received, the mother of one said: "That’s my motto: Seize the day. Finty gave it to me for my 81st birthday – she’s wonderful with surprises."

However, Judi was mocked by her colleagues who believed the quote to mean something entirely different.

She explained: "Mind you the company of ‘A Winter’s Tale’, which I was doing at the time, used to say that it said fish of the day."

However, this news doesn’t come as a surprise as the movie legend has always been "tempted" to get a tattoo, which has always been supported by her child.

Speaking previously, she said: "I am tempted to have a tattoo to mark my birthday. Finty’s very keen on me having one.

"There’s an Indian symbol that I like which supposedly represents life and love and everything."

However, the ‘Skyfall’ star – who played the role of M – was put off by her colleagues, who joked the marking could be misspelt and have another than what was intended.

She explained: "One of the cameramen who worked on ‘The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ told me what it meant, but I’m a bit nervous in case I’m being set up… It might be unbelievably rude!"

And the award winning star – who was crowned the Actress Defying Age and Ageism in 2012 for her role in the 23rd ‘James Bond’ production – intends to stay young in her ways, and has been undergoing macular degeneration for the past six weeks to assist her mobility.

She explained: "I just want to go on being mobile really and able to do things. I’m not going to be beaten by my eyes for instance.

"I have macular degeneration, which means treatment every six weeks, but you just have to settle for it.

"On my scripts, my font is point-size 22, so you can imagine…if we’re doing a sonnet of 14 lines, all the others will have one page and I’ll have 14.

"It’s ridiculous, it’s a farce, but I’m not going to give in."