Judi Dench 'is a ping-pong cheat'

Kevin Spacey has branded Bafta-winner Dame Judi Dench a cheat - at ping-pong.

The two actors, who became friends when they filmed The Shipping News together in Newfoundland, Canada, last night attended a charity premiere of the film at Mayfair's Curzon cinema.

The ping-pong revelation came later in an interview with Michael Parkinson at the BBC studios. It will not be aired until 9 March, but a source close to the show said Parkinson had told Spacey: "She tells me you cheat at ping-pong, by the way." Spacey, 42, replied: "No, it's her who cheats at ping-pong."

The two sparred at the game while shooting The Shipping News. The American Beauty star went on: "Let me tell you what she does. She tries this little act - that is, if you make a great move, and I occasionally would make a great move. She would say, 'Well, if you are going to play like that I don't want to play with you.' "

But then, added Spacey, Dame Judi, 67, would produce a bravura backhand. "She tries to psych you out - and then she does some great move and just goes,'Aha!'"

The two laughed and chatted together at the after-show party at Claridges, in aid of The Old Vic. Spacey, on the cash-strapped theatre's board of directors, said: "The Old Vic is very close to my heart. It is a place born for actors to play and for the hearts and minds of theatregoers to be challenged."