Dame Helen Mirren: 'Queen is remarkable'

Dame Helen Mirren is a big fan of Queen Elizabeth II - and is surprised the monarch has remained sane through the pressures of royal life.

The actress used to be a supporter of abolishing royalty but, since taking on the role of Britain's ruling monarch in 2006 movie The Queen, she has become a huge supporter of the Windsors.

Mirren says, "It's a miracle she's never gone mad. She is a remarkable person, who has achieved an amazing thing with a life she neither chose for herself, nor particularly wanted. She's never put on weight, never got anorexic, never gone mad."

The actress also describes her brief meeting with the monarch at the U.K.'s Ascot racecourse earlier this year, adding: "She said, 'Hello, it's lovely to meet you'. And that was about it, other than horsy chat."