Helen Mirren at 70
Photo via Woman & Home
‘Your 40s are good. Your 50s are great. Your 60s are fab. And 70 is fucking awesome.’ So says Helen Mirren, who will be 70 on Sunday. We all know growing old is not for cissies but at least Mirren makes it look like fun. The Guardian asked me to write a piece on what the Great Dame has taught us about life and style…
“I think every woman in our culture is a feminist. They may refuse to articulate it, but if you were to take any woman back 40 years and say, ‘Is this a world you want to live in?’ They would say, ‘No’ “
Mirren thinks sexism and ageism in Hollywood is ‘fucking outrageous.’ Her feisty attitude and incredible work ethic make her a fantastic role model for women of all ages. When it comes to style, she makes eveningwear look easy, has found a look that suits – the figure-hugging lace cocktail dress, the versatile bob, statement earring and woosh of red lipstick – and sticks to it. One of my favourite Mirren quotes is:
‘The weird thing is, you get more comfortable in yourself, even as time is giving you less reason for it. When you’re young and beautiful, you’re paranoid and miserable. I think one of the great advantages of getting older is that you let go of certain things.’
Helen Mirren by Mary McCartney, 1998
Read the full article HERE.
Discussion (39 Comments)
That haircut in the top picture is sublime. Although I sort of feel superstitious about wanting to look fab at seventy. More than that I want to still be healthy and be able to care about looking fab. My Mum got dementia in her sixties and while I know she would always approve of anyone wanting to look their best, I do feel shallow sometimes admiring these women. Oh dear, sorry, that is not a very cheerful comment!
TNMA says:
Hello Lucy – I completely agree, health is everything. To be honest, I always find writing this kind of feature a bit tricky because there’s so much more to successful, talented, inspirational women like Helen Mirren, than appearance. Hopefully, I’ve managed to capture some of that in the feature. She’s 70 and still going strong – and that is something worth celebrating!
dottoressa says:
She is fabulous!!! She is a lady who gets better and better with age,confidence and experience!
Yes,health is the most important issue,I agree,but it is also healthy to think,read and watch beautiful things and inspiring people,art,culture,sport,nature……. it helps us to stay strong,or forget for a moment problems we might have!
DottoressaLynnette says:
The thing I like about Helen is that she has not fought getting older. She has not done lots of surgery, or tried to look younger than she is. She is comfortable and happy in who she is and her age and I think that is the key.
Congrats on a great article. She is brilliant in every way. I love her stance on coverage. I have been having some fun with long sheer sleeves this summer. Somehow it just makes me feel more comfortable which is always the key. Everything else I feel is in order.
Accidental Icon
http://www.accidentalicon.comHelen Mirren is making 70 look fabulous. I admire her take on aging and her lust for life. You did capture the “all” of her. Body, mind and spirit. Brava!
Olderbutwiser says:
Health and happiness first, then looks can trot along nicely just behind thank you!
Not a great lover of the ‘F’ word I have to say…..call me boring but just so unnecessary. I work in an environment (HMP) where I hear it constantly…..ahhh!
sinead says:
I think she’s great (check out her legendary Parkinson interview from the 70s on youtube where she hands him his sexist a*se on a plate)-but she *has* had loads of work done, I wish people wouldn’t tout her as an example of going au naturel. I watched the boxset of Prime Suspect recently and she looks younger in the last series than the first, 15 years previously!
olderbutwiser – you’re not boring, it’s about the context. Though I quite like a swearing dame myself.
Sinead – the Parkie interview is ace. And, yep, she’s definitely had work done. There was that big hoo-ha about airbrushing in the L’Oréal ads that was cleared because the images weren’t significantly retouched, that’s what Helen Mirren looks like…
After seeing her in the movie, Red, I decided she was my role model!! I think she embodies all I want to be! jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.comMona says:
I think she looks great but have to agree with the use of the ‘f’ word! No need for it – I must be boring!!
Helen is epitome of GLORY with punch of panache! With her outstanding track record for excellence in the arts, the intellect with which she approaches each role and the beauty and power she exudes on and off screen, we as women should be inspired on so many levels. Some felt that her use of the “f” word wasn’t necessary. I, for one, feel that the article would have a completely different tone (boring) tone had she not used it. She is HELEN! For me, the word was pivotal in sending the
message! Is 70 awesome? Or is 70 “f—king” awesome?! Haha…Those of you turning 70 surely want to hear the second one!
And let’s face it….her accent doesn’t hurt, either! Cheers!Anna says:
I really admire Helen Mirren – her attitude as well as her style. However, I want/need so much to be able to trust in what I am being told about women, image and ageing. I want to be offered an image of an older woman who has not had any ‘procedures’ (nor any Photoshopping). Is her face completely natural? I don’t want to be told – this is how a woman can look at 70 when really, the face is a result of money and the best interventions.
At 60, and in good health; do exercise, eat organic etc, I have a lot more droop around the eyes, and the mouth where my flesh is starting to fall, naturally, southwards with gravity. I want to know if this look at 70 is attainable without any surgery.
PS. I meant to say that I have no idea whether or not she has had any face/neck ‘procedures’!
THE VERISIMILITUDE OF HELEN………I would like to respond to Anna’s query.
As a plastic surgery nurse, age 64 (and married to a plastic surgeon for 37 years!), I will tell you there is no easy answer to your question. We can eat well, sleep well, exercise safely, breathe in clean fresh air, live a stress-free existence, drink 10 glasses of natural spring fed water a day, maintain an ideal weight, meditate, be in a happy loving relationship and STILL NOT control how we age! The process, while surely influenced by all of the above, naturally takes its own journey, even though we try hard to navigate it. And boy, don’t we? There is one very important factor besides lifestyle which is THE most influential in our aging journey…and that is GENETICS. What did your mother, grandmother and aunts look like at your age? An Irish woman may have lighter, thinner skin than an Italian woman and thus will look more wrinkled and older at a much younger age. We can’t control how much collagen we have in our skin to keep us looking “plumped”. Some have more than others, etc. etc. I, for one, have had a little nip and tuck along the way in an effort to keep it all horizontal instead of vertical! I do this by having occasional fillers (plumpers). I don’t want to look 45 because the rest of me doesn’t look 45! But my personal preference is to look “well”. Helen’s pics tell very different stories. I can’t guess if she has had work or not. The pic of her in the red lace dress is less “touched up” and thus I think maybe a more fair representation of what she actually looks like. And kudos to her for not BOTOXING UP. I’m not a fan of the frown lines between the eyebrows, but I am also not an actor. She’s an actor. She has to keep it real on several levels for the verisimilitude of her sport! And just maybe…. for the verisimilitude of HELEN.Thank you for taking the time to comment so fully, Penny. True about the ageing process – and I’m sure you are familiar with the recent report into the different rates of ageing (link below). Agree about the Botox, an actress I know had Botox once, hated what it did to her face and couldn’t wait for it to wear off. I think we all want to look ‘well’ & Mirren certainly does look fantastic. A couple of beauty expert friends have said that it looks like she has had work around the jawline but that’s her business…
Penny – thanks so much for your interesting and useful reply! Alas, I only have one photograph of just one of my grandmothers (at 53 years old). It was a professional b&w portrait taken in 1951 so it is very clear and she looks very smooth-skinned – in fact quite perfect! I think they made heavy use of lighting then but didn’t have much with which to trick us. So I don’t have much to go on re. gene info. I’ll just have to watch how my face changes with interest and a light heart – gulp.
I’ve never had work done, ever. I am 72. I agree with the people who say it’s mostly genetics, but also less stress, a peaceful lifestyle, and good health help along the way.
Johnnie says:
I much enjoyed reading the article profiling one of the many older lovely ladies of our generation. My mom just recently passed away at 85 with skin and appearance of a woman at least a decade or more younger! I was fortunate enough to inherit this trait. A funny little story… I remember being about 12 grocery shopping with my Mom. She was pregnant for my youngest sister and had 5 of us before her. We were stopped and chatted up by an older lady who knew of my Mom. My Mom, always the polite one, introduced me as her daughter to which the woman exclaimed “oh my…you don’t look old enough to have a daughter her age!” To which my Mom replied, “Well, I do! And one older than her at home!” I was a bit astonished by my Mom’s reaction and when I asked her about it she said, “I do get tired of people denying me my children!” So, evidently there’s many more things important in life than having young looking skin.
Glynis says:
Happy Birthday Helen but please stop advertising Loreal Hair colour as I am sure you don’t use it. I have just used the one advertised that you are purported to use and my hair is now a dirty red.
Joanie says:
Now in my late 50s, I have frown lines across my forehead, 2 deep ones between my eyebrows, loads of fine ones around my eyes, etc. I have not and would never have a jot of work done (though I know many who have – each to her own). I have no idea if I look my age, or older or younger and the thing is, I REALLY don’t care a single jot. My face is my story, and I have no wish to edit it.
Jane Dalea-Kahn says:
Helen is a very cool lady. And whatever work she’s had done, it’s been done by an expert. She has that thin English skin so not sure why she’s not more wrinkled. I can only hope to look as good as she looks when I’m her age.
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Great actress and fabulous woman, I love her!