Dame Helen Mirren sings Pierce Brosnan‘s praises and opens up on finding self worth, faking it until she makes it and the power of friendship in our cover feature from the September 2025 issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly.
When a young New York copywriter by the name of Ilon Specht sat down to try to come up with a slogan for a new hair dye ad in 1971, she was enraged at the idea that beauty was only valuable if it captured a man’s gaze. In the space of five minutes, she had come up with four words which would shift the beauty industry and continue to be a catchcry for L’Oréal Paris today: “Because I’m worth it”.
As Ilon was making waves, so too was a young woman across the pond in London. Ilyena Lydia Vasilievna Mironov, as she was christened, was beginning what was already looking to be a spectacular career.
She’d started out in the National Youth Theatre at 18, under the more Anglicised name of Helen Mirren (her father had changed their surname when she was 10). The Royal Shakespeare Company soon came knocking, as did the world of film. Little did she know that five decades later, at the age of 69, she would be tapped to be the one speaking those powerful words – albeit “I’m” having been swapped out for “you’re”.
“I mean, what a wonderful and extraordinary message,” the actress tells The Weekly now of Ilon’s words, which continue to rally women to believe in their worth and raise their self-confidence. “It’s extraordinarily profound in a simple way.”
What beauty brand does Helen Mirren endorse?
Her appointment as a L’Oréal Paris ambassador was met with applause. Having been awarded the title of Dame in 2003, Helen Mirren embodies the strong, genuine, confident and effortlessly glamorous woman with a twinkle in her eye we all aspire to be.
“I am not gorgeous, and I never was, but I was always okay looking, and I’m keen to stay that way,” she said at the time. “I hope I can inspire other women toward greater confidence by making the most of their natural good looks.”
Having won almost every acting award under the sun playing strong, unapologetic women, at 80, Helen is more in demand than ever, with a slew of projects on the horizon. But behind the self-assured exterior lies a woman who we learn today often needs to remind herself of those words. That, despite having given a sense of empowerment to others around her, she has had a lifelong struggle with confidence and self-worth.
As she joins us to chat about her new Netflix film, The Thursday Murder Club – based on Richard Osman’s bestselling novel about four retirees who solve cold-case murders for fun – Dame Helen Mirren opens up to reveal she still applies the “fake it until you make it” approach in times of inner uncertainty. But also why she knows, deep down, that any fears or doubts can be overcome by just getting started.
What drew you to taking the part of Elizabeth in The Thursday Murder Club?
I’d read the book and very much enjoyed it. All my girlfriends were reading it at the time. Reading it, I have to say, I was reading Elizabeth and thinking, “Well, if they ever make a movie of this, I think that’s my role. I really hope they approach me for it.” And then luckily, they did!
The Thursday Murder Club is very much about the power of friendship. What do you rely on your friends for?
First of all, I rely on my friends to recommend good books for me, which they do regularly. Certainly, The Thursday Murder Club was one of those books.
The incredible power of friendship. I have some very old friends, and I’m very lucky in that my closest and oldest friend works with me in England as my sort of manager/assistant. So, there’s help in life in general. I’m very lucky there.
But I guess it’s sharing memories. I think it’s knowing you can be with people you know and who you can make a fool of yourself with, and they’re going to forgive you. They’re not going to be judgmental because they’ve known you for such a long time.
You reunite with your MobLand co-star, Pierce Brosnan, in this film. What do you enjoy most about working with him?
I would work with Pierce for the rest of my life if that would be possible. The wonderful thing about Pierce is that he is incredibly prepared and professional, but he does it in a way that is sort of light-hearted and easy. He’s private and quiet on the set. He just gets on with it.
He enjoys his work and never complains about anything. And that’s always very appealing to me. I try to have a similar approach. He’s very inspiring to work with, I have to say.
It’s also a return to working with Ben Kingsley – albeit with a longer time gap between jobs. What are your memories of working with him across the years?
Ben and I began together as young actors, more or less the same age, in the same way and with the same sense of personal dedication. We both started off in Shakespeare, and I think it was Shakespeare’s writing and the depth of understanding in his plays that drew us personally, both of us, to the theatre and made us both want to become actors.
As I say, we started off on a very similar level. We were a similar age. We were playing similar roles – you know, pretty important roles in the Royal Shakespeare Company. We really began our professional lives together, and then we went off in different directions – both theatrically – and then we have both had a substantial film career.
Our careers have sort of mirrored each other in many ways throughout the years. So it’s particularly wonderful to find ourselves opposite each other again, so late in life.
You once advised a group of high school graduates: “Don’t be afraid of fear.”
Actually, the quote is “be afraid of fear” because fear is a dangerous thing. And overcome fear if you possibly can. It’s more, “Be wary of fear”.
What are the fears in life that you had to work to overcome? And is there anything that you’re still afraid of?
Well, am I worth it? Basically, no, I’m not! You know, the fear that you are not worth it. You are not worthy, you are not good. Those feelings of insecurity and lack of confidence.
The only way I overcome that is to try to think that everybody else is just as unconfident as I am. Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s necessarily true, but certainly a lack of confidence is something I’ve always had to deal with my whole life. But it can be dealt with.
How do you do that?
You know, you can just, as I say, fake it till you make it. Or gut it out. Or logic your way out of it.
I’m still very nervous whenever I start a new project. I’m nervous about meeting new people, about dealing with new people, about what the atmosphere on the set’s going to be like – am I going to be able to deal with these very strong personalities that you often have to deal with in my job? So, I’m often very insecure and nervous about that until I get started.
That’s interesting that you say you battle with feeling worth it. You’re a long-term ambassador for L’Oréal Paris; how do you relate to their key message, “Because you’re worth it”?
That phrase really speaks to self-confidence, doesn’t it? And feelings of self-worth. And that is something that we all struggle with – men and women. And both young women and young men, and older women and older men. “Because I’m worth it” is so much more than whether you can afford to buy a lipstick or not.
You’ve been an outspoken advocate for embracing the ageing process in a positive way. What still needs to change in terms of attitudes – both in Hollywood and in the wider world?
I mean, I don’t honestly think I’ve been a particularly outspoken advocate for, as you say, embracing the ageing process in a positive way. The reality is you’re stuck with it. There’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. It’s a part of the existence of humanity and of every piece of nature on this planet.
So, what can you do? Every culture adores youth, because youth is adorable. It’s creative, it’s beautiful. You had your go, you had your turn, and it’s not your turn anymore. That doesn’t mean that you are no longer a vibrant or active or thoughtful or creative human being. You know, you’ve travelled to a different shore.
Do you exercise?
The absolute minimum and never pushes herself further. Well, actually, that’s a lie. Once I start, I push myself. But it’s the starting that’s always difficult.
I’m a big believer in yoga, quite honestly. I think it’s a really fantastic exercise. I was always very … what’s the word? Supple. I could bend over, so to speak. [Laughs] So yoga was a very natural thing for me to do. And certainly a little tiny bit of cardio, and I’m thinking now to start a little bit of weightlifting, which apparently, as you get older, is a good idea.
You seem to be relishing the wide variety of roles you’ve taken on recently. Are you having more fun choosing parts at this stage of your career?
I have to say I’ve always had fun in choosing which parts to take. Of course, you don’t always necessarily sit there with three or four or five different offers on the table and go, “Ooh, I wonder which one I’ll have” very often.
The parts you choose are related to family scheduling, which country they’re shooting in, whether they’re right in terms of the work that you’re doing at the time. Or whether they’re in contrast to the work you’ve just done. All of those things come into play.
I’ve always had fun. I’ve always tried to mix it up. I’ve never tried to be too precious or too self-conscious about my choices.
Lately, it feels like you’re working an extraordinary amount …
Very often, with scheduling, you can have a bit of a car crash with three or four projects that all seem to come at the same time. So it looks as if you’re working all the time because they all come out at the same time. But that’s not necessarily the case. As I say, I love mixing it up, and I hope I’ll be able to continue to do that.
This article originally appeared in the September 2025 issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly. Subscribe so you never miss an issue.
