Dame Judi Dench was left ecstatic after losing out on an Olivier Award to Lesley Manville, because she had placed a bet on her rival picking up a prize.

Manville was named Best Actress for her turn in the play Ghosts at the annual U.K. theatre prizegiving earlier this month (Apr14), beating out stiff competition from the likes of Anna Chancellor, Hayley Atwell and Dench.

However, the Bond star was far from upset when she heard Manville's name announced, because she had placed a $400 (£250) bet in her favour.

Manville tells Britain's The Daily Telegraph newspaper, "When I got there (Olivier Awards) Judi said, 'Darling, my money's on you', which I thought was a turn of phrase. But afterwards (director) Richard Eyre said Judi loves a bet, and she had put £250 on me to win. Which could explain why when the telly (Tv) cut to her, she had her hands in the air because she was thinking, 'I've made a mint (fortune) here!'"