The husband of Dame Judi Dench, actor Michael Williams, is suffering from cancer, it has been reported.
His agent, Victoria Belfrage, told The Mirror newspaper in the UK he is being treated for the condition.
She said: "Michael has cancer. But he has had treatment and is on an even keel."
It is thought the cancer was discovered in June when Williams underwent a spell in hospital with the lung condition pleurisy.
Dame Judi flew back to London from New York, where she was starring in the hit Broadway show Amy's View.
The couple, both 64, are regarded as one of the most successful in British showbusiness. Williams is highly regarded as an actor in his own right, while he has supported his wife's rise to worldwide fame over recent years.
He co-starred with Dame Judi in the 1980s ITV comedy series A Fine Romance, and also featured in the drama September Song. They also both appeared in the Franco Zeffirelli fim, Tea With Mussolini.
They have been married since 1971 and live together in Hampstead, north London. Earlier this year, Dame Judi won an Oscar for portraying Elizabeth I in the film Shakespeare In Love, and a Tony for her part in Amy's View.
Thank you to Christina for pointing me to this article which was publishing in the BBC online on Thursday, August 26, 1999.
Read the article in The Mirror (or the curiously similar article in the London Daily Record/Sunday Mail). Here is another article in This is London and still another from The Electronic Telegraph.