People News

Helen Mirren's secret rage

Feb 26, 2010, 6:01 GMT

British actress Helen Mirren EPA/JENS KALAENE

Helen Mirren once destroyed a public telephone in a fit of rage.

The award-winning actress has revealed she is not always as "docile" as she may appear, and can easily "see red", lose her temper and destroy her surroundings if she is really riled.

She said: "I'm actually quite docile, but sometimes I just lose it. I literally see red and it's as if my head explodes. I often start crying when that's the case. I generally cry a lot. And of course I've thrown stuff around in rage. I remember wrecking a public pay phone once by tearing it off the wall with all my might."

The 64-year-old star - who has been married to US movie director Taylor Hackford since 1997 - claims her personality was moulded over the years by her various lovers.

She explained: "I'm very unmusical. But I had a lover who loved music. He taught me everything and he completely shaped my taste in music. Another lover was interested in boxing, since then I've been fascinated by it. I absorb everything, I love to learn. It's important to be open-minded. There's nothing worse than narrow-mindedness. I think nowadays young people isolate themselves too much."

With a varied and long-lasting film career, Helen believes Hollywood has made her "greedy" caused her to lose the "idealistic" views she had when she was starting out.

She explained to German TV channel 'Tele 5': "I'm still a group actress. Even when I play the main character my work only counts as part of an ensemble, and I love my co-stars. It's been like that since I've been young. However, I've lost a big amount of idealism. I'm a lot greedier and more corrupt than I used to be.

"I would prefer being different, but I've become anxious with the years. The harsh reality of life caught up with me and I want financial security. At some point idealism just falls by the wayside, which is rather sad."