Bill Nighy attacks Britain's treatment of the elderly Nighy, who worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, spoke out prior to the release of his latest film in which he stars alongside Dames Judi Dench and Maggie Smith. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is a tale centered round a motley group of pensioners who leave Britain for Jaipur, India, after seeing an advert for a seemingly luxurious sanctuary for "the elderly and beautiful." For various financial reasons all are persuaded, and in some cases obliged, to embark on an unsure future at the retirement home, where their care is outsourced. Other stars of the comedy-drama, directed by John Madden, include Penelope Wilton, of Downton Abbey, Celia Imrie, who starred in the BBC sitcom After You've Gone, and Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel. Yesterday, Nighy described one scene in the film where he drove around on a motorbike as Dame Judi rode side saddle as his passenger. He claimed the experience exemplified how people of his age still revelled in new adventures. Dame Judi, 77, who plays a widow in the film, also criticised Britain's attitude towards the elderly and said her family had benefited hugely from providing a home to both her late husband's parents and her own mother. Speaking to the Radio Times, she said: "We're not good at dealing with old age in this country. We shove people in a room and leave them sitting round a television. We didn't do that in our family - shove people into a nursing home. Michael (her late husband, actor Michael Williams) and I had his parents and my mother, who was widowed then, and we all lived together for 12 years. You learn such a lot from the generation above you. My daughter has lovely memories of that time and now talks about her grandparents with great fondness, as do I. Nighy, who claimed driving Dame Judi around had been daunting, added: "Despite being in my 60s, I love learning new things and being challenged, and the biggest one in this film was riding a motorbike. If I'd been on my own, I'd have probably been OK, because who cares? But when you have someone on the back, sitting side saddle, and that someone happens to be Dame Judi Dench, let me tell you that is very daunting indeed. And if you kill Judi Dench, you can't go back home. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel opens in cinemas across the UK on February 24.