Claire Danes learns from husband

Feb 4, 2010, 10:23 GMT

Claire Danes thinks she's lucky to have an actor husband.

The American actress - who met British spouse Hugh Dancy, 34, when filming the 2007 drama 'Evening' - said being in the same profession means the couple can pass on tips, especially when one of them is due to start work on a particularly challenging role.

She said: "He did play an autistic person six months prior to my doing 'Temple Grandin', which was a really odd coincidence. And it was very convenient for me, because our bookshelves were already stacked with all of the required reading. It was a great gift to have him understand what I was doing in such an intimate way."

The 30-year-old star - who plays the title role of autistic author and animal behaviour expert Temple Grandin in her new film - said she was so desperate to get the part just right because the writer is still alive and she didn't want to "disappoint" her.

She explained to the USA Today newspaper: "I read some of her books and started exploring who she was and became enraptured. It was totally daunting, because she's wired and organized in such a fundamentally different way from myself. She's alive and would ultimately see it, and I didn't want to disappoint her."

Claire spent an afternoon with the author as part of her research and was delighted to gain her approval.

She said: "She really liked it, which is a profound relief. She was the only critic I cared about. Once I had her validation and her appreciation, I felt very, very good."