Meryl Streep 'grateful' for roles

Jan 7, 2010, 13:38 GMT

Meryl Streep feels "very f**king grateful" to be alive.

The 'It's Complicated' actress is astonished by how much acting work she is still offered, even though she recently celebrated her 60th birthday.

She said: "I'm very f***ing grateful to be alive. I have so many friends who are sick or gone, and I'm here. Are you kidding? No complaints!

"It's incredible - I'm 60, and I'm playing the romantic lead in romantic comedies!"

The 'Devil Wears Prada' actress is particularly surprised to still be working as she thought she had reached her "sell-by date" over 20 years ago.

She added to Vanity Fair magazine: "I've been given great, weird, interesting parts well past my sell-by date. I remember saying to my husband when I was 38, 'Well, it's over.' And then we kicked the can down the road a little further."

Although she is delighted to still be starring in successful films, Meryl insists she would never have cosmetic surgery to boost her chances of landing further roles.

She added: "When I see it in people I meet, it's like an interruption in communication with them. It's like a flag in front of the view, and that, for an actor, is like wearing a veil - it's not a good thing."